Andy Nelson, Photojournalist

Food insecurity in Southern Africa

Food insecurity in Southern Africa is a perennial problem. When crops fail, the international community is often called upon to provide food aid. I traveled to Southern Africa to document the challenges faced by its people during the "hunger season" and to follow food aid from the ports of Mozambique to distribution points in Malawi. 

  • There was little food to be sold or bought during the food crisis after drought decimated crops.
  • Drought ravaged the corn crop in Zambia leading to widespread food aid needs.
  • Boys dive in a swamp for roots to be cleaned and boiled to eat. The corn crop in the village had failed because of drought and local residents began scavenging for whatever they could find.
  • A tin of scavenged roots will make a meal. The roots must be boiled before eating since they are capable of poisoning poeple if not.
  • In remote villages in Zambia food aid could take days to arrive.
  • A girl waits to have her health checked by doctors while waiting for food aid at a rural clinich in Malawi. Food distributions are often a time when many people come together making it a good time for doctors to assess the health of people in the area.
  • Mothers wait to have the children checked by doctors at a clinic in Malawi.
  • A boyscreams in fear as he is measured by doctors to assess his health. In many African cultures, the only time a person is measured is when it is for a coffin after their death. Parents had to be reassured by staff that doctors were helping their children.
  • A mother tries to give her daughter formula while recovering at a feeding center in Malawi.
  • Dock workers in Maputo, Mozambique load corn shipped from the United States to southern Africa. The men bag the corn and it is then stored in warehouses before being distributed throughout the region.
  • A dockworker in Maputo, Mozambique stands on a hold full of corn shipped from the United States to help eleviate hunger in southern Africa.
  • Dock workers in Maputo, Mozambique load bags of corn donated by the U.S. for distribution throughout southern Africa.
  • Dock workers in Maputo, Mozambique place 100 pound bags of corn on conveyors to be stored in a warehouse before distribution in the southern Africa region.
  • Villagers in Malawi await the arrival of food at a distribution point. Food aid is critical to the survival of many in southern Africa when crops fail.
  • Boys watch the arrival of food at a distribution point. Food aid is critical to the survival of many in southern Africa when crops fail.
  • A truck bearing food aid from the World Food Program in unloaded in Zambia.
  • Corn kernels lie on a truck bed after fallng from their bags. The kernels are often collected by people eager to get every scrap of food they can.
  • A bag of millet is distributed to a waiting Malawian at a World Food Program distribution site.
  • Villagers pause to talk after a World Food Program distribution in Malawi.
  • After the corn is received by the villagers, they often head to the local mill to have it ground.
  • Despite food insecurity, weddings are a cause for celebration. A marriage ceremony ends in a raucus dance around the bride and groom as celebrants chant their praises.
  • A steaming pile of nsima (cornmeal) is brought to a table during a wedding ceremony. Food insecurity in southern Africa is a perennial problem but food aid often helps alleviate the worst effects.
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Andy Nelson and The Christian Science Monitor. Site design © 2010-2025 Neon Sky Creative Media