Food Insecurity and Vulnerability in Sekhukhune, Republic of South Africa

The Directorate for Food Security of the Department of Agriculture, South Africa, has set specific objectives to develop, implement, and conduct annual food security policy reviews and to establish and maintain an effective Food Insecurity and Vulnerability Information Mapping System (FIVIMS). FIVIMS is a management and decision-making support tool that provides updated information about people’s status and experiences regarding hunger and vulnerability to hunger. This includes understanding people’s access to food, either through their own production or purchases, as well as their health status.

In 2003 the Department of Agriculture, through a consortium of six institutions, identified a pilot FIVIMS program in the Sekhukhune Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Programme (ISRDP) node. The information produced is expected to improve the design of integrated food security interventions and also guide decision makers in allocating resources to the hungriest, poorest, and most vulnerable people and areas in South Africa. The FIVIMS process systematically assembles, analyzes, and disseminates information about people who are hungry or at risk of famine. FIVIMS also analyzes the underlying causes of problems identified in agriculture, income, markets, health, nutrition, water, or sanitation that could lead to high malnutrition rates. This map ranks 10 food security classes from “best” in green to “worst” in red within the study area of Sekhukhune.