Food security plays a crucial role in supporting education, ensuring that the nutritional needs of children are met. However, this necessity extends beyond the classroom, as many individuals across the Cape Flats face daily challenges in accessing nutritious food, often resorting to low-quality substitutes or going hungry. These difficulties are compounded during winter, when people also battle the cold without adequate shelter or clothing.
One local organisation working to address these challenges is the Proudly Silvertown Feeding Scheme, based in the Silvertown community. Through a variety of grassroots initiatives, the organisation strives to support the most vulnerable.
Founder Nasira Clarke traced the scheme’s beginnings to the COVID-19 pandemic, when widespread job losses left many struggling to put food on the table.
“With Covid, actually, we started this because a lot of people were unemployed and retrenched, and we had a lot of people knocking on our door asking for food and such. Then I took the Amanah to do this, and ever since that time I have been feeding our community. I do winter drives, I do school drives, stationary drives, whatever I can,” said Clarke.
Currently, the feeding scheme is running a winter drive to collect winter caps and wheelchair blankets while continuing to distribute meals. However, since the organisation is not formally registered, Clarke funds most of the operations herself.
“Currently we are doing the winter caps and wheelchair blankets, and I have people who assist me with that. Where the food is concerned, my family, friends, and residents in our area help and assist me because Proudly Silvertown Feeding Scheme is not registered. So I am doing this out of my own pocket and with my thrift that I am selling with the Proudly Silvertown Mini Market, with a portion going to the feeding scheme,” added Clarke.
Listen to the full interview here:
