Hunger in the North West puts World Food Day in Tosca Village
Government, the FAO and provincial agriculture officials will mark World Food Day on 16 October at Tosca Village in Kagisano-Molopo, chosen because parts of the province are flagged for food security challenges in the Food and Nutrition Security Survey Report.
The national World Food Day commemoration will be held at Tosca Village in the Kagisano-Molopo Local Municipality in the North West on 16 October 2026, with the province chosen to host because of food security challenges in parts of it.
That selection reason is stated in the government’s own announcement of the event, which points to the Food and Nutrition Security Survey Report for the finding. The same announcement does not set out what those challenges are in Kagisano-Molopo, how many households are affected, or what the survey measured. The report itself is not summarised in the material.
Agriculture Minister Willie Aucamp and North West MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development Madoda Sambatha will lead the commemoration. The national Department of Agriculture, the North West Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations are partners in the event, which will bring together government leaders, farmers, community members, development partners and other stakeholders.
The theme for the year is “Innovate Today. Nourish Tomorrow”. According to the announcement, the commemoration will highlight the role of innovation in improving agricultural production, building resilient food systems and ensuring sustainable access to food. It will showcase practical interventions intended to increase food production, support vulnerable households and encourage communities to take part in sustainable agricultural activities with support from government and its partners.
Several food security projects are also due to be launched as part of what the announcement describes as ongoing efforts to improve access to food, strengthen livelihoods and contribute to the eradication of hunger. The announcement does not name the projects, say where in the province they will run, or give their cost.
That leaves the accountability questions open on the record as published. Which projects, run by whom, at what budget, and measured how, are not answered in the source material. Nor does it say what has happened since the Food and Nutrition Security Survey Report was produced, or what the province’s food security position looks like going into the event.
What is on the record is the date, the venue and the people answerable for the programme. The commemoration falls on 16 October 2026 at Tosca Village, led by Aucamp and Sambatha, under the partnership of the two agriculture departments and the FAO.
This report is based on the government’s announcement of the event, published by SAnews (South African Government News Agency) at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/spotlight-agricultural-innovation-ahead-world-food-day. That announcement is a summary of the planned commemoration rather than the full programme or the underlying survey report.
