In April, Grocott’s Mail reporter Nomfundo Mbatha highlighted the deepening food insecurity crisis affecting Makhanda residents, where many households rely on community-run soup kitchens to survive. The report detailed how some of these kitchens were forced to shut down due to declining donations and a lack of essential resources like gas cylinders and food supplies. Among those affected was Masincedane, a small but vital soup kitchen based in the Xolani location, which is run by Thabisa Belwana.
The kitchen has recently reopened thanks to donations from a network of supporters, and Belwana is once again able to serve warm meals to children in need. But challenges persist. With only three cooking pots available, the kitchen struggles to meet demand, and she has pleaded for additional equipment to help expand operations. She is also in urgent need of a shelter structure to protect the cooking area and children during rainy weather.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Makhanda started a soup kitchen four years ago, where they are serving food to the townships around Makhanda. It was started by Ward 4 Councillor Geoff Embling, and is now run by Harry Porthen. They are operating in Sun City, Joza and Fingo Location. “We started the initiative because we wanted to feed children — which is why we always have the soup kitchen in the afternoons,” said Porthen, a DA Activist. He is hoping donors recognise the soup kitchens so they can operate frequently.
A long-running soup kitchen in Grahamstown, the Grahamstown Feeding Association (GFA) was founded by Professor Brian Gaybba in August 1999 in response to the dire poverty and lack of food aid in the town. More than two decades later, GFA remains the only soup kitchen in Makhanda that has operated continuously, without ever closing its doors, except in rare cases of violence or during the early months of the COVID-19 lockdown. “Feed the hungry, no questions asked,” has been their unwavering motto.
Despite a shrinking donor base and water problems, the passion to serve has not been shaken. “Our pool of donors is getting smaller and smaller,” said GFA chairperson Gunda Krause, “but the need on the ground is still so fundamental.”
Krause’s dedication to the cause runs deep, and alongside her, Meagan Felix and Yonela Ngcenga help steer the day-to-day operations of the kitchen. Together, they ensure that nutritious meals — no longer just soup and bread, but hearty, protein-rich food — is served to the hungry. Many of these people have no fixed address and rely on GFA for their only meal of the day. “We have managed to stay open and true to our very simple and core mandate,” said Krause. “As long as there is hunger in this town, we will be here.”
In Makhanda, soup kitchens are more than just places to get a meal they are lifelines for families who go to bed not knowing where their next plate of food will come from. But with donations drying up, these kitchens are finding it harder each day to meet the growing demand. Volunteers continue to stretch every cent and portion, refusing to give up on those who rely on them.
On the PDF Yonela Ngcenga was given a wrong occupation, he is running GFA alongside Meagon Felix, there are cooking and handling everything related to the soup kitchen, but the chairperson is Gunda Krause.
