FairPlay is seeking answers to South Africa’s looming food security crisis, and we’re asking leaders in business, agriculture, politics and charitable and consumer organisations to help us find the solutions.
We have invited these leaders to our Food Security Summit, to be held in Johannesburg on 3 November this year. We want them to identify the actions that will prevent a serious food security issue from deteriorating into a food security crisis.
“The warning lights are flashing red,” said FairPlay founder Francois Baird.
“Six million South Africans lack food security, and 27% of children are stunted reaching 1.7 million by 2025. The main reason for that is not the availability of food, but the simple fact that poor people cannot afford it. With recent food price rises, that has become true for some middle class families as well.
“Added to that are the strains being put on the food supply chain by load shedding and high agricultural input prices, with the possibility of drought years ahead because of the return of the El Nino weather phenomenon.
“We must act now to stave off disaster. Millions of hungry people are a humanitarian crisis, and we as a relatively wealthy country should be ashamed that hunger has become so widespread. And it only takes a small spark to turn hunger into violence and social unrest.”
Baird said Food Security Summit would be a “solutions-focused event”.
“We know what the problems are, ranging from massive unemployment to high food prices. The result is that millions of South Africans cannot feed themselves and their families. We need solutions that will enable more people to get more food at affordable prices.
“We need practical suggestions from farm to retail, from agriculture, economists, business and government on the actions that must be taken now, in the next few years, and over the longer term to achieve this.
“Poverty and starvation are putting South Africa’s future at risk. We need to act now, decisively and with great urgency,” Baird said.
Tell us what you think must be done
What actions would you suggest to avert a hunger crisis in South Africa?
Ahead of our Food Security Summit in November, FairPlay is inviting suggestions from the public on the steps that are needed to enable more South Africans to feed themselves and their families.
Please tell us what you think should be done – immediately, over the medium term and over the longer term.
Your suggestions can address any one of these timeframes, or all of them. You can look at farming, or the food supply chain, or economic and political solutions.
All ideas are welcome. They will contribute to the package of solutions that will emerge from the Summit. They will help us propose a way to address poverty, hunger and starvation, and to ensure a stable future for South Africa.
Send your proposals to: info@fairplaymovement.org
We look forward to hearing from you.
