Despite the establishment of local municipalities, rural villages are still under-developed. Under-development is an economic situation in which there are persistent discriminatory customary laws, high inequality, low levels of income and employment, low consumption, high dependence, weak community structures, little or no access to resources and inadequate services. Rural communities have not reached a satisfactory stage of economic development. This is due to the fact that these communities start from a low developmental base. They require assistance from government and other development agencies, such as Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in order to achieve economic stability and a sense that they are living a meaningful life. The fundamental purpose of this study is to gain better understanding of rural livelihoods, and unpack efficiency of policy interventions that assist people in rural areas to pursue livelihood strategies that could help them to reduce poverty. The study mainly used documents from Statistics South Africa and Integrated Development Plan (IDP) documents from Elundini Local Municipality that made it possible to access socio-economic information about the village. The study found that, education levels, hawkership, welfare grants, Expanded Public Works Programme, livestock production and migration are strategies that determine livelihood in Makhoaseng village. The socio-economic conditions such as low levels of education, age, lack of access to basic infrastructure have effect on poverty and kind of livelihoods pursuit in different households. These conditions hinder people in the village to meet their basic needs. On the hand, the agricultural sector has a potential to boost Local Economic Development (LED) in the village. Lack of financial and social support from the government and private sector causes deficiencies in agricultural sector. Moreover, the village has weak structures with strong patriarchal norms. This confirms the need for holistic support from the government because few private sectors are willing to invest in such village. The implications are that, without community interest in education, attainment of better educational qualifications, skills and jobs will remain a challenge in the village. Other sectors of the population such as women will remain disadvantaged if community structures do not abandon patriarchal norms. Rural people are not waiting for government or development agencies to come up with interventions but they are engaging in some economic activities such as hawkership and wool production that enable them to go out of poverty. The government must partner with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to support community economic initiatives. On-farm activities ought to be intensified by venturing into mutton and beef production in the village. Government and development agencies must support women hawkers by developing them as cooperatives and explore other economic opportunities such as stone brick making and thatch for roofing. Low levels of education worsen the low living standards and create high dependency in the village. These conditions force the majority of the households in the Makhoaseng village to pursue involuntary livelihood strategies, while very few pursue deliberate livelihood strategies.

M.Ed. / Poverty is a serious concern all over the world. This phenomenon hinders development, particularly in rural areas where the majority of families are living below the poverty line. In many rural communities the RDP programme did not reach the majority of people. The study is aimed at finding out the extent, perceived causes and consequences of poverty in Homu A and Homu C near Giyani. The families regarded as the more impoverished in the two villages were selected as participants of the study. One member from eight families in each village was interviewed in this qualitative study. The collection of data was made through survey interviews as suggested by Silverman (1993), observations, and the recording of artefacts on poverty. A literature review was conducted to construct a theoretical framework for the inquiry. The findings show that many people in these areas are extremely poor. They are physically, socially and psychologically affected by poverty. They are helpless because they believe there is nothing they can do to develop themselves and their villages. Their helplessness hampers development of these communities. The findings also indicate that there is a need for informal and non-formal programmes to educate and empower the community members to combat poverty. These programmes should be linked with income generating projects to equip the community members with skills needed for the economy.

M.Comm. / The central question addressed by this study is how a Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for South Africa can be use to measure the impact of fiscal policy on the well being of South Africa's society and therefore assist fiscal policy makers in the making of Fiscal Policy in South Africa. As a starting point, this study will define the concept of poverty and look at income distribution as a measure of welfare. The questions to be raised in this section are: What is the importance of income distribution? How does South Africa compare in an international perspective and how does the different sources of data in South Africa compare with one another? How can inequality be measured? What does a profile of South Africa's poor looks like and what is the burden of poverty that they have to deal with? The second section of this study describes South Africa's Fiscal Policy in order to understand its impact on societies well being. More specifically, it examines: The failures of recent fiscal policy and its lessons for the future; and The government's GEAR (Growth, Employment and Redistribution) policy. Section three investigates possible fiscal policy interventions for attacking poverty. The following questions are addressed: Which programmes can the government implement in order to address poverty? What is the priorities for action? The fourth and final section of the study looks at the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) as a method for measuring the impact of fiscal policy on the well being of a society. It is discussed from various perspectives in order to arrive at a thorough understanding of its scope and nature, including: o What is a Social Accounting Matrix and does it exists in South Africa? o How can a Social Accounting Matrix assist fiscal policy makers?

