Rozprawy doktorskie na temat „Aquaculture for Local Community Development Programme”

Thesis (MPA)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The community development workers’ programme (CDWP) is a strategic policy intervention by government to address challenges of service delivery to communities. The purpose of the CDWP is to facilitate the removal of obstacles in the course of providing services to communities. The CDWP is located in local government. Its purpose is often misunderstood by the stakeholders, because of the perception that the programme is meant to deliver services like provision of water, electricity and other social services. In essence, the CDWP is meant to facilitate communication between government and communities in order to ensure that services are delivered effectively and efficiently. Some of the challenges faced in the Makhado Local Municipality relate to the lack of infrastructure maintenance initiatives, including expansion plans that are well funded. Massive backlogs of infrastructure and services remain in the areas of water and sanitation, energy provision, housing, social security and others. If these problems relating to infrastructure and access to services are not adequately addressed, it will be impossible for the implementation of the CDWP to be successful. It is, therefore, critical that the government as a whole, and working with the private sector, should develop a comprehensive programme that mobilises society through both public and private initiatives. The purpose of this study was to investigate the challenges faced by community development workers (CDWs) in the implementation of the CDWP in Makhado Local Municipality. A qualitative research paradigm was adopted for the study. A literature review, focus groups and interviews were employed within the context of structured questions formulated in line with the framework of the study. The above were meant to facilitate a response to the research question of the study, which sought to find out what the challenges was faced by CDWs in the implementation of the CDWP in Makhado Local Municipality. One of the recommendations of the study is that the CDWP should be integrated with the Makhado Local Municipality plans and budget in order to ensure that it is sustainable and meets its stated objectives. Once this is achieved, it will be possible to confidently say that:  The introduction of CDWs is succeeding in addressing challenges of service delivery in the implementation of the CDWP  Challenges of CDWs in municipalities are being resolved through the effective implementation of the CDWP If the CDWP can be implemented fully in the Makhado Local Municipality, challenges of service delivery can be resolved over a reasonable period. It is, therefore, critical that the CDWP should remain an intergovernmental programme that fosters planning and partnership between the public, as beneficiary, and the government as service provider.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Gemeenskapsontwikkelingswerkers Program (GOWP) is ‘n strategiese beleidsintervensie deur die regering om uitdagings met betrekking tot dienslewering aan gemeenskappe aan te spreek. Die doel van die GOWP is om hindernisse tot dienslewering aan gemeenskappe uit die weg te ruim, en die program is binne die plaaslike regering gesetel. Misverstand oor die doel daarvan kom dikwels onder belanghebbendes voor vanweë die veronderstelling dat die program bedoel is om dienste soos die voorsiening van water, elektrisiteit en ander maatskaplike dienste te lewer. In wese is die GOWP bedoel om kommunikasie tussen die regering en gemeenskappe te bewerkstellig om te verseker dat dienste doeltreffend en effektief gelewer word. Uitdagings vir die Plaaslike Munisipaliteit van Makhado staan in verband met die gebrek aan inisiatiewe om infrastruktuur in stand te hou, insluitend goed befondste uitbreidingsplanne. ’n Massiewe agterstand van infrastruktuur en dienste bestaan steeds op die gebied van water en sanitasie, kragvoorsiening, behuising en sosiale sekerheid. Indien hierdie probleem met betrekking tot infrastruktuur en toegang tot dienste nie voldoende aangespreek word nie, sal die implementering van die GOWP geen sukses behaal nie. Dit is dus van uiterste belang