South Africa: Childhood Hunger - When School Meals Stop, One Free State Community Steps in
[Health-e] For some children at a Nyakallong school in the Free State, the school term means at least one guaranteed meal a day.
In a small community in South Africa's Free State, caregivers have stepped in to address the issue of childhood hunger when school meals stop during holidays. The We Care Daycare Centre, located near S.A Mokhothu Primary School, feeds up to 200 children each day during the first week of school break and beyond. Rebecca Ndaba, one of the seven caregivers at the centre, explains that high unemployment in Nyakallong leaves many families struggling to provide even one meal a day for their children.
The National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) provides learners with meals during the school term, but when schools close for holidays, children lose access to this vital source of nutrition. We Care continues to feed children during these breaks, providing meals to both S.A Mokhothu learners and children from other nearby schools.
The centre receives funding support from the Free State Department of Social Development and serves a diverse range of foods, including pap and cabbage, rice with chicken and pumpkin, and tinned fish and potatoes. For many families in Nyakallong, the meals provided by We Care help alleviate hunger at home, particularly for parents who are unemployed or work casual jobs.
The community faces significant unemployment issues, with many parents relying on social grants and casual work to make ends meet. Community groups like We Care Daycare play a crucial role in bridging the holiday hunger gap, as even the government's feeding scheme is not always available during school holidays.
Written by urgent.news from AllAfrica Health's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
