South Africans carry high debt levels and many deal with the threat of over-indebtedness. In particular, the debt situation of the youth is of utmost concern. This study was undertaken to gain an understanding of how the liability usage of households fluctuates over the life course. The main objective was to identify and describe how debt is accumulated by young South Africans and how household characteristics and events may be related to the uptake of household liabilities. This study conducted a comprehensive literature review culminating with the development of a heuristic model that identified variables that may affect household debt uptake. Quantitative statistical analysis techniques were employed on secondary data acquired from the South African Audience Research Foundation’s All Media and Products Survey for the years 1999 until 2013. The findings identified that household debt follows a familiar life cycle pattern. A number of independent variables were shown to affect household debt uptake. Furthermore, certain of these variables are related to the trajectories of the life course. / Taxation / M. Acc. Sci.

MENVM / Department of Geography and Geo-Information Sciences / Fuel wood is regarded as a major source of energy around the world, particularly in developing nations. Most rural communities around the world, consider forests as the repository of stored energy. The high dependence on forests as a source of fuel wood has a major impact on vegetation because trees take a long time to regenerate to maturity, hence high dependence leads to deforestation. Fuel wood is used for household needs, such as cooking and heating and its uses contribute to the emissions of Green House Gases (GHG) such as CO2, CH4, and Black Carbon amongst others. The study assesses household energy use, the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from the combustion of fuel wood, the extent of de-vegetation and strategies to ensure sustainable energy provisions in the case study areas. Primary and secondary methods were used to collect data. The data were analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS 21.0), showing the frequency distribution, measures of central tendency and chi-square to determine the extent of fuel wood used in relation to electricity. The primary data were collected through personal observations, field surveys, interviews and questionnaires, while secondary data included the 2011 South Africa Census data and remote sensing images, which with the aid of GIS, were used in mapping the vegetation change.

MRDV / Instutute for Rural Development / Health and wellbeing of humans is affected by their eating habits, patterns and choice of meals. This research discusses food consumption patterns of selected households of Mbilwi and Matavhela villages in Thulamela Municipality, Limpopo Province of South Africa. The study identified types of food consumed and the nutritional knowledge of households living in the study area. In addition, the study assessed the knowledge of households on how food choices affect their health. Lastly an analysis of socio-economic factors that influence food consumption patterns in households living in Mbilwi and Matavhela villages was investigated. Using purposive sampling, qualitative and quantitative inquiry were used to explore the research objectives. A sample size of 50 and 47 households from each village were selected respectively and the heads of each household were interviewed. Thematic content analysis was used to categorise data into themes, to address and interpret qualitative data. Themes were generated as the units for analysis based on the objectives of the study to enable interpretation of qualitative information. The quantitative data was analysed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23.0. The findings indicated that there was no variety in foods consumed by households in both the weekly food consumption pattern and 24-hour food recall. There was also limited nutrition knowledge of the foods consumed in households of both villages. Households usually consumed energy giving foods such as carbohydrates and body building foods such as proteins. There was low consumption of milk and milk products, fruit and vegetable food groups. Various socio-economic factors such as income, living conditions, health, nutrition knowledge, culture, religion and lack of time to prepare food, affected eating habits. Some foods were recommended or condoned based on religious and cultural factors. Most households were unemployed and relied on government grants and remittances from family members working in the metropolitan centres. The findings in this study provide a better understanding of food access, availability and consumption in rural areas which can also assist in the formulation of policies that would improve quality of food consumption in rural areas. This study presented an opportunity that can be filled by institutions working in rural areas to support and strengthen their activities. Information sharing with households on the benefits of balanced diets can contribute to the health and the well-being of the society. The emphasis must be on strengthening backyard vegetable/fruit gardens and community food gardening programmes for household consumption v and sale, to generate income. These programmes can also offer fruit/vegetable preservation skills to households in order to help improve the shelf life of the produce. Policy makers must encourage provision of nutritional knowledge to households through different media and channels such as television, clinics, hospitals, schools, and newspapers.

The scourge of HIV/AIDS is ravaging our communities; many children have lost their parents to this pandemic. The death of parents because of this pandemic has resulted in the emergence of a new phenomenon of child-headed households. This paper seeks to examine the rights of children in child-headed households as entrenched in section 28(1)(b) and (c) of the Constitution. Once the rights of children in child-headed households are ascertained, the state’s duty to give effect to these rights is investigated. In the analysis of the rights, the socio-economic rights jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court is considered. The paper further argues that the state gives effect to the rights of children in child-headed households through legislation and policy. As such, the paper takes a closer look at the legislation and policies that seek to give effect to the rights of children in child-headed households as enumerated in section 28(1)(b) and (c) and gaps in that legislation and policy are highlighted. In conclusion, proposals are made that will assist the state to give effect to the rights of children in child-headed households as set out in the Constitution. / Private Law / LL.M.