dat die regering, in geheel, en met die samewerking van die private sektor, ‘n omvattende program ontwikkel wat die gemeenskap deur middel van openbare en private inisiatiewe mobiliseer. Die doel van die huidige studie was om die uitdagings waarvoor gemeenskapswerkers met die implementering van die gemeenskaps- ontwikkelingswerkers program in die Plaaslike Munisipaliteit van Makhado te staan kom, te ondersoek. ’n Kwalitatiewe navorsingsplan is vir die studie gebruik. ‘n Oorsig van die literatuur, fokusgroep en onderhoude is gebruik, met gestruktureerde vrae wat binne die raamwerk van die studie geformuleer is. Die vrae was bedoel om ‘n respons tot die navorsingsvraag oor die uitdagings wat deur die gemeenskapsontwikkelingswerkers met die implementering van die GOWP in Makhado ondervind word, te fasiliteer. Een van die aanbevelings van die studie is dat die GOWP by die planne en begroting van die Plaaslike Munisipaliteit van Makhado geïntegreer moet word om die onderhoubaarheid van die program te verseker en dat die gestelde doelwitte bereik word. Wanneer dit geskied, sal dit moontlik wees om te sê dat:  Die instelling van die gemeenskapsontwikkerlingswerkers behaal sukses ten opsigte van die uitdagings van dienslewering binne die Gemeenskapsontwikkelingswerkers program.  Die uitdagings aan gemeenskapsontwikkelingswerkers in die munisipaliteite word deur die effektiewe implementering van die GOWP oorkom. Indien die GOWP ten volle in die Makhado Munisipaliteit geïmplementeer kan word, kan die probleem rondom dienslewering binne ‘n redelike tydperk opgelos word. Dit is dus belangrik dat ‘n onderneming soos die program vir die gemeenskapsontwikkelingswerkers behoue bly as ‘n inter-regeringsprojek wat die vennootskap tussen mense en die regering ondersteun.

The influence of local economic development strategic leaders on how Integrated Development Plans (IDP) are developed is critical to gain insights into strategic planning directed towards economically developing municipalities. Concisely, the aim of this qualitative study was to gain a multiple understanding of how LED strategic leaders, namely managers of the LED directorate and sub-directorates at Makana local municipality influenced the IDP formulation. The fact that these LED strategic leaders, ‘make consequential or strategic decisions’ suggests that their decisions have an influence on the IDP formulation. Thus, the key research question in this study was: How do LED strategic leaders at Makana local municipality influence the formulation of the IDP at this municipality? This qualitative research used purposive sampling of incidents upheld by LED Strategic leaders. A total of ten in-depth and semi-structured interviews were conducted with four LED strategic leaders regarding incidents of their perceived influence on the formulation of the Integrated Development Plan at Makana. The interviews were in-depth in order to gain a rich understanding of their perspectives of reality. As the number of LED strategic leaders was already very small, all the four leaders at Makana participated in this study. Interview data was transcribed and analyzed using open coding and constant comparison. Member check was conducted to enhance confirmability of the findings of this study. Findings indicate that LED strategic leaders perceived their influence on the formulation of the IDP Makana municipality in four varied ways. Predominantly, LED strategic leaders commonly perceived that they had influence in setting evidence-driven direction, and searching for fitness of activities and issues with LED strategy. Thereafter, the other ways in which these LED strategic leaders perceived how they influenced the IDP formulation involve the facilitation of clarity and local relevance of LED mandates, and finally the integration of multiple economic voices of stakeholders. This demonstrates that LED strategic leaders at Makana emphasize proactively managing strategy process rather than content in terms of identifying key opportunities and major economic drivers in the local milieu. Instead, they perceived their influence as characterized by enhancing compliance with bringing the process of municipal strategy formulation closer to stakeholders. Implications of these findings are highlighted.

