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One in 10 children affected by Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in South Africa
South Africa has one of the highest rates of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) in the world, with roughly one in 10 children estimated to be living with the condition.
In some communities, the numbers are even more alarming. Prevalence is estimated at nearly one in three children in parts of the Western Cape and one in five in parts of the Northern Cape.
Yet despite the scale of the crisis, South Africa does not have a dedicated, coordinated national policy focused on preventing FASD and addressing its lifelong consequences.
A fragmented response
Researchers and public health advocates say the country’s response remains spread across the health, education and social development sectors, making it difficult to establish a comprehensive approach to prevention, early intervention and long-term support.
FASD refers to a group of conditions caused by alcohol exposure before birth. The effects can last a lifetime and may affect learning, behaviour, intellectual development and physical health.
Children diagnosed with Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) or partial FAS – among the more severe conditions within the FASD spectrum – can require more frequent healthcare and face an increased risk of stunting, intellectual disabilities and congenital heart defects.
The impact is not limited to families. It also places a significant burden on the public healthcare system.
A 2011 study estimated that FAS and partial FAS cost society approximately R597 million annually in the Western Cape alone, based on 2009 prices and exchange rates. Adjusted for inflation, that figure would exceed R1 billion today.
Beyond blaming pregnant women
With September marking FASD Awareness Month and International FASD Awareness Day, public health messaging often focuses heavily on the behaviour of pregnant women.
Rethink Your Drink Project Lead Kashifa Ancer argues that this approach is too narrow.
“Information alone is not a prevention strategy,” Ancer says.
“We also have to ask what shapes behaviour around nutrition and alcohol use. Prevention cannot rest on individual choices alone. We need to look at the environments women live in and whether the systems around them make healthier choices possible.”
That approach is at the heart of The First Home, an immersive experience hosted by Rethink Your Drink at Cape Town’s Homecoming Centre on 9 September.
The exhibition combines art, history, lived experience and policy to examine the wider environments that contribute to alcohol-related harm.
“Children don’t choose the environments into which they are born,” Ancer says. “If we want different outcomes for children, we have to be courageous enough to change what surrounds them.”
Lessons from South Africa’s HIV response
Advocates say South Africa’s experience in reducing mother-to-child transmission of HIV demonstrates what can happen when prevention is treated as a broader health-system responsibility.
The country’s HIV programme did not rely solely on educating individual women. Instead, it brought together HIV testing and counselling, antiretroviral treatment, maternal healthcare, infant testing and ongoing care and support.
According to UNAIDS, South Africa achieved a 50% reduction in mother-to-child HIV transmission between 2008 and 2010. National evaluations later found that early transmission had fallen to 3.5% at four to eight weeks in 2010 and 2.7% in 2011.
For Ancer, the lesson is clear.
“South Africa’s HIV response showed us that prevention improves when systems change, not simply when individuals are told to change,” she says.
Calls for a national FASD strategy
Rethink Your Drink argues that a similar coordinated approach should be considered for FASD, alongside stronger regulation of alcohol.
This could include measures aimed at reducing access to cheap alcohol, increasing the price of alcohol and placing tighter restrictions on alcohol advertising, sponsorships and promotions.
The organisation also works with Hold My Hand, a public campaign supporting the goals of the Cabinet-approved National Strategy to Accelerate Action for Children (NSAAC).
The strategy promotes a whole-of-society approach to protecting children and adolescents from abuse, violence, injury and harmful substances, including alcohol-related harm.
The First Home will take place at the Homecoming Centre in Cape Town on 9 September 2026, in recognition of International FASD Awareness Day.
Economy
Moshe, Linda, Lasizwe and LeJoy among 24 celebs serving up drama on Come Dine With Me
South Africa’s favourite dinner party competition is getting a celebrity makeover, with 24 familiar faces set to swap red carpets and studios for their kitchens when Celebrity Come Dine With Me South Africa premieres later this year.
The first-ever celebrity edition of Come Dine With Me South Africa is set to hit BBC Lifestyle (DStv Channel 174) on 18 November, bringing together some of the country’s biggest personalities for six weeks of food, competition, chaos and plenty of entertainment.
Now in its 11th season, the popular dinner party series is taking its biggest twist yet by putting celebrities in charge of the menus as they open their homes and attempt to prove they are the ultimate host.
