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Fighting Food Insecurity at the University of the Free State

10 March 2022 | Story Anthony Mthembu | Photo Unsplash

Food security — The No Student Hungry team gearing up to start distributing food parcels to the selected students.

The UFS is one of the many institutions of higher learning where food insecurity is an active issue. However, the No Student Hungry Programme is one of the initiatives launched at the university to assist in fighting food insecurity at the institution.

The purpose of the programme

Since its inception in 2011, the initiative has assisted many students in acquiring a healthy meal. Additionally, the Food Environment Office also hands out food packages, so that students can continue to achieve academically. “We are trying to develop a healthy environment for students and make it easier for them to have a nice and healthy meal,” stated Annelize Visagie, who heads the Food Environment Office at the UFS. The Food Environment programme is spread out on all three campuses, each with its own facilitators. Furthermore, the programme mainly caters for students who are not funded by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) but who are excelling academically. The abovementioned students apply for assistance online, and a list is then drawn up of students who receive assistance for the year.

Alternative solutions to keep the initiative running

On the Bloemfontein Campus, the No Student Hungry Programme will be catering for 200 students in the 2022 academic year, assisting them with a daily nutritious meal. Additional food parcels are also handed out to provide further assistance. “We give food parcels to the students on the list every Tuesday and Thursday at the Thakaneng Bridge,” Visagie highlighted. However, she argues that catering for the student population through this programme can be a challenge, as the demand for assistance is growing rapidly and the ability to assist is limited. The programme relies on partnerships and sponsors to assist the student body. In fact, the coordinators of the programme currently have a memorandum of understanding with Tiger Brands according to which they deliver around 100 food parcels for distribution.

In addition, the coordinators have put in place alternative measures to ensure that they can provide more food to students. “The Kovsie Act Office, in partnership with the Department of Sustainable Food Systems and Development, has started a food garden where healthy and nutritious produce are grown, in order to add value to the distribution,” she indicated. Although the programme can only assist to a point, students who are in desperate need of assistance are never turned away. In fact, the Social Support Unit at Thakaneng Bridge usually assists students with food vouchers for a maximum of four days.

A commitment to teaching healthy eating habits

The programme is not only committed to curbing food insecurity, but also to ensuring that students have a healthy and balanced diet. As such, a booklet is being issued by the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics in collaboration with the Department of Sustainable Food Systems and Development, which contains ways in which students can make a healthy meal using some of the ingredients offered in the food parcels.

“We want to teach students how to eat healthy in the cheapest way, because they don’t have a lot of money to buy expensive food products,” Visagie argued.

News Archive

UFS ICT Services mentioned among global PeopleSoft pioneers

2017-10-23

Andrew Jusjong, Chief Officer: ICT, one of the main drivers
of PeopleSoft at the UFS.
Photo: Rulanzen Martin

At the beginning of his term, the Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State (UFS), Prof Francis Petersen, mentioned to parents and prospective students the importance of the UFS being recognised globally as innovators.

This month, Information and Communication Technology Services (ICT Services) were recognised by Oracle as one of the PeopleSoft Innovators at the Oracle OpenWorld (an international conference regarding all Oracle products) for deploying student self-service, using PeopleSoft Campus Solutions’ new Fluid user interface.

Andrew Jusjong, Chief Officer: ICT, says, “This solution allows dynamic administrative setup regarding available degrees, customised messages, dynamic required degree-specific documentation, and integration with the Applications and Admissions module.” He says it also includes self-service functionality that allows students to track the status of their applications, and provide additional documentation required for their study choices.

“The UFS is the only innovator in the European, Middle-Eastern and African region. Considering that the development team at the UFS is much smaller than their international counterparts, this illustrates that we do not have to stand back for our international peers regarding service delivery and the quality of service to our customers,” he says.

The PeopleSoft Innovator awards are presented to companies that are taking advantage of the latest capabilities and technologies provided by Oracle PeopleSoft in order to transform their businesses and their IT practices, while also providing benefits to the business and end users. The UFS has been making use of PeopleSoft applications since 2004. It currently makes use of three applications:

- PeopleSoft Financials for procurement, budgeting, billing, asset management, general ledger, journals, provisioning, payroll, commitment control, ad hoc claims, travel and expenses, and maintenance management.
- PeopleSoft Human Capital Management for HR data processes, recruitment, workforce management, remuneration management, leave management, employee self-service, and other HR activities; and
- PeopleSoft Campus Solutions for student lifecycle management, applications and admissions, curriculum management, programme enrolment, student records, student financials (accounts), financial aid, graduation, alumni management, graduate research management, residences, and student self-service.

In the Higher Education sector, PeopleSoft is being used by over 900 campuses in 34 countries, across six continents. “This means that recognition was given to the university on a global platform,” says Jusjong.

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