Seeing images of children caught up in the looting and violence that have hit our country is heartbreaking. It is a devastating reflection of how poverty can drive society on edge and threaten the future of our children.

It reminds me of my own lived experiences of deprivation as a child and how difficult it was to exist while surrounded by poverty. In 2006, a grade 6 learner at Chivirikani Primary School in Katlehong received an award for passing at the top of his class...