WANDILE SIHLOBO: Food insecurity could be reduced if public and private sectors work together

As we celebrate World Food Day in honour of the founding of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in 1945, we should take a moment to reflect on SA’s standing on the global food security ladder.

Food security is achieved when three objectives are met: food is available; food is accessible; and food quality ensures appropriate nutritional uptake for all citizens at all times. In 2018 SA was ranked the 45th most food secure country out of 113 measured in The Economist global food security index, which was one point lower than the previous year.

This was relatively good news compared with the other Brics countries. For example, though SA’s average income as expressed in gross national income per capita in 2018 was 25 spots behind Russia, 23 behind China and 19 behind Brazil, our food security status was quite comparable to other Brics countries. In the food security index SA was ranked just six spots behind Brazil, three behind Russia, one ahead of China and 31 ahead of India.

It is worth reiterating that despite SA’s relatively low average income compared with the Brics partners, the country still manages to punch above its weight in terms of food security. This is testament to the country’s competitive agricultural sector, its ability to supply food at a relatively low cost, and socioeconomic initiatives.

Though the food security index indicates that SA is food secure, there are pockets of food insecurity within the country from a household perspective. This speaks to the general inequality in the country, where some households are food secure and a sizeable portion of low-income households are not, primarily due to affordability. This scenario is mostly prevalent in Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, according to Stats SA.

While there are a number of interventions that can assist in supporting households’ access to nutritious food, one form of intervention that can boost rural households’ income, and therefore their diet, is job creation in the agricultural sector. There is anecdotal evidence in parts of the Eastern Cape that in areas where the government and the private sector have collaborated in agricultural development some level of success in terms of job creation has been achieved.

With agriculture having gained prominence as one of the sectors that could bring about rural economic development and job creation in SA, the government’s approach to realising this vision should be regionally focused. This means the aforementioned provinces should be the priority in resource allocation, as the frontiers of agricultural expansion. Such an approach not only makes sense in terms of reducing poverty but also in exploiting the potential of underutilised land, as well as targeting resources effectively.

Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape combined have about 1.6-million to 1.8-million hectares of underutilised land that could be sustainably farmed for increased food security and livelihoods over the long term. This is according to a 2015 study by McKinsey Global Institute.

Admittedly, the communal land governance system has been cited as one of the hindrances to agricultural development in these provinces, as it hamstrings investment. Resolving such matters can take a long time and SA’s land reform policy is still being debated across the country. The near-term practical approach that could make a difference is structuring an innovative agricultural finance instrument such as blended finance, which pulls in the capital and human capital from both private and public sectors.

In parts of the Eastern Cape agribusinesses are engaged in such arrangements with the provincial government, and in areas where projects have been implemented there has been some level of success. What is needed is programmes that are self-sustaining and viable, where communities take ownership.

These are some of the approaches that are needed to boost household incomes and rural livelihoods in a manner that ensures nutritious foods are available in the near term and in the future. Meanwhile, broad developmental policies need to be put into operation.

• Sihlobo (@WandileSihlobo) is head of economic and agribusiness research at the Agricultural Business Chamber.