Thesis (MPA)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The pivotal role played by public participation in a social context is often undermined by change agents or administrators of government projects. The role of public participation is documented in Chapter 10 of the Constitution (South Africa, 1996). It states that “… people`s needs must be responded to, and the public must be encouraged to participate in policy making”. Besides the Constitution (South Africa, 1996) there are also other legislative frameworks that enshrine the right to public participation. Some of these provisions are included in the White Paper on Local Government (South Africa, 1998c), the White Paper on Transforming Public Service Delivery (South Africa, 1997b), the Integrated Development Plans, and others. It has to be acknowledged that public participation is the fundamental element for the success of development projects geared towards the social upliftment of poor communities. Poor communities, by omission or commission, are often excluded from direct participation in social projects. This study was prompted by the lack of effective public participation in the RDP housing project in the Elias Motswaledi Local Municipality, where the project was used as a case study. Qualitative research methods, well-founded theories and a literature study were used to inform the study. Forty-nine (49) respondents were interviewed. By collecting and interpreting relevant data, the study was able to assess the extent of public participation that had taken place. The study then proceeded to make recommendations as to how the situation could have been handled and to formulate public participation model that would be context relevant to the area. Unfortunately, the Elias Motswaledi Local Municipality housing project is now a thing of the past and cannot be revisited. Fortunately, however, similar projects will be able to learn valuable lessons from this study in the future. Ultimately, the research illustrated that a strategy of comprehensive public participation that includes all project beneficiaries has to be well planned and well managed to promote and ensure the successful implementation of the project.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die rol wat deur publieke deelname gespeel moet word in die administrasie van regeringsprojekte word uit eengesit in Hoofstuk 10 van die Grondwet (Suid Afrika, 1996). Dit stipuleer da tdaar op mense se behoeftes gereageer moet word en dat die publiek aangemoedig moet word om deel te neem aan beleidsformulering. Behalwe die Grondwet (Suid Afrika, 1996) is daar ook ander wetgewende raamwerke wat die reg op publieke deelname bevestig. Sommige van hierdie bepalings is ingesluit in die Witskrif op Plaaslike Regering (Suid Afrika, 1998c), die Witskrif op Transformasie van Openbare Dienslewering (Suid Afrika, 1997b), die Geїntegreerde Ontwikkelings planne, ensovoorts. Dit moet ook erken word dat publieke deelname die basis vorm vir die sukses van ontwikkelings projekte wat gerig is op die sosiale bemagtiging van ons gemeenskappe. Openbare amptenare neem doelbewus nie altyd die belangrikheid van direkte deelname aan sosiale projekte in ag nie. Hierdie studie is juis aangespoor deur die afwesigheid van effektiewe publieke deelname in die HOP behuisings projekte in die Elias Motswaledi Munisipaliteit waar die Monsterlus HOP projek as `n gevalle studie gebruik is. Die studie maak gebruik van ‘n kwalitatiewe metode, gegronde teorie so wel as `n literatuur studie. Onderhoude is onderneem en nege-en-veertig (49) onderhoude is gevoer. Nadat die data versamel en geїnterpreteer is, het die studie die omvang van publieke deelname wat plaasgevind het geassesseer. Aanbevelings is gemaak oor hoe die oewerhede die situasie beter kon hanteer het, en ‘n publieke deelname model is geformuleer wat relevant tot die area is. Die nadeel is dat die Elias Motswaledi behuisings projek afgehandel is en uiteraard nie teruggedraai kan word nie. Die voordeel is egter dat toekomstige projekte deur die studie bevoordeel kan word. Die navorsing wys daarop dat publieke deelname strategieё wat alle rolspelers insluit, deeglik beplan en bestuur moet word, voor die aanvang van die projek sowel as gedurende die projek se implementering.

