Includes bibliographical references. / Elder abuse is one of the major problems in South Africa. Elderly people are being abused by their family members, children and members of their communities This problem remains hidden in that most cases are not reported to the officials, and if they are reported, officials are doing little or nothing about them. Although the communities are trying to address the issue, due to underreporting it is very difficult to determine the actual number of the elderly who are being abused daily . Traditionally, the young generation is expected to respect their elderly people, whether they know them or not. However, nowadays it appears that little respect is shown to the elderly. Instead they are often being financially robbed, physically attacked, sexually abused and emotionally threatened. As a result they move to old age institutions or places of safety for safety and security. This paper focuses on those elderly who suffered abuse in their families and communities. The study is conducted in an institution for the elderly. The abused elderly are encouraged to talk about what happened to them and who their abusers are, with the aim of finding out what brought them into an institution. The findings of this research were obtained through focus group and in-depth individual interviews. Access to the institution was given at St. Monica's Home and seven elderly persons, which is 50% of the residents, were interviewed. The same persons participated in both the in-depth individual and focus group interviews as a form of primary data collection. Information was elicited in the form of a focus group discussion and interviews with individuals. The results of this paper indicate that: a) Family and community members are sometimes guilty of abusing the elderly. b) Elderly persons have lost trust in reporting their problems to officials, especially the police. c) The elderly prefer to be at the institution than to be at home, where they were abused by their 'loved' ones. d) Society has, to a large extent, lost traditional and cultural values in respect of caring for the elderly. e) There is a lack of knowledge among people regarding resources that could assist elderly people with their problems. The research results show that there are elderly persons who move to institutions for the aged for safety and security, not because they prefer living there. However, one cannot generalize the findings of the study, as it covered only a small number of persons, and is, therefore, not representative of the elderly in general. The study focused on one institution with a limited population, as it had fourteen elderly people.

This study explored the experiences of Social Services Professionals in rendering services to children with disabilities in the iLembe Municipality. The study focused on their overall experiences, any challenges that they may face when rendering these services and any recommendations that they may have regarding the current state of the services they render to children with disabilities. According to the Integrated National Disability Strategy (1997), there is often a low life-expectancy for people with severe disabilities living in rural areas due to inadequate care, support and access to some of the most basic services. A high level of knowledge and access to resources is required when caring for children with disabilities which places more pressure on social workers to seek other forms of alternative care for these children (Mitchell, 2013). The research study utilized a qualitative approach using semi structured interviews with 23 Social Services Professionals from various non-governmental organizations and the Department of Social Development. The non-probability sampling method was used for the selection of participants. The findings of the study revealed that Social Services Professionals find rendering services to children with disabilities to be both rewarding and challenging. Their main challenges in rendering these services included: insufficient facilities; policy limitations; training needs in the field of disability; misuse of the disability grant and a lack of support. They also face various challenges in placing children with disabilities in alternative care. Namely limited facilities and resources; lengthy application processes; reluctant foster parents; a lack of co-operation from stakeholders; and a lack of involvement from the government. Social Services Professionals felt that they were not adequately equipped to provide services to children with disabilities. Which they attributed this to a lack of training. Participants felt that alternative care for children with disabilities should be explored as a last resort and they recommended that state support should be the main intervention in providing better services to children with disabilities. Recommendations from the study are that there should be a prioritization of funding to train Social Services Professionals. Funding that is focused on issues of disabilities in order to educate communities should also be prioritized.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references. / This study focuses on what has changed and what has remained the same for women in post 1994 South Africa as far as women informal traders in the City of Cape Town (CBD) are concerned. The study shows that despite Legislative and Constitutional changes at the practical level women remain economically and socially disenfranchised.

Women make up more than half the population of South Africa. Despite the countries’ legislation and policies to promote the rights and social position of women, many remain unemployed and disempowered, face ongoing discrimination and are not able to access resources including educational opportunities. This dissertation reports on the outcomes of a study that was conducted with women to assess their ability to access employment opportunities after having completed a skills training program. In-depth, face-to-face interviews were undertaken with fifteen women who were purposively selected from different backgrounds of Cape Town who had participated in a skills training program to participate in the research. The research integrated a qualitative exploratory approach to explore various experiences of the participants to examine how their involvement with a job skills training programme enabled them to access employment. The research findings revealed that the job skills training programmes enabled most of the women to get employment, and as a result, be able to support themselves financially. Their sense of wellbeing improved, and they were able to access resources like housing. The study also found that policies such as the Employment Equality Act No. 55 of 1998 was well understood and implemented by organisations promoting women’s empowerment through skills training and they implemented the policy to improve the lives of women. However, the study also found existing challenges for women related to the implications of past discriminatory policies and cultural dimensions of family life, especially within black communities, by which women’s role were understood as having to be in the home. The research concludes with recommendations that include further education in communities as well as working spaces about women’s empowerment for both men and women, better enforcement of the rights of women by the state, and further research on how to address the challenges that women face in South Africa society as relates their empowerment.

