SARChi to boost food security research

Professor Thandi Mgwebi, director of Research at the University of the Western Cape, introducing the SARChI in Social Protection for Food Security

“Food insecurity is not caused by lack of food at national level, but by a lack of access to food at the individual level, mainly due to poverty,” says Dr Stephen Devereux, the SARChi in Social Protection for Food Security. Dr Devereux is also a research fellow at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Sussex in Brighton, UK.

“One response to food insecurity is social protection, which improves access to food for the poor, either by giving them food or by raising their income,” adds Dr Devereux. Yet, despite South Africa’s extensive and expanded social protection system, food insecurity and malnutrition remain highly prevalent, with an estimated one in four South Africans being food insecure.

Strengthening research and innovation

The SARChi aims to address questions on why food insecurity in South Africa remains so high, despite the comprehensive social protection system and; how can the impact of social protection on hunger be improved? The UK-SA Bilateral Research Chair initiative is a National Research Foundation (NRF) joint programme implemented through the British Council. The initiative aims to help strengthen research and innovation capacities in SA and the UK and to promote international exchange and cooperation.

Front row: Professor Thandi Mgwebi, director of Research at the University of the Western Cape, Minister Naledi Pandor, Dame Judith McGregor. Back row: DVC Frans Swanepoel, Dr Stephen Devereux and other SA-UK SARChIs, and members of the British Council.

Dr Devereux will be based at the University of the Western Cape’s (UWC) Institute for Social Development, and affiliated to the DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security (CoE-FS). The CoE-FS’s network spans 12 local universities, seven international partners, and two research councils. “This SARChi presents an opportunity to further widen our network and create new linkages to expand the reach of the centre. Specifically, this initiative symbolises the importance of international collaborations as a key ingredient to responding to global socio-economic challenges,” says Professor Julian May, director of the CoE-FS.