Diese Arbeit bietet eine solide theoretische Grundlage zu Philanthropie und religiös motivierten Spendenaktivitäten und deren Einfluss auf Wohltätigkeitstrends, Entwicklungszusammenarbeit und einer auf dem Gedanken der sozialen Gerechtigkeit beruhenden Philanthropie. Untersucht werden dafür die Strukturen religiös motivierte Spenden, für die in der islamischen Tradition die Begriffe „zakat“, „Waqf“ oder im Plural auch „awqaf-“ oder „Sadaqa“ verwendet werden, der christliche Begriff dafür lautet „tithes“ oder „ushour“. Aufbauend auf diesem theoretischen Rahmenwerk analysiert die qualitative und quantitative Feldstudie auf nationaler Ebene, wie die ägyptische Öffentlichkeit Philanthropie, soziale Gerechtigkeit, Menschenrechte, Spenden, Freiwilligenarbeit und andere Konzepte des zivilgesellschaftlichen Engagements wahrnimmt. Um eine umfassende und repräsentative Datengrundlage zu erhalten, wurden 2000 Haushalte, 200 zivilgesellschaftliche Organisationen erfasst, sowie Spender, Empfänger, religiöse Wohltäter und andere Akteure interviewt. Die so gewonnen Erkenntnisse lassen aussagekräftige Aufschlüsse über philanthropische Trends zu. Erstmals wird so auch eine finanzielle Einschätzung und Bewertung der Aktivitäten im lokalen Wohltätigkeitsbereich möglich, die sich auf mehr als eine Billion US-Dollar beziffern lassen. Die Erhebung weist nach, dass gemessen an den Pro-Kopf-Aufwendungen die privaten Spendenaktivitäten weitaus wichtiger sind als auswärtige wirtschaftliche Hilfe für Ägypten. Das wiederum lässt Rückschlüsse zu, welche Bedeutung lokale Wohltätigkeit erlangen kann, wenn sie richtig gesteuert wird und nicht wie bislang oft im Teufelskreis von ad-hoc-Spenden oder Hilfen von Privatperson an Privatperson gefangen ist. Die Studie stellt außerdem eine Verbindung her zwischen lokalen Wohltätigkeits-Mechanismen, die meist auf religiösen und kulturellen Werten beruhen, und modernen Strukturen, wie etwa Gemeinde-Stiftungen oder Gemeinde-„waqf“, innerhalb derer die Spenden eine nachhaltige Veränderung bewirken können. Daher bietet diese Arbeit also eine umfassende wissenschaftliche Grundlage, die nicht nur ein besseres Verständnis, sondern auch den nachhaltiger Aus- und Aufbau lokaler Wohltätigkeitsstrukturen in Ägypten ermöglicht. Zentral ist dabei vor allem die Rolle lokaler, individueller Spenden, die beispielsweise für Stiftungen auf der Gemeindeebene eingesetzt, wesentlich zu einer nachhaltigen Entwicklung beitragen könnten – und das nicht nur in Ägypten, sondern in der gesamten arabischen Region. Als konkretes Ergebnis dieser Arbeit, wurde ein innovatives Modell entwickelt, dass neben den wissenschaftlichen Daten das Konzept der „waqf“ berücksichtigt. Der Wissenschaftlerin und einem engagierten Vorstand ist es auf dieser Grundlage gelungen, die Waqfeyat al Maadi Community Foundation (WMCF) zu gründen, die nicht nur ein Modell für eine Bürgerstiftung ist, sondern auch das tradierte Konzept der „waqf“ als praktikable und verbürgte Wohlstätigkeitsstruktur sinnvoll weiterentwickelt.
This work provides a solid theoretical base on philanthropy, religious giving (Islamic zakat, ‘ushour, Waqf -plural: awqaf-, Sadaqa and Christian tithes or ‘ushour), and their implications on giving trends, development work, social justice philanthropy. The field study (quantitative and qualitative) that supports the theoretical framework reflects at a national level the Egyptian public’s perceptions on philanthropy, social justice, human rights, giving and volunteering and other concepts that determine the peoples’ civic engagement. The statistics cover 2000 households, 200 Civil Society Organizations distributed all over Egypt and interviews donors, recipients, religious people and other stakeholders. The numbers reflect philanthropic trends and for the first time provide a monetary estimate of local philanthropy of over USD 1 Billion annually. The survey proves that the per capita share of philanthropy outweighs the per capita share of foreign economic assistance to Egypt, which implies the significance of local giving if properly channeled, and not as it is actually consumed in the vicious circle of ad-hoc, person to person charity. In addition, the study relates local giving mechanisms derived from religion and culture to modern actual structures, like community foundations or community waqf that could bring about sustainable change in the communities. In sum, the work provides a comprehensive scientific base to help understand- and build on local philanthropy in Egypt. It explores the role that local individual giving could play in achieving sustainable development and building a new wave of community foundations not only in Egypt but in the Arab region at large. As a tangible result of this thesis, an innovative model that revives the concept of waqf and builds on the study’s results was created by the researcher and a dedicated board of trustees who succeeded in establishing Waqfeyat al Maadi Community Foundation (WMCF) that not only introduces the community foundation model to Egypt, but revives and modernizes the waqf as a practical authentic philanthropic structure.