Bibliography: leaves 137-144. / The goal of the study is to evaluate the treatment programme of the Cape Town Drug Counselling Centre. Overall the evaluation reflects a positive picture of the services offered by the Centre. The study commenced in January 2000. Respondent acquisition commenced on the 1st April 2000 and was completed 31st December 2000. All clients that were assessed during this period formed the study population. The sample was selected from the population using convenience sampling. Three follow-up interview schedules were conducted at six weeks, three months and six months post assessment. This study was explorative in nature and has shown the treatment programme offered by the CTDCC to be effective in terms of abstinence. Respondents favoured longer attendance in the treatment programme. The treatment option combination of individual therapy, motivational groups, and aromatherapy treatment sessions produced the highest rate of respondents who were abstinent at six months post assessment. The relationship between treatment and its effect on drug related criminal activity was briefly investigated. Also investigated were additional measures of treatment efficacy; and the relationship between treatment and shifts in the respondents employment status over the period of the study. Conclusions and recommendations affecting the treatment programme were made. The goal of the study, that is, to evaluate the treatment programme, was achieved satisfactorily.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 69-74). / During the crucial stage of their development, many children living in Hanover Park have to deal with numerous challenges that impact on their ability to discover and enhance their capabilities. This study aimed to explore the available after-school programmes and activities for Grade 7 learners living in Hanover Park. Furthermore, it assessed whether learners are aware of these available after-school programmes and activities and what hinders their participation.A qualitative research design was used for this study. Semi-structured interviews with key respondents were held to determine the available after-school programmes and activities in Hanover Park.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references. / This study explored the key socio-economic challenges facing youth refugees in the Western Cape. The study was carried out on a purposive sample of twelve youth refugees. In addition, six key informants from various institutions working with refugees in the Western Cape were also interviewed. The study adopted a qualitative exploratory approach using a semi structured interview schedule for face to face interviews with the participants.

Collaboration among Early Childhood Development Non-Profit Organisations (ECD NPOs) in South Africa is an unexplored area of research. Little is known about the ECD NPO sector, let alone the strategies they employ to remain viable, effective and efficient in the face of a declining resource base. Collaboration is one of these strategies and it is hoped that this qualitative research will make a contribution to the understanding of the state of collaboration among ECD NPOs in the Western Cape Province. The study explores how ECD NPOs and government participants understand collaboration in this sector, and investigates the factors that are considered before entering past and present collaboration initiatives. The study further explores the value of collaboration, and the factors enabling and those inhibiting collaboration among ECD NPOs in the Western Cape Province. Nineteen (19) face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted with participants from sixteen (16) ECD NPOs and three (3) government departments. The study revealed that ECD NPO and government participants had a common understanding of collaboration. ECD NPOs considered various factors such as capacity, time/time frame, cost and benefit analysis, partner's track record and the need for service before engaging in collaborative initiatives, while government participants only considered capacity (human resources and expertise) and collaborating partner's track record before engaging. The study indicated that there were more benefits than challenges to collaboration among ECD NPOs. In addition, the study established that the factors enhancing collaboration among ECD NPOs in the Western Cape include shared or similar vision, good working relationships, networking, common knowledge and understanding of the ECD sector and an open mind approach. On the other hand, the factors inhibiting collaboration among ECD NPOs include shortage of resources, competitiveness, time constraints, organisational culture differences, fear of the unknown and geographical location. Participants spoke positively about their collaboration experiences and noted how this would be a strategy to pool resources and enhance their survival, effectiveness and efficiency in service delivery in the ECD NPO sector.

The objectives of the study are to explore how women assess their situation in Matabeleland South with regard to their socio-economic realities; to find out the individual and community circumstances that these rural women in the drought prone region find themselves in; to explore the most important development challenges in relation to the impacts of climate change, access to water, food insecurity, poverty, education and health facilities; to examine the survival strategies that rural women adopt in the present situation and to ascertain the recommendations they make to the government and Non Governmental Organisations to improve their situation.

Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs) providing services to refugees and asylum seekers are hard-pressed to effectively address the many challenges that these individuals face. Many struggling Black South Africans perceive these migrants as competing for scarce resources or as being able to achieve better livelihoods than they have in their own country. This study examines the challenges faced by NPOs providing services to refugees and asylum seekers in the Cape Town metropolitan area. A qualitative research design was adopted and a total of twenty-one respondents from twelve NPOs were purposively targeted. Thus a non-probability sampling strategy was used. Data was collected through face-to-face in-depth interviews using a semi-structured schedule. The findings reveal that the legacy of the past and perpetuating socio-economic inequalities hinder the integration of refugees and asylum seekers in South Africa. Xenophobia remains a major concern and the approach of government toward migration appears contradictory. Documentation, administration and corruption at the Department of Home Affairs (DHA), the closure of the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office (CTRRO), abuse and discrimination, are major challenges for refugees and asylum seekers. NPOs assisting them remain constrained by lack of funding and government cooperation. Further awareness initiatives, community mobilisation and social cohesion programmes are required. These findings inspired some recommendations for further research as well as for NPOs, which include lobbying for the establishment of a Central Migrant Help Desk; enhancing access to psychological services; developing more social cohesion programmes and further facilitating access to basic social services. Other recommendations encourage NPOs to develop a policy document to present to parliament tackling the issues of backlogs, renewal of documents, regulations in the workforce, documentation awareness, improvement of professional training of stakeholders; and advocating for progressive and coherent policy-decision making.