Submitted in the fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts (Community Work), University of Zululand in the Department of Social Work, 2010. / The flagship program is a developmental approach aimed at facilitating economic, educational and training opportunities for rural women and children under the age of 15 in order to break the cycle of vulnerability and poverty in South Africa. In Msinga alone, the Integrated Development Plan document (2001:2) indicates that at least 85% of Msinga population is unemployed thereby trapped in poverty. For them to earn a proper living, they depend on subsistence farming which at times successful due to lack of adequate resources like water, gardening equipment and accessible roads, and more. This is supported by Cloud (1985:7) who argues that even those women who have access such resources, it is of a particular concern to the kind of access they have to such resources for carrying out their activities, and the command they have over the benefits thereafter. Therefore, the study was based on assessing the impact of Mashunka Flagship project as an approach to poverty alleviation, under the Msinga Local Municipality funded by the Department of Social Development. The Evaluative research method was used and the interview questionnaires were used to gather information from the sample twenty respondents that were used. Relevant literature was reviewed to gather more information from experts who have done the research before on the topic and the recommendation were made based on the findings of the study. The findings have revealed that the women and children have benefited from the program in many ways, including the community at large, in terms of electricity, access road and water. They received funding from various donors both private and public. All women in the project were trained on various skills. Children are attending early childhood development in the nearby and they eat everyday form the scheme. The findings also revealed the importance of intersectoral collaboration and training of the project members as the important tools towards the sustenance of the project and comprehensive service delivery.

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Community work at the University of Zululand in the Department of Social Work, 2010. / The advent of the democratic transformation in South Africa during 1994, brought with it high hope that income , poverty and inequity would soon be significantly reduced from the high levels that existed during the Apartheid era. Though the development approach was adopted by the Department of Social Development in 1997, it has, however, not yet achieved its purpose. The poverty alleviation programme came as a ubstitut4 of maintenance grants. The grants were phased out in the period of three years whilst the Department of Social Development ws introducing the new approach of funding community projects. The study is about the impact of income generating projects by women in Utrecht area. The study was conducted on poverty alleviation projects funded by the Department of Social Development. An evaluative research method was followed in wwhich data was gathered through semi-structured interviews. A sample of twenty projects was drawn and respondents were interviewed where two were from each project. Related literature has been reviewed that focuses on poverty alleviation and income generating projects. .Various recommendations have been made on the findings of the study. The findings of the study indicated the need for training project members in capacity building. Project members also need to be motivated in one way or another so that they can develop a sense of ownership and work hard for the success of their own projects. Progress in poverty alleviation has been very slow and uneven. Community projects have failed poverty-stricken communities to improve their socio-economic standards. The research findings indicated clearly that the strategies and policies were not effective enough in achieving the desired goals of poverty alleviation. It has been noted that what actually made programmes for poverty alleviation to be disabled ea its implementation in the community.

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Community Work in the Department of Social Work at the University of Zululand, 2010. / Culturally determined gender roles restricted women’s freedom, choice and rights and as such, it is not surprising that women have long been neglected in development. It is only recently that attention was given to women and particularly rural women who are actively engaged in productive labor. At the Beijing plan of action conference in 1995, it was highlighted that though poverty affects men and women, but because of gender role and responsibility women bear a greater burden and it was recommended that: • Polices and programs for women be developed in order to alleviate poverty, with their full participation and respect for cultural diversity. • Mobilization to improve the effectiveness of anti-poverty programs directed at disadvantaged people. Several programs have been developed by the government in order to empower women. This study therefore is aimed at assessing the impact of social development programs on participating women at Amajuba district Municipality in KwaZulu Natal. These programs are developed by women and required their full participation. They are funded by the government for sustainability. The researcher’s respondents were selected from members who are participating. An evaluative research method was utilized as it assesses the implementation and usefulness of social interventions. Higson –Smith (1995:47) stated that evaluation research is aimed at testing interventions, to see how effective they are, and therefore, represents an important means of linking action and research in a constructive manner. Evaluation research can furnish evidence of the usefulness of a program. Findings revealed that women benefited through participation in these programs, as they were also capacitated on activities they were engaged in. They were not successful to generate enough income to sustain their families. Implementation of recommendations made on chapter 6 will develop projects to small businesses so that participants can maintain their families and, contribute to the economy of the country.

Income generating projects represent one strategy adopted by the Department of Social Development to alleviate poverty and foster sustainable development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of beneficiaries of income generating projects regarding these projects and whether the income generating projects run by the Development Centres in the Sedibeng Region, Gauteng Department of Social Development were perceived to be making any impact and were responding to the needs of the poor. The research design for the study could be classified as qualitativedescriptive. A sample of 20 participants was drawn from two Development Centres. The sampling method for the study was partly purposive and partly availability sampling. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews and responses obtained from the interviews were analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic content analysis. The main findings that emerged from the study were that participants appeared to have a clear understanding of the fact that income generating projects represented a government strategy to fight poverty, create jobs and uplift the standard of living of the poor. However, most participants were dissatisfied with the lack of clearly defined expectations, planning and monitoring on the part of the Department of Social Development. Despite the fact that there were challenges and limitations encountered by beneficiaries during implementation of the projects, the Development Centre was perceived to be an effective service delivery model for alleviating poverty and enhancing the quality of life of beneficiaries. The conclusion drawn was that income generating projects conducted at the two Development Centres seemed to be achieving their aims even though there would seem to be room for improvement in terms of knowledge and skills imparted and participation of beneficiaries in decision-making. These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for Development Centres, the Department of Social Development, social work practice and future research.