Greed leaves students going hungry

2026-03-17 - 04:03

You’d have to have a heart of stone not to be touched by the GroundUp story today about university students going hungry because they run out of money... and then keep their situation to themselves because of the stigma of poverty attached to it. The Student Hunger Hearings Task Force told the South African Human Rights Commission that food insecurity is widespread in tertiary institutions, with studies at the University of the Western Cape and the University of the Free State reporting student food insecurity at 66% and 65% respectively. Wits University supplies monthly food packs to 2 500 students and the University of Johannesburg offers 7 000 meals weekly. Actual hunger can impact the capacity for study and constantly worrying about where your next meal is going to come from – or whether it will be enough – will also affect these young people who are our future experts and leaders. ALSO READ: Unisa critic jailed – two others slapped with fines It is a tragedy, therefore, that support schemes like the National Students Financial Aid Scheme have been abused by people whose kids don’t need financial support, as well as looters within the system. It’s South Africa’s story in a nutshell. The selfish and greedy don’t care that they, inevitably, leave others suffering.