Advocacy group Real Reform for ECD is calling on the Department of Basic Education to fast-track its nutrition pilot programme in the Eastern Cape.
The initiative targets over 1,000 Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres that currently lack the funding needed to provide meals to South Africa’s most vulnerable children.
Child malnutrition remains a critical issue, with over 25% of South African children under five suffering from stunting. While the government provides a daily R24 subsidy per child for registered centres, only R9 is allocated for nutrition, leaving a significant shortfall in funding for many facilities.
The tender bid for the pilot programme closes this week, two years after R197 million was first earmarked in the 2024/25 budget. Funding has since been increased, with the 2026/27 allocation rising to R772 million to support the initiative.
Real Reform for ECD, a movement advocating for inclusive services backed by over 300 organisations, views this as a vital step in addressing the national malnutrition crisis.
The ECD coordinator at Real Reform for ECD, Tshepo Mantjé, said the current tender, which specifically targets 1,035 so-called ‘bronze’-status ECD centres, represents an essential first step.
“Entry-level bronze-registered centres operate in resource-constrained, vulnerable environments, informal settlements, and deep rural areas, and make up about 60% of all centres. However, they do not qualify for the national government’s current ECD subsidy, valued at only R24 per child per day, of which R9 is allocated for nutrition,” Mantjé said.
By targeting bronze-registered centres, the nutrition pilot will reach approximately 26,000 of the children who need it most.
In South Africa, more than one in four children under the age of five are stunted – too short for their age – and close to half suffer from Vitamin A deficiency. The rate of stunting among children has not improved since 1994. While children attending ECD centres fare better than those who do not, regional disparities remain. In the Eastern Cape and Limpopo, almost 10% of children enrolled in ECD centres are stunted.
“There is plenty of food in South Africa. The normalisation of child hunger represents a profound policy failure and violation of children’s constitutional rights. Ensuring young children receive the nutrition they need to grow, develop and thrive is a human rights imperative and an investment in our future,” Mantjé said.
Real Reform for ECD said while this pilot tender is a welcome first step, it remains only a starting point.
“The pilot’s real success will depend on whether it effectively tests different delivery methods suited to South Africa’s diverse socio-economic context and whether lessons are documented and used to drive replication at scale,” Mantjé said.
She urged the Department of Basic Education to ensure the pilot leads to a national, sustainable programme: “Anything less would be a betrayal of South Africa’s young children, and a continued violation of their constitutional rights.”
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Robin-Lee Francke
iol.co.za