Small towns internationally and in South Africa are becoming increasingly marginalised, and they are often experiencing economic downturn, demographic shifts and a rearticulation of their role in the urban hierarchy. In the case of South Africa many of these small towns are also faced with low levels of social development. The urgent need to address such conditions is evident by the fact that a large proportion of the South African population resides in small towns, and their surrounding hinterlands. This said, there are examples of small towns, internationally and in South Africa which, through the use of various Local Economic Development actions, have managed to remain sustainable, and in some cases become economically viable localities once again. In light of the above, the research conducted for this thesis seeks first to establish the socio-economic changes occurring over time in three small towns in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, namely Stutterheim, Bedford and Hamburg. Secondly, the research aims to identify the nature of LED activities in the three small towns, highlighting those factors contributing to the success of LED initiatives as well as those factors inhibiting LED in small towns. This is done with the intention of developing future lessons for LED in small towns. The research was conducted using a mix of qualitative and quantitative data generated through the interviews with key role players in each town, as well as secondary data sources. Findings from the research suggest that the small towns investigated are characterised by low levels of socio-economic development. In addition, it appears that the development opportunities for the towns are limited. Current initiatives are being driven by private role players with local government being largely uninvolved. Such initiatives are limited in nature, with benefits only felt by small groups of the local community. However, examples do exist of where LED has successfully benefited the broader spheres of the local community, thus suggesting that if implemented properly such an approach does have potential to assist in the socio-economic development of small towns. In light of this, a number of lessons are identified for LED in small towns, including the need for strong leadership, community involvement, partnerships between role players, and planning for project sustainability.

The de-industrialisation process that was a common feature of North America and Western Europe in the 1970s, through into the 1980s has become an observable feature in African countries and South Africa in particular in the last two decades. Globally, hard hit areas include those associated with the early Industrial Revolution characterised by mass production and the agglomeration of iron and steel, coal and textile industries. General changes in the global market, especially the falling demand for extractive heavy minerals like coal and gold have also affected many countries region and localities. In the case of South Mrica, the previous high economic dependence on mined minerals like coal and gold has resulted in many once prosperous mining regions of the country being reduced to a shadow of their former selves. The worst affected areas in South Africa are those of the Klerksdorp Goldfields in the North West Province and Free State Goldfields, with the latter alone losing 100,000 jobs during the 1990s. This trend has also been acute in the coal-mining industry of the KwaZulu-Natal province since the late 1970s. The firms that had grown in the shadow of the major mining company supplyipg machinery, or who processed the semi-manufactured product are also severely affected by the closing down and restructuring in the mining and iron industries. These industries have often been forced to close down because of a break in the vital connections they developed with these mining industries. Such localised economic crisis has encouraged the universal trend towards the devolution of developmental responsibilities to the local governments and other local stakeholders to - empower them to respond to these changes. This study investigated the local economic initiatives which have been undertaken in the three municipalities of north-western KwaZulu Natal i.e. Utrecht, Dundee and Dannhauser to respond to the closures which have taken place in the mining industry of this region, which used to be among the most prosperous coal mining regions of South Africa. Using their new developmental mandate the local governments, in partnership with the communities and other external interveners have tried to respond to these localised economic crisis and also indirectly to the general poverty and underdevelopment, which characterises this region of KwaZulu-Natal. The effects of apartheid policies, and previous discriminatory rural development policies in, particular, and the Regional Industrial Development policy, which was intensively applied in the 1980s by the pre-1994 government regime, have further compounded the magnitude of the challenge. The lack of capacity in some municipalities has constrained successful implementation of Local Economic Development has led to some communities acting alone to face their situation with or without external intervention.