Among those taking part are television personality Moshe Ndiki, actress Linda Mtoba, digital entertainer Lasizwe and broadcaster Lethabo “LeJoy” Mathatho.
They will be joined by a diverse cast including Alphi Mkhwanazi, Brent Lindeque, Carol Tshabalala, Holly Rey, Jonathan Roxmouth, Karabo Ntshweng, Karabo Poppy, Mampho Brescia, Mojak Lehoko, Moonchild Sanelly, Nianell, Olwethu Leshabane, Phylicity Reeken, Primo Baloyi, Tarina Patel, Tumisho Masha, Vanes-Mari du Toit, Varushka Singh, Yanda Woods and Zandi Nhlapo.
Celebrities put their hosting skills to the test
Unlike the usual celebrity appearances where personalities are firmly in control of their public image, the dinner table could prove to be a much tougher stage.
Each celebrity will host dinner for fellow contestants, with the guests judging everything from the food and entertainment to the overall experience.
The stakes are also higher than simply winning bragging rights, with R10,000 up for grabs for charity.
Across the season, audiences can expect ambitious menus, extravagant themes, culinary successes and spectacular kitchen failures as the personalities compete to impress one another.
And while they may be used to being in front of cameras, celebrity status will not necessarily help them when it comes to earning points around the dinner table.
Lasizwe, Moshe and Linda among the celebrity hosts
The casting brings together personalities from television, radio, music, sport, digital entertainment and the creative industries.
Lasizwe is expected to bring his trademark personality and humour to the competition, while Moshe Ndiki enters the dinner-party arena with his experience as a television personality.
Actress Linda Mtoba will also open her home to the cameras, while LeJoy Mathatho will swap her broadcasting duties for the challenge of creating a memorable evening for her fellow celebrities.
Musician Moonchild Sanelly, singer Holly Rey, actor Tumisho Masha, musical theatre star Jonathan Roxmouth and former Proteas netball player Vanes-Mari du Toit are also among the personalities competing.
Dave Lamb returns to serve up the commentary
Adding another layer of entertainment will be the return of legendary narrator Dave Lamb, whose dry humour and brutally honest observations have become synonymous with the Come Dine With Me franchise.
His commentary is likely to provide a running commentary on the personalities, their cooking abilities and whatever happens once the dinner parties begin.
With reputations on the line, even the smallest hosting mistake could become television gold.
Pierre Cloete, Vice President for Africa at BBC Studios, said the celebrity edition would give viewers an opportunity to see a different side of some of South Africa’s best-known personalities.
“Come Dine With Me South Africa remains one of BBC Lifestyle’s most-loved local productions and this season promises to be our biggest yet,” he said.
“This celebrity series brings together an incredible mix of South African personalities and places them in a situation they can’t completely control. Audiences will see them at their funniest, most competitive and, in some cases, most chaotic.”
‘The pressure is higher than ever’
The series is produced by Rapid Blue, with Executive Producer Ryan Deacon saying the celebrity format has created even more pressure around the dinner table.
“We are incredibly proud to be producing the 11th season of Come Dine with Me South Africa for BBC Lifestyle,” Deacon said.
“With three celebrity guests arriving at each dinner party, the pressure is higher than ever, and our celebrity hosts quickly discover that creating the perfect evening is no easy feat.”
He added that viewers could expect “creative rule-bending”, attempts to gain an advantage, spectacular hosting and the occasional disaster.
In other words, the familiar ingredients that have made Come Dine With Me a television favourite remain firmly on the menu.
A new chapter for a long-running favourite
The celebrity series marks a significant new chapter for the South African version of the format, which has been entertaining audiences for more than a decade.
This time, viewers will get to see how personalities who are accustomed to public scrutiny behave when they are judged not on their careers or celebrity status, but on their ability to cook, entertain and host.
And with Dave Lamb ready to deliver his signature commentary, the competition could prove to be just as entertaining for those watching from home as it is for those sitting around the dinner table.
Celebrity Come Dine With Me South Africa premieres on BBC Lifestyle (DStv Channel 174) on 18 November 2026.
The series is sponsored by World of Sports Betting and is in association with Sunlight.