Placement of orphans under kinship foster care is a common occurrence in social work practice, especially around Bushbuckridge in Mpumalanga Province. Social workers are facing the challenge of an alarming increase in foster care cases due to the HIV and AIDS pandemic in the area. Thus the social workers are trapped in a situation of having to place orphans in kinship foster care, without adequate preparation nor the opportunity to explore the feelings and experiences of being in a child-headed household. This study aimed at exploring and describing the experiences and expectations of orphans who were in charge of child-headed households, regarding their preparation for being placed in kinship foster care and their subsequent placement in such care. Research findings revealed that some orphaned children who had previously been heading a child-headed household and were now placed in kinship foster care were continuing to head the households despite the fact that an order had been issued by the children’s court for them to be under the care and guidance of kin foster parents. The non-involvement of orphaned heads of households in any decisions that affect them emerged in the findings of the study as a critical issue. Another important finding was that some orphaned children in kinship foster care experienced the abuse of the foster care grant by their kin foster parents. The research study has made provision for conclusions and recommendations to all role-players responsible for placing child-headed households in kinship foster care in order to enhance the efficacy of kin foster care placement. / Department of Social Work / M.A. (Social Science (Mental Health))

Text in English / Child-headed households are a reality in South Africa, and extensive research has advanced its causes and the children’s coping mechanisms. Social workers identify children in need, refer them to SASSA for social grants, facilitate foster care placements and offer psychosocial support services. This study sought to determine the nature of social work services rendered to children in such households in Virginia in the Free State. Qualitative exploratory, descriptive and contextual research was used to reach the goal of the study. Thirteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirteen participants who were selected through purposive sampling. The data collected was analysed using the eight steps of Tesch (in Creswell, 2009) and verified through Guba’s method of trustworthiness (Krefting, 1991). The services rendered to child-headed households (CHHs) through individual, group and community work were inadequate due to lack of resources including a shortage of social workers due to a general dissatisfaction with salaries. Participants suggested the need to build the capacity of the available staff through staff training and improved access to available resources in order to strengthen the nature of services rendered to CHHs. / Social Work / M.A. (Social Work)

The scourge of HIV/AIDS is ravaging our communities; many children have lost their parents to this pandemic. The death of parents because of this pandemic has resulted in the emergence of a new phenomenon of child-headed households. This paper seeks to examine the rights of children in child-headed households as entrenched in section 28(1)(b) and (c) of the Constitution. Once the rights of children in child-headed households are ascertained, the state’s duty to give effect to these rights is investigated. In the analysis of the rights, the socio-economic rights jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court is considered. The paper further argues that the state gives effect to the rights of children in child-headed households through legislation and policy. As such, the paper takes a closer look at the legislation and policies that seek to give effect to the rights of children in child-headed households as enumerated in section 28(1)(b) and (c) and gaps in that legislation and policy are highlighted. In conclusion, proposals are made that will assist the state to give effect to the rights of children in child-headed households as set out in the Constitution. / Private Law / LL.M.

Placement of orphans under kinship foster care is a common occurrence in social work practice, especially around Bushbuckridge in Mpumalanga Province. Social workers are facing the challenge of an alarming increase in foster care cases due to the HIV and AIDS pandemic in the area. Thus the social workers are trapped in a situation of having to place orphans in kinship foster care, without adequate preparation nor the opportunity to explore the feelings and experiences of being in a child-headed household. This study aimed at exploring and describing the experiences and expectations of orphans who were in charge of child-headed households, regarding their preparation for being placed in kinship foster care and their subsequent placement in such care. Research findings revealed that some orphaned children who had previously been heading a child-headed household and were now placed in kinship foster care were continuing to head the households despite the fact that an order had been issued by the children’s court for them to be under the care and guidance of kin foster parents. The non-involvement of orphaned heads of households in any decisions that affect them emerged in the findings of the study as a critical issue. Another important finding was that some orphaned children in kinship foster care experienced the abuse of the foster care grant by their kin foster parents. The research study has made provision for conclusions and recommendations to all role-players responsible for placing child-headed households in kinship foster care in order to enhance the efficacy of kin foster care placement. / Department of Social Work / M.A. (Social Science (Mental Health))