The dissertation presents the results of a study of the role of decentralisation and community participation in natural resource management in Tanzania. It analyses whether the shift of central government power to decentralised government units and the participation of local communities at village level result in more effective and more sustainable management of natural resources, wildlife in particular. The study uses Songea District and the Selous Conservation Programme south of Tanzania as a case study. As the examination of the origins and meaning of community-based natural resource management and decentralisation and the analysis of international experiences show, both approaches have been adapted in a number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The government of Tanzania, with the support of a wide range of donors, is implementing an ambitious Local Government Reform Programme. The Selous Conservation Programme, jointly administered by the Tanzania Wildlife Division and GTZ, is promoting community-based conservation in villages bordering the Selous Game Reserve. The new Wildlife Policy, 1998, aims at the country-wide implementation of community-based conservation. Linkages between local government reform and improved environmental management are weak from insitutional, legal and technical points of view. On the other hand, the country has a policy environment that is highly supportive to decentralised environmental management and there is potential for improvement at both local and national levels. Songea District Council has defined the sustainable management of natural resources and the environment as one of its development priorities. Concerning the implementation of the Local Government Reform Programme, the district faces some problems and difficulties. Lack of human capacity and insufficient financial resources constrain the decentralisation process. Until now, up to about 50 villages bordering the game reserve have established their Wildlife Management Areas utilising their hunting quota. Due to insufficient and overdue legislation, the communities cannot fully make use and benefit from their wildlife resource. If remained uncorrected in the near future, the sustainability of community-based conservation programmes is threatened.
Thesis (M.Dev.Studies)-Univeristy of Natal, Durban, 2001.

M.A.
The South African development context is characterized by high levels of unemployment and poverty. It is therefore imperative to address these two aspects if any advancement in regard to development is to be achieved. Several options are available to development agents and government structures alike. The pre-requisite, however, for the selection of an option is sustainability. A Public Works Programme (PWP) holds the potential of impacting on South Africa's high levels of unemployment and poverty. Although this programme needs to be implemented alongside similar economic upliftment initiatives, a PWP can contribute significantly to the improvement of the SA development situation. The nature of a PWP has changed from purely creating jobs, to including training and education as essential components of a PWP. Only by including the latter components, can a PWP be deemed sustainable and impact directly on the lives of the participants. With the transformation to a new political dispensation in April 1994, SA also embarked on formulating a holistic and comprehensive development approach and vision. The final product was the Reconstruction and Development Programme. This Programme established the broad framework in which development policy and implementation take place. The RDP consists of various development aspects, all aimed at improving the SA development context. One of these aspects is focused at the upliftment and stimulation of the economy. The PWP forms part of the overall economic strategy. From this theoretical point of departure, the National PWP was formulated. One of the main factors that contributed to the slow development and implementation of the NPWP was the absence of local government structures. Local government structures underwent similar changes to those experienced at national level. In addition to the structural and geographical changes, the responsibilities of local government increased due to decentralisation of powers and functions from national government. Now local government holds the position of "development facilitator" instead of being a mere supplier of municipal services. Local economic development within the specified area has been emphasised as an urgent matter that needs to be developed and supported by local government. The NPWP fits perfectly into this mould. This study investigates the nature of the NPWP and the role of local government in its implementation with specific reference to a Gauteng local authority, the Greater Johannesburg Transitional Metropolitan Council.

Hostels are a product of the migrant labour system that originated in the copper mining industry in Namaqualand in the 1850s. The migrant labour compounds were used to accommodate migrant labour workers in the urban areas. However, these compounds also meant that migrant labour workers were denied the right of access to permanent accommodation and residential space in the urban areas. After the repeal of the influx control and segregative laws in South Africa in 1986, some of the hostel dwellers brought their relatives and friends to live in the hostels and this resulted in problems such as overcrowding which were exacerbated by poor management and control of the hostels. The living conditions of the hostel dwellers deteriorated during the 1990s. After the announcement of the unbanning of all liberation movements and political parties in South Africa in the 1990s, hostel violence broke out. This hostel violence left many hostel blocks vandalised and without basic municipal services such as electricity, water and waste removal. The hostel violence was primarily between the Inkata Freedom Party (IFP) aligned hostel dwellers and the African National Congress (ANC) aligned township and informal settlement residents. The hostel violence has catalysed the public housing challenges faced by the democratic government since its inception in 1994. Nevertheless, since 1994 the democratic government has introduced various housing programmes in an effort to provide adequate houses for all South African citizens. One such housing programme is the hostel redevelopment programme. The hostel redevelopment programme was adopted by the democratic government after 1994 with the aim of, among other things, upgrading public hostels, redeveloping and converting the rooms in public hostels into family rental units in order to improve the living conditions of the hostel dwellers and introducing hostel dwellers to family life. The Mogale City Local Municipality (MCLM) is one of the municipalities in Gauteng province that is participating in the hostel redevelopment programme. The findings of this study have revealed that the upgrading of the Kagiso hostel involved the following two processes: During the first process, the MCLM upgraded the Kagiso hostel by fixing broken windows and doors, repairing toilets and providing basic municipal services such as electricity, water, and waste removal in order to improve the living conditions of the hostel dwellers. The second process involved demolishing the hostel blocks and converting them into family units in order to address the public housing challenges relevant to the Kagiso hostel. In this study, the hostel redevelopment programme is called process 1 and the community residential units (CRU) programme is called process 2.