M.A. / The purpose of this study is to compare the 1932 and 1989 Carnegie reports which dealt respectively with the issues of white and black poverty in South Africa. In 1932 the Carnegie report on white poverty was published which dealt with the causes, dimensions and possible solutions of poverty among the white (Afiikaner) community. In 1989 a similar report was published, the emphasis however being placed on the causes, dimensions and possible solutions of black poverty. The purpose of this study is to compare these two reports in their handling of the different poverty issues with specific emphasis on the role of politics in the causes and possible solutions of poverty. Research produced interesting points of agreement and disagreement. It was found that the magnitude of black poverty far exceeds that of white poverty 50% of the black population lives in poverty while only 17.5% of whites lived in poverty during the 1930's. The two Carnegie reports used the same indicators of poverty: the shortage of housing, education, health and unemployment. The historical causes of both black and white poverty can be traced to the same roots, for example the Anglo-Boer War and the Great Depression of the 1930's. However, the main causes of white poverty according to the Carnegie report were the inability of the population to adapt to changing economic conditions, farming problems, inadequate education and isolating circumstances. These are mainly socio-economic issues. In contrast, black poverty is largely caused by political factors, i.e. the policy of apartheid that discriminated against blacks in every sphere of life. White poverty was solved by a combination of three factors. The first was a process of ethnic mobilisation launched by Afrikaner leaders and designed to address "psychological" poverty. The second was economic growth as a result of the government's industrial policy and favourable external economic conditions. The third and most important was a deliberate policy of the government aimed at combating poverty. This included generous portions of the budget allocated to poor whites, comprehensive job creation programmes, legislation designed to favour white workers as opposed to black workers and the provision of housing, health services and education to the poor whites. According to the 1989 Carnegie report, black poverty is "a profoundly political issue". Therefore it cannot be solved until a fundamental redistribution of political power has taken place. This study evaluated the complex anti-poverty strategy proposed by the Carnegie report which covers a wide range of topics (for example education, health, rural development and housing) over the short and the long term, Although the Carnegie reports did not directly contribute to the solution of white or black poverty, it did however, lead to a greater public awareness of the poverty problem Both the (future) government and the private sector are to contribute to the solution of black poverty. In the study attention was also paid to issues not addressed by the Carnegie report, such as the redistribution of land, the role of the small business sector and population growth. It is concluded that the solution of black poverty hinges on addressing their "psychological" poverty, collective action to stimulate economic growth and effective government intervention in the economy.

Please read the abstract in the section 09summary of this document / Thesis (PhD (Sustainable Ecological Management))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Animal and Wildlife Sciences / unrestricted

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that range from halving extreme poverty rates to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, have been the most effective anti‐poverty push in history. The lives of thousands of people have been improved and targets have already been met on reducing poverty, increasing access to safe water, improving the lives of slum dwellers, and achieving gender parity in primary education. Despite huge gains, progress towards the eight MDGs has been uneven, not only among regions and countries, but also between population groups within countries, with accelerated action needed in many areas (MDG, 2013). On the other hand poverty alleviation, when we look at poverty alleviation, Mbaku (2007) defines it as the creation of a social, economic, and political environment that enhances and promotes entrepreneurial activities particularly among the poorest and most deprived persons while at the same time eliminating the inequalities that have diminished their life chances.

