South Africa: Hunger Is Driving KZN Women to Recycle for Food

In KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa, a growing number of unemployed women are turning to recycling as a means to put food on the table for their families. Nokulunga Nkabinde, a 31-year-old mother of two, spends her days collecting discarded aluminum, beverage and energy drink cans. She then sells them to a local scrap metal dealer, earning between R550 and R800 per month.

This income helps feed her family of seven, including her grandmother, mother and two siblings, who together have a combined monthly income of just under R6,000. Nkabinde's two children also receive child support grants of R580 each, but she spends R800 on school transport monthly. Other Embo residents, such as 51-year-old Gloria Diya, have been collecting cans for over a decade, earning up to R300 or more on good days.

The income from recycling supplements Diya's husband's old-age grant of R2400 per month and helps them buy essential items like vegetables, fruits, bread, mealie meal and other necessities. Many unemployed Embo residents rely on can-recycling as a lifeline, as it helps pay for school uniforms, buy vegetable seeds for home gardens and keep their community clean and healthier.