Public Administration & Management
M. Tech. (Public Management)

The Indigency Policy / Programme was introduced by the Tshwane Municipality in 2000 to alleviate poverty by assisting the poor with subsidized limited basic municipal services. The goal of this study was to explore the experiences and views of indigent older persons in Atteridgeville of the Indigency Policy / Programme of the Tshwane Municipality. Limited literature was available on the topic and hence the researcher undertook a qualitative study that was exploratory and descriptive in nature to explore this unknown area. The key recommendations were: There is a need for active involvement and availability of municipal social workers; continuous monitoring, education and evaluation by the municipality for the communities. It was recommended that the Municipality conduct a full scale research on indigents` experience and perceptions/ views of their Indigency Policy / Programme in Tshwane.
Social Work
M. A. (Mental Health)

Participatory development is believed to be an essential ingredient of the development process because it enables the people to influence the policy and decision-making process. It facilitates the designing of and enhances the implementation of plans and programmes or projects and that participation results in the development of ownership and belonging among the people themselves. This feeling in turn goes a long way to ensure the success of a programme or project. This study highlights some of the elements that led to the successful implementation of an income-generating project with women. The study also demonstrates that the people's own ideas are able to command adequate levels of participation, support and commitment to enhance their ability to meet their needs. The study further looks at the ownership of the project as very important for successful implementation and that projects or programmes should be facilitated within the means of the local participants to manage and control them. The elements mentioned in this study are an essential part of participatory development and enable the people to learn to take charge of their lives and solve their own problems. The study further looks at cultural and traditional values as an essential part of human growth, because local action taken by the women is very important in promoting overall success of the project.
Social work
M.A. (SS) (Mental Health)

The purpose of this study is to investigate and explore the challenges and problems experienced by the residents of Braamfischerville, related to the provision of housing, including the provision of services such as adequate water and electricity and roads in the study area. The research focused largely on how the challenges and problems related to housing affect the lives of the residents, socially and economically. It seems these houses were designed for people who are single and young, and will never grow and have families of their own. When considering the size of these houses, it becomes clear that they do not cater for larger families. The quality of the housing units in this area is of very poor standard. The mixed research methods are used to collect the primary data for this study. The use of both quantitative and qualitative methods are deemed most appropriate for this research study, as most researchers regard them as best methods in answering the research questions. Mixed approaches are also important in identifying issues, factors and relevant questions which can become the focus of a quantitative. The use of mixed methods has the assumption that both approaches can complement each other and help in avoiding unnecessary shortcomings. The findings revealed that the size of the RDP houses was not suitable to accommodate most of the residents in this area. The problem was caused by poor housing designs which resulted in very small, overcrowded RDP houses. Most of the RDP housing units are defective, mainly caused by the use of poor building materials and it was also found out that unemployment was a major challenge in Braamfischerville. The state has not managed to create jobs for the community of this area. It has become very difficult for these people to make improvements to and maintain their RDP houses. Provision of basic services such as water and electricity was found to be in order. The roads in Braamfischerville were found to be in very poor conditions. And that has negatively affected the socio-economic activities in the area. Finally, the land where this settlement has been established, was found to be inadequate. The area is situated very far from the places of employment and other facilities. Several houses were built on damp areas, flooding areas and on the wetlands. These houses are said to pose a serious danger to the occupants.
Geography
M. Sc. (Geography)