The South African law and legal system can and should be a mechanism through which the lives of all resident there are enhanced through the safeguarding and advancement of the fundamental rights guaranteed in its Bill of Rights. This thesis focuses on ‘legal aid’ service delivery (broadly speaking) for the indigent in a particular locality by and through registered law clinics, other legal services providers and via other means in civil rather than criminal matters. In this regard there continue to be very substantial differences between the proper access to civil justice requirements of constitutional South Africa and the actual situation which has existed since the dawn of South Africa’s democratic era which continues unabated. Justice and equality are promised to all in South Africa, yet due to gaps in the ‘net’ of free legal services provided to the indigent, the ability to pay for legal services in civil cases often remains the deciding factor. This study examines the constitutional obligations which, it is argued, apply to the provision of free civil legal services to impoverished people in South Africa. This research considers the law as a vector for necessary positive transformation in the daily lives of those resident in South Africa, which is considered within the country’s woefully unequal socio-economic situation. It builds upon existing research and court authority which show the function of access to justice as an important promoter of the type of society envisaged by the South African Constitution - one where the enjoyment of justice and equality are within the reach of all. However, at present, if one can afford the expensive services of lawyers in civil matters, then access to justice is far more readily attainable. But the opposite is true where someone is denied meaningful access to justice through a lack of legal representation because they cannot afford prohibitively high lawyers’ costs (and disbursements) and no adequate alternatives are provided for by the state or through other means. In these circumstances a vulnerable, unrepresented litigant in a civil case faces a greatly increased likelihood of being denied proper access to a daunting and intricate legal system. There are two main reasons for concentrating on free legal services to the ‘needy’ in civil rather than criminal matters. In the first place, all available statistics show that a huge proportion of legal aid services in South Africa has been and continues to be dispensed in criminal rather than civil cases. Secondly, there has been minimal research or case authority in South Africa on legal aid and other free legal services for impoverished people in civil matters. This thesis examines the state of free civil legal service provision and the need for such assistance within the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, one of South Africa’s largest metropoles. This analysis includes an empirical study of the requests for free civil legal services in a particular year by qualifying potential clients in eThekwini and the degree to which free legal service providers are meeting or failing to meet those needs. The study considers the legal service provision in such matters by legal non-governmental organisations, state-supported legal service providers and the work of legal professionals in private practice acting pro bono. The thesis then proposes a model for eThekwini for coordinating (and concurrently improving) civil legal aid services, pro bono legal work and other forms of free legal assistance - like community service by senior law students and law graduates - in response to the particular needs and circumstances facing the indigent there. When referring to the concept of ‘legal aid services’, this research concentrates on legal advice, assistance and representation to indigent clients. However, the promotion of legal rights awareness to such clients is often necessary to open their eyes to the possibility of legal avenues, where appropriate, to improve their situations. Therefore this study also considers - albeit to a lesser degree - this more indirect form of legal assistance through the dissemination of legal knowledge in an accessible form to clients who would qualify for legal aid assistance. The work concludes by briefly postulating the likely appropriateness (and/or limitations) of the aforementioned ‘free civil legal service model for the indigent’ beyond eThekwini.

From human to human(e) is an exploration of ways of coming to understand what it means to be(come) human and to belong (Vanier, 2003) while living and working as an educator in a disadvantaged community. In this sense, the purpose of this dissertation is the exploration of understanding what it might mean to be a ‘Foundation Phase’ (Primary/Elementary School) educator in a context of constructed poverty and disadvantage (Swanson 2004), thereby contributing to the field of education in this area, whilst embracing a practice of freedom and fostering apertures of hope and transcendence. This reflexive, rhizomatic narrative journeying (ibid) attempts to reach out to humanity via an interdisciplinary and arts-based approach that attempts to address concerns of inequity and pedagogical in-access and evokes the spiritual, emotive and philosophical in drawing attention to the ethical irresponsibility and socio-spiritual repercussions of ignoring social disadvantage in education. It includes inherences and impressions of humaneness in education. It seeks both introspection and insight into what ‘the human condition’ might mean to a just and robust education of children. In this sense, it is a personal inquiry as reflexive narrative journeying (ibid) based on twenty seven years of teaching in a primary school in a vulnerable and economically-impoverished community in the province of KwaZulu Natal in South Africa. As a writing-as-inquiry journeying, I engage with ‘critical rhizomatic narrative’ methodology (Swanson, 2004) as it resonates with the explorations of lived experiences that pertain to emotions, feelings, values and spirituality and because it enables a process of seeking what it might mean to be(come) human(e). This study is a philosophical rhizomatic narrative rendering which is an approach to(wards) understandings of personal growth and spirituality through understanding the various emergent journeys of life and the meanings that we can elicit from them to become more human and thus more humane.

