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SASUF students dig in to fight hunger at the UFS

23 June 2025 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied

There is something powerful about getting your hands in the soil, even more so when it is to help someone else. That is exactly what the group of South Africa–Sweden University Forum (SASUF) students did at the end of May, marking World Hunger Day by joining forces with Kovsie ACT to maintain and prepare food garden beds on the University of the Free State (UFS) Bloemfontein Campus.

The SASUF student team is helping with the upkeep of 40 vegetable beds in the food tunnels near Welwitschia Residence. These beds were established to supply fresh produce to students in need – a small effort with a big purpose.

Simba Matema, Research Assistant from the Office for International Affairs and SASUF Student Network National Coordinator, says this project is about more than planting vegetables. “We want to make sure that students who are struggling financially can benefit. But we also want to learn, to grow skills in agriculture and sustainability,” he explains.

A learning experience with real impact

Second-year student Lesego Moeleso says being involved in the garden is “a refreshing change of scenery” and a great way to “interact with students from different fields of study”. He adds: “We all want to help our fellow students who don’t have enough food.”

Third-year UFS student Njabulo Sibeko agrees. “It’s a unique mix of academic enrichment, personal growth, and community engagement,” he says. “Even if the impact is small, it goes a long way. This project gives us a chance for hands-on learning and skills development, environmental sustainability and awareness, as well as social connections.”

Sibeko believes the garden also works as a “live experiment for environmental education”, teaching about “composting, water conservation, and organic farming”. He says, “Different vegetables have different nutrition, and if we can hold small workshops as to why we need to eat specific vegetables during different seasons, it will help teach us about the value they have for our body.”

Final-year Law student Shemsa Nzeyimana says her favourite part of being involved is “seeing the impact of our efforts” and “watching the garden grow and flourish”. “I love being part of a team that shares a common vision for creating positive change through sustainable practices,” she says. “And the fact that I get to be out of my comfort zone while building my social skills.”

Towards a sustainable solution

Nzeyimana hopes the garden “will become a hub for community engagement”, connecting students, staff, and locals while promoting sustainable food systems. “The garden directly addresses food security while also serving as a hands-on learning space for nutritional education and sustainable agriculture,” she adds. “By promoting sustainable gardening practices, the garden raises environmental awareness and encourages the campus community to think critically about food systems and their impact.”

At the UFS, where 59% of students report going hungry and 60% skip meals for financial reasons, the need is undeniable. Matema says by “giving students a role in the solution”, the stigma around food aid is reduced. “It becomes a shared project, not a handout.”

As Nzeyimana sums it up: “This garden can become a space for learning, connection, and hope – a place where change grows from the ground up.”

Besides Kovsie ACT, the initiative includes partners such as the Institute for Groundwater Studies, University Estates, the UFS Food Environment Office, and residences. External partners such as Tiger Brands, Sakata Seeds, and Kwaggafontein Nursery also support the project.

News Archive

Ensure your place at the UFS

2010-10-27

The University of the Free State (UFS) appeals to all prospective South African students who want to come and study at the UFS in 2011 to submit their applications no later than Tuesday, 30 November 2010.

The UFS is aware of the fact that learners will not have received their final Grade 12 results by Tuesday, 30 November 2010; therefore provisional admission will be granted based on learners’ most recent Grade 12 results. Final admission will take place upon receipt of the final Grade 12 results, which will be available early in January 2011.

Prospective students can obtain application forms for admission at the following places:

The UFS’s web site at www.ufs.ac.za,
The Information Office (Unit for Prospective Students) at the Thakaneng Bridge on the UFS’s Main Campus in Bloemfontein,
You may also send an e-mail to info@ufs.ac.za or
Phone 051 401 3000 and the necessary forms will be posted to you.

Senior undergraduate students (that is all students who were registered up to and during 2010 at the UFS) as well as post-graduate students, must self-register electronically on-line from Monday, 1 November 2010 until Tuesday, 4 January 2011. This includes master’s and doctoral students.

In order to encourage senior students to register online, the UFS offers 20 laptops as incentives for the senior students who successfully register online from 1 November 2010. These laptops will be handed over to the winners after the registration process in 2011.

Registration of first-year students:

The Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Jonathan Jansen, will welcome first-year students on Friday, 14 January and Saturday, 15 January 2011, respectively, in the Callie Human Centre. The Faculties of Economic and Management Sciences, the Humanities and Education will be welcomed on 14 January 2011 and the students of the Faculties of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, Law and Theology shall be welcomed on 15 January 2011. The compulsory orientation programme for new first-years will also then commence.

From 17 to 21 January 2011 first-year students will receive academic advice at the Callie Human Centre, whereafter they will be referred for self-registration. These processes will take place according to the set timetable. This timetable is available in the Kovsie Guide that will be sent to learners as soon as we have received their applications, as well as on the web site of the UFS at www.ufs.ac.za/register2011.

First-year students’ fees must be paid prior to arrival on 14 and 15 January 2011.

Registration of senior students:

Senior students who experience problems with the electronic on-line self-registration process have the opportunity to resolve problems within a programme on campus from Wednesday, 5 January until Wednesday, 12 January 2011. This programme will be sent out to students and is also available at www.ufs.ac.za/register2011. The specific scheduled day for senior students to resolve problems is the last and only day to resolve the problem.

Senior students can also contact 051 401 9111 for more information in this regard.

Students may register for prescribed modules for 2011, even though the November 2010 examination results are not yet available. Changes resulting from examination results that are made available later can be done up to and including 28 January 2011.

In terms of applications for senior students, only students who have interrupted a calendar year of study need to re-apply for admission.

Registration of students at the UFS’s Qwaqwa Campus:

Senior and first-year students of the UFS’s Qwaqwa Campus register from Wednesday, 12 January until Friday, 28 January 2011 in the Nelson Mandela Hall on this campus.

Registration of students at the UFS South Campus:

First-year students from the UFS’s South Campus in the University Preparation Programme and the Extended Programme (only Natural and Agricultural Sciences) register from Monday, 24 January till Friday, 28 January 2011 in the Arena Hall on the South Campus.

Students who have successfully completed the University Preparation Programme register with the first-year students on the UFS Main Campus on Friday, 14 and Saturday, 15 January 2011 – according to faculties (cf. paragraph 6).

Lectures for all students shall commence on Monday, 24 January 2011.

MEDIA RELEASE
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Director: Strategic Communication (actg)
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl@ufs.ac.za
26 October 2010

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