Thesis (MTech (Public Management)) --Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2009 / There is mounting dissatisfaction among South African communities concerning the state of housing and safety and security in South Africa. This, coupled with intentions of government, which have not always been as successful as anticipated, has led to situations where communities that were promised development, embark on uprisings against poor service delivery, which they receive. This study investigates involvement of all stakeholders, specifically the community, in community development projects, in order to determine what effect this has on the end result of community development projects. The main focus of this study comprises involvement of the community and the impact that it could have on the initiation and planning steps of the project management process. The study uses both a qualitative and quantitative approach. The quantitative survey was administered through use of two closed ended questionnaires; one was directed at residents of the N2 Gateway, as the beneficiaries of the N2 Gateway Housing Project, and the other at residents of Langa on four subdivisions of Langa, namely northern, southern, eastern and western Langa. The qualitative survey was administered in the form of interviews that were held with managers in the Provincial Government of the Western Cape who are responsible for implementation of the Bambanani Against Crime Project and the N2 Gateway Housing Project. The study reveals that both projects made little use of community engagement during the initiation and implementation stages, which had a visible effect on results of the project, as confirmed by results of the survey. However, the project had a different approach owing to the nature of the project. The Bambanani Against Crime Project solely relied on volunteers from the community for implementation and this aspect had a big impact on the end result of the project. The N2 Gateway Housing Project did not accommodate community involvement at any stage of the project, which ultimately led to dissatisfactory results in respect of views of the community, and the department that implemented the project.

This study examined how isiXhosa-speaking women street traders in Cape Town's Langa Township exercised agency in responding to similar structural constraints and opportunities that affected their livelihoods. Drawing on Giddens's Structuration Theory and Sen's Capabilities Approach, I unpacked and conceptualised agency as five dimensions (reflexivity, motivation, rationality, purposive action and transformative capacity). This analytical framework was then used to assess the ways in which women from a poor township community exercised their agency as street traders. A case study methodology (n=25) was adopted using participant observation and in-depth interviews. Miles and Huberman's thematic coding approach guided the qualitative analysis. The study found that structurally imposed constraints were rooted in class, multiple sources of power dynamics, and material constraints related to health; while opportunities emanated from market mechanisms of supply and demand, community social support systems in the form of social capital and social networks, family support and statutory social welfare programmes. Other key findings included resistance to patriarchy, cultural norms and practices, such as submission to abusive partners and unreasonable demands from extended family members. The findings report structure and agency as mutually constitutive in so far as familial circumstances, previous work experience, social capital, educational achievements and temporality either reinforced or diminished the participants' agency. Three profiles of agency among the women traders emerged from the data. The profiles demonstrated varying degrees of enablement (most enabled, moderately enabled and least enabled) and that individual agency was a distinguishing factor. Reflexivity, as a dimension of agency, presented as more fluid and malleable than the other four dimensions. The findings show that agency is reasonably elastic and it can expand capabilities and opportunities for enablement. Finally, the study proposed a diagnostic tool for assessing and enhancing agency with potential applications in entrepreneurial training for development. My study contributes to a theoretical understanding of the concept of agency, the role it plays in development at a micro-level and criteria for assessment. Furthermore, lessons learnt from the profiles can be applied to development practice and entrepreneurial training among African women traders.

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / The opportunities and challenges faced by young people who are not in any kind of employment, education or training (NEETs) are under-reported by scholars in the field of development. In this regard, what NEETs in South Africa know about nutrition and how they pursue nourishment are neglected areas of research. Yet they are important considerations for policymakers. The majority of young people in the age group 18–24 are, strictly speaking, no longer their parents’ responsibility, with the child support grant that their caregiver may have received having terminated when they turned 18. However, many young people have not found jobs and are therefore not financially independent. As a result, they are constrained in being able to access food (or at least the food that they particularly enjoy). This study aimed to investigate the lived experiences of young adult NEETs in terms of food and nutrition, what they do to ensure that they are nourished, and the kinds of nutritional achievements that they have to choose from.

Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / ENGLISH SUMMARY: The study looks at the different elements of a business strategy developed for a cultural tourism project in the township of Langa, located in the city of Cape Town. Its unique nature lies in the fact that the operators of the enterprise are volunteering young residents of the area, who will benefit through support provided by the community-based organisation in their subsequent training. Thus, the venture is at the same time a tourism enterprise, a generator of development funds and a community organisation. In line with a systematic approach to business strategising the study consists of four major sections. The first section (chapter 2) provides a broad background to the cultural-tourism industry, incorporating lessons to be learned from Cyprus, Papua New Guinea and Botswana as well as other parts of South Africa. It also reviews tools available to segment the cultural tourism market and estimate its size. With the focus on skills shortages in township environments, the third chapter outlines some of the challenges likely to confront the project. It also indicates the skills-development needs and expectations which are likely to motivate the project participants. As a further background for the preparation of the business strategy, chapter 4 summarises the relevant core elements of the business environment around cultural tourism in township areas. It also covers critical elements of the tourism industry’s competitive environment and relevant stakeholders. The fourth key chapter covers (with respect to the particular Langa-focused community-based cultural-tourism venture) all conventional topics, including vision, mission and goal statements, envisaged product offerings and marketing plans, value-chain characteristics and an assessment of the (expected) competitive situation. The final chapter briefly touches on the appropriateness of this township project or business as a tool for the social and economic transformation of the township youth. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die studie ondersoek die verskillende elemente van 'n besigheidsstrategie vir ‘n projek binne die gebied van kulturele toerisme, met besondere klem op die Langa woongebied in Kaapstad. Die besondere karakter van die projek word bepaal deur die feit dat die projekdeelnemers vrywillige jeugdiges is, wat hoop om deur hul samewerking hul verdere opleidingsgeleenthede te verbeter. Die projek is dus terselfdertyd ‘n toerisme onderneming, ‘n skepper van ontwikkelingsfondse en ‘n gemeenskapsorganisasie. In ooreenstemming met ‘n gestruktureerde sakestrategie bestaan die studie uit vier hoofdele. Die eerste afdeling (hoofstuk 2) verskaf ‘n breë agtergrond tot kulturele toerisme, met besondere verwysings tot Ciprus, Papoea-Nieu Guinee en Botswana asook ander dele van Suid-Afrika. Dit behandel ook konsepte wat gebruik kan word om die mark van kulturele toerisme in segmente op te breek en sy grootte te beraam. Met die klem op vaardigheidstekorte in townships gee die derde hoofstuk ‘n oorsig van enkele uitdagings wat die projek sal tref. Terselfdertyd gee dit ‘n aanduiding van die opleidingsbehoeftes en verwagtings wat die jeugdiges betrokke by die projek mag koester. As ‘n verdere agtergrond vir die voorbereiding van ‘n sakestrategie skets hoofstuk 4 sekere van die kernelemente van die sakeomgewing rondom kulturele toerisme in gebiede soos Langa. Dit dek ook kritiese aspekte van mededinging in die toerismebedryf asook van die betrokke belangegroepe. Met die fokus op Langa en gemeenskapstoerisme behandel die vierde deel alle relevante aspekte van ‘n sakemodel: Dit sluit in doelstellings en mikpunte, die beoogde dienstespektrum en bemarkingsplanne asook die mededingingsdinamiek. Die laaste hoofstuk besin oor die toepaslikheid van hierdie projek of sakemodel as ‘n instrument vir die sosiale en ekonomiese transformasie van die “township”-jeugdiges.

The role of parents in their children’s education presents significant evidence in schools’ academic results, when parental roles in education are given priority. It is noted that parents play a significant role in improving a school’s academic results. The aim of this study was to investigate the techniques utilised by schoolteachers to involve parents in children’s education in selected secondary schools within the Metro-Central Education District, Western Cape. A qualitative research approach was utilised, employing research methods which included face-to-face interviews, reading school polices and going through parents’ meeting minutes. The investigation focused on two secondary schools that were purposefully selected to participate in the study. This investigation revealed that participants in the study overlooked the role of parents in their schools. Therefore, although they involve parents in some school activities, there is a need for training on how the school principals should optimally involve parents in school activities. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Educational Leadership and Management)