International relations department tells court the steps to transferring the money have not been completed, although the decision has already been made Picture: Jacoline Schoonees/DIRCO
26 April 2020
At least 60 nonprofit organisations have handed over a petition with just less than 17 000 signatures to the department of international relations and co-operation opposing a R50-million “donation” for hunger relief in Cuba.
The petition was presented in an empty pot.
“[It] is a travesty of justice to allow millions of rands to exit South Africa while over 50 million of our own people suffer the injustices of hunger every day,” the organisations said in a joint statement.
The money must instead be reallocated “towards an urgent, independent investigation into immediately actionable solutions to address the systemic causes of hunger”.
The amount made headlines in early February when Department of International Relations and Co-operation Deputy Minister Alvin Botes sought the approval of the “donation” from the parliamentary committee that has oversight of his department. The committee approved the money on the basis of historical political connections between the two countries.
In their petition, the feeding schemes highlight the “irony” of food security in South Africa in relation to Cuba. The former is described as “moderate” by the Global Hunger Index; whereas the latter has, since 2005, consistently received a “low” on the index.
Hunger in Cuba has stabilised at 2.5% since 2002, whereas South Africa is ranked 60th on the index with a score of 12.9%.
Coo Pillay, a chef at the nonprofit organisation Chefs with Compassion, said the South African government must prioritise addressing the cause of hunger “and put short-, medium- and long-term measures in place” to end it.
Fighting hunger may seem like an impossible task, she said, “but through collaboration between government, civil society, entrepreneurs, academics and innovators”, it would be possible to end it.
The organisations also called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to treat hunger as a pandemic and to address the root cause of the country’s high levels thereof.
“Attack the problem at the root by funding an independent commission of action-orientated experts who have the research-based insights into the problems and can work towards implementing solutions to address the hunger pandemic,” reads the statement.
The organisations also reminded Ramaphosa of his undertaking to alleviate poverty and hunger during his 2022 State of the Nation address.
During that address, Ramaphosa said: “If there is one thing we all agree on, it is that the present situation — of deep poverty, unemployment and inequality — is unacceptable and unsustainable”.
The president acknowledged in the speech that reforms were needed “to revive economic growth” and to address the “immediate crisis and to create conditions for long-lasting stability and development”.
The petition also mentioned Department of Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu, who was called on to “rise to the call of thousands of South Africans who have signed the petition, and the hundreds of thousands of voiceless hungry people across the country — and take action”.
The activists urged Zulu to act so that her legacy would not include that of stunted and malnourished children.