This study focuses on investigating the impact of poverty reduction programmes in improving the quality of lives of the people in the King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality, in relation to interventions that have been implemented by the South African government to address poverty. The purpose of the study is to understand the situation in King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality and come up with recommendations that will assist government to enhance delivery of poverty reduction programmes in order to improve the quality of life of the rural poor in King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality. The research methodology for this study is descriptive, sourced from available literature. Due to the restricted extent of the research, no empirical survey is conducted. A number of normative criteria that deal with the research problem are identified from the available literature from which findings are drawn and recommendations made. The findings of the study show that; whilst significant progress has been made to address poverty through policy and legal frameworks and through implementation of poverty reduction strategies and programmes, there is a general consensus in literature that poverty is still widespread in South Africa and that activities put in place to reduce and eradicate it are not sufficiently translating into required outputs necessary for desired outcomes which ultimately impact on poverty. The study has identified the gaps that exist in service delivery as well as the challenges faced by government in effectively impacting on poverty through its poverty reduction programmes. Based on the findings the study has made recommendations that will assist government to enhance service delivery so that poverty reduction programmes are conducted in an effective and efficient, integrated and coordinated manner which will cause government to achieve its desired outcomes.

The researcher is perturbed by the escalating levels of poverty and unemployment in Mbhashe Local Municipality (Integrated Development Plan, 2008/9) despite the poverty alleviation programmes that have been established since 1994. The main objective of this study is to identify the underlying factors and challenges faced by women of the Impumelelo Isezandleni Community Garden and Poultry Project in meeting the set objectives of the programme such as improving food security and job creation through sustainable agricultural development. This project falls under the Siyazondla Homestead Food Production Programme (SHFPP), which is one of the programmes developed under the Green Revolution strategy of the Department of Agriculture. SHFPP is proclaimed to be running successfully in improving food security in the Mbhashe Local Municipality (MECDoA: 2008/9). 7 ABSTRACT The researcher is perturbed by the escalating levels of poverty and unemployment in Mbhashe Local Municipality (Integrated Development Plan, 2008/9) despite the poverty alleviation programmes that have been established since 1994. The main objective of this study is to identify the underlying factors and challenges faced by women of the Impumelelo Isezandleni Community Garden and Poultry Project in meeting the set objectives of the programme such as improving food security and job creation through sustainable agricultural development. This project falls under the Siyazondla Homestead Food Production Programme (SHFPP), which is one of the programmes developed under the Green Revolution strategy of the Department of Agriculture. SHFPP is proclaimed to be running successfully in improving food security in the Mbhashe Local Municipality (MECDoA: 2008/9). The dissertation argues that women, the beneficiaries of the project, are faced with a variety of challenges which make it impossible to meet the set objectives. Using a qualitative research methodology where semi-structured interviews gather data from 15 respondents who are beneficiaries in the project, findings indicate that there are a number of challenges and constraints that are experienced by women in the project. These challenges amongst others range from gender equity, culture and tradition; lack of provisions for diverse women population in the project; violation of the people-centered approach; limited women empowerment; insufficient support and lack of capacity from the Department of Agriculture (DoA) officials, the non-existent Land Reform Programme etc. While women seem committed and want the project to grow to sustain them, this is not complemented with enough support by the DoA. The study anticipates that should these women find viable alternatives, they will soon abandon the project. To avoid a total anticipated collapse of the project in future, the study recommends that a serious intervention by the state should occur coupled with the revitalization of the programme and a paradigm shift towards an effective food security programme which emphasizes women and their important role in agriculture.