Could a foodborne illness be behind the outbreak at Rhodes University? Recent reports indicate that more than 100 resident students have been diagnosed with gastrointestinal illnesses, which could be attributed to either waterborne or foodborne causes. Senior management at the university has begun an investigation to determine the cause of the widespread illness and to manage the outbreak.
There has been speculation that the cause is related to a lack of water safety measures and protocols when water is distributed and shared among students living on the main campus in Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown). In May this year, there was speculation that many students had contracted hantavirus. This was verified as untrue and classified as a mere rumour.
More importantly, Makhanda has had ongoing water access challenges for more than a decade, and the university still relies mainly on municipal water. It has 5 000-litre tanks at its kitchens, residences and administrative offices, and sets up additional water tankers when the municipality cannot supply water. Classes are often suspended when there is no water.
On 2 October, Executive Mayor Yandiswa Vara admitted that the town’s water infrastructure is broken and promised an uninterrupted supply next year. Water is mostly inaccessible, cut off at night and restored during the day. In mid-September, some media houses reported that some households get water only two or three times a week, for a few hours early in the morning. Water delivery trucks are also unreliable, and in February 2026 the municipality moved to a “day-on, day-off” schedule.
It has been verified that the supply infrastructure, including ageing and broken pumps and pipes, is dysfunctional, and that water plant upgrades are yet to be undertaken, despite the dire constraints residents live with. The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) was informed that the availability of raw water is not the problem, but rather the processes and mechanisms used to make it accessible. Howieson’s Poort, a few kilometres from Makhanda, has also not received timely and affordable services for its water plants and utilities, so reliable access to water cannot be provided to residents. A secondary pump was delivered four years after it was ordered, at an exorbitant cost to the municipality.
The larger impact of this lack of water is a bleak picture. The town now struggles with overflowing water and blocked sewage systems, as well as an inability to keep food, kitchens and essential utensils such as pots, stoves and fridges as hygienic as possible. These circumstances inevitably lead to residents and students suffering from both foodborne and waterborne illnesses.
Water insecurity at universities is detrimental to the well-being of every student. Food insecurity among students has already been rising at South African universities, resulting in diets that lack the nutrition students need to perform academically and meet learning objectives. Student food insecurity is a global problem, but it has become particularly severe in South Africa since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Universities are meant to drive social mobility, but that is unattainable if students lack basic necessities such as water and food. In contemporary South Africa, universities mirror the country’s deep structural inequalities. During the 2010s, more than half of surveyed students at the University of the Free State and the University of KwaZulu-Natal were food insecure. A 2021 survey at the University of the Western Cape found that 68.5% of students had experienced food insecurity that year, and recent reporting puts the share of South African students facing severe hunger at between 11% and 38% (Bhoola & Motloung, 2026).
The reasons vary, but a common one is that students send part of their National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) allowances home to support poverty-stricken families. Their funding has become central to their families’ household income, a pressure compounded by escalating fuel and food prices. The inaccessibility of both food and water to students is detrimental to society at large.
Campuses should have a permanent, centralised food and water facility, funded through partnerships with alumni, agricultural cooperatives and corporate sponsors, so that food and water aid is recognised and developed into a formal student service.
Similarly, student meals should be subsidised so that every student has access to food that is safely prepared, hygienic and nutritious. Student financial literacy and psycho-social support need to be prioritised, especially for students who fall victim to waterborne and foodborne illnesses, which are detrimental to their well-being and their ability to learn and thrive academically.
Universities should also insist that the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) and NSFAS link living allowances to food inflation and end the payment delays that cause predictable periods of hunger or starvation for students. The SAHRC’s position is that hunger and broken water systems are failures by the government to meet its constitutional duties. The Commission ties the right to water and food to the rights to life and dignity. Government must prioritise access to both food and water for everyone in South Africa.
* Dr Sheetal Bhoola is a senior lecturer at the University of Zululand
** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of IOL