EASTERN CAPE NEWS - Seventy Eastern Cape children in the province have died from starvation and malnutrition in the first six months of this year.
For every child lost, there are hundreds more who go to bed hungry.
Marlene Ewers, MPL and DA Shadow MEC for Social Development, shared this grave reality upon reacting to the sight of Gift of the Givers joining forces with the Department of Social Development to hand out food parcels during the Provincial Children’s Day event over the weekend of 7 and 8 November.
“This should have been a moment of hope. Instead, it was a stark reminder of how far the Eastern Cape government has fallen behind in protecting its children.
When civil society steps in to do the work the government should be doing, it exposes failure,” said Ewers in her media release.
Economically distressed province
During a follow-up discussion with the Graaff-Reinet Advertiser on Friday 14 November, Ewers admitted that the damaging and inaccurate narrative that often resurfaces whenever the Eastern Cape faces reports of child hunger or severe acute malnutrition-related deaths should be addressed.
“The suggestion that these tragedies occur because parents “misuse” grants or prioritise alcohol over feeding their children is not only untrue, it is rooted in the worst stereotypes about poor families. It shifts blame away from the structural conditions that make hunger inevitable,” she said.
Ewers stressed that extreme poverty and unemployment are the primary drivers of hunger and poor nutrition.
“The latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey shows that the Eastern Cape remains the most economically distressed province in the country.
The official unemployment rate stands at 41.2% in Quarter three of 2025. In rural areas, including districts such as Sarah Baartman, where Graaff-Reinet, Jansenville, Steytlerville and surrounding communities fall, the expanded unemployment rate (LU3) reaches 59.4%.
This means six out of every ten working-age people in rural Eastern Cape cannot find work, even if they want to. No community can escape hunger under those conditions.”
Social grants inadequate
The reality is that the cost of living goes up, and grants have not kept pace.
“South Africa’s social grants remain below the food poverty line.
The Child Support Grant, currently around R510 per month, does not even cover a child's most basic nutritional needs.
Independent analyses show that the grant has not kept up with food inflation, let alone stretch to cover shelter, transport, clothing, and other essentials.”
Repeated calls have been made for the Child Support Grant to be increased to at least the food poverty line, a position supported by child rights organisations and even reflected in recent SAHRC recommendations.
Provincial systems are collapsing
“In response to DA parliamentary questions, Premier Oscar Mabuyane confirmed that the province only reaches about 5% of affected communities with food relief.
The Department of Social Development has confirmed that relief is capped at three food parcels per household per year.
Nutritional support for children depends on private donors, not the state.
Twenty eight percent of DSD offices are in poor or very poor condition, and 35% are overcrowded.
There is no tracking, no follow-up, and no proactive intervention for hungry households.
This is not a problem of irresponsible parents; it is a problem of an irresponsible state.”
The province has the authority to act and can:
• Declare a provincial disaster for hunger and malnutrition and co-ordinate a rapid response across departments.
• Redirect wasteful spending to expand the School Nutrition Programme.
• Establish community feeding centres.
• Ensure that early-childhood development facilities include proper nutrition support.
• Publish regular, transparent updates so communities know whether progress is being made.
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