M.A. (Geography) / Fast growing urbanisation in South Africa has resulted in a shortage of housing. Therefore, a programme of informal housing projects was undertaken. The planning of these informal settlements was detrimental because it was done under crisis management. Informal housing will develop over time to formal urban residence and must therefore be properly planned. The purpose of this study was to determine the suitability of Orange Farm as an informal housing area. The goal was achieved by concentrating on certain physiographical (geology, soil, relief, vegetation and climate) and human aspects. Certain physiographical and human aspects were superimposed to establish areas suitable for informal settlement development. The process was aided by using a Geographic Information System. The fmding of the study was that no area in Orange Farm was suitable for informal settlement development. Areas of more and less suitability were indicated according to the physiographical aspects. The study stressed the role of the Government in addressing the problems of planning an informal settlement. Proper informal settlement planning is necessary to assure that these settlements can develop into healthy formal settlements with minimal cost and time. This research proposes certain factors to be considered very carefully in the planning of informal settlements, for ego detailed geological surveys, soil surveys, vegetation research, climatological research and assessment of costs to supply the necessary services and infrastructure. The above-mentioned factors must be taken into consideration, and therefore be analysed, for each settlement as well as the demographical, economical and cultural characteristics of the specific population group in the settlement.

M.A. / Urbanization is a common feature worldwide and is even more prevalent in modern societies. This has brought tremendous changes to all known social structures. Third world countries, including South Africa, usually lack the capacity to effectively accommodate the influx from rural areas. A shortage of houses is the main reason for informal settlements being erected on the outskirts of these cities. Informal settlements are expanding almost daily. This can either be contributed to the insufficient infrastructures provided by third world cities or the influx of people from surrounding areas. There is a definite difference between the problems experienced by people living within the formal and informal parts of a city. The different type of problems experience by people living in different type of settlements has a direct influence on the survival of households in different settlements. Although previous studies have been conducted to determine the household structures in informal settlements, none have helped to give an understanding of the survival methods used by these settlements. Knowledge of their survival methods is needed to help support and develop these settlements. This study is therefore aimed at determining how these mostly unemployed and homeless people survive, considering their limited resources. A qualitative study was conducted, in the form of unstructured interviews, with the heads of twenty one households in Mandela informal settlement near Daveyton. Only twenty of the interviews were used for the purpose of this study. The main areas of investigation were: the biographical information of the households to determine whether different survival skills are used by certain household types, means to earn an income, the problems experienced with domestic services, and how different households solve these problems. In this study no indication could be found that there are links between the household structure, survival methods and problem solving skills of different households in the Mandela area. The normal household structures, such as nuclear family, single- and extended households, were found in Mandela. In this sample, most nuclear families consist of between two and six family members. Amount the respondents most working members of these households are employed in the informal sector. The respondents income range from 8500.00 to 81000.00 monthly. In this study is was found that households with no income rely heavily on family and friends for support. Most households in this study have running water, electricity, removal of refuse and sewerage systems in place. Most of the respondents in this study believe that these services are commodities. Except for their complaint about the costs involved, the respondents have no problems with the services. Households in study seem to have adapted to their circumstances and cope without amenities though people living in formal settlements would not. This, however, does not mean that they do not have the need for these services. After the study was conducted to find out whether the household that were interviewed in this study, use different type of strategies to survive in Mandela the findings indicated that there are perhaps no clear-cut survival strategies between different household types. Therefore the researcher argued that, perhaps living in an informal settlement is in itself a strategy of survival. This, however, needs to be further investigated.

D.Ed. / With the dawning of the new democratic South Africa the 'dream' of a a unified education system was realised. Children who previously attended racially segregated schools are now all being educated in desegregated schools. This meteoric change has been eagerly embraced by most of the people of South Africa. Change at macro level often means change at micro level as well. For teachers within the education system this meant the challenge of providing equitable education for all. Schools in Lenasia, previously administered by the House of Delegates (concerned specifically with the education of Indian), began admitting black children from Soweto and the informal settlements around Lenasia since 1989. Soon after their admission teachers from some of the schools requested assistance from the school psychologist attached to the now defunct House of Delegates. They reported that they were experiencing difficulty teaching the children from the informal settlements. This request by the teachers provided the impetus for the research. The overriding aim was to determine what the concerns were and to develop strategies for addressing the concerns. A review of the research literature revealed that the concerns would be most appropriately identified within the naturalistic paradigm. The teachers were chosen as the unit of analysis. This was based on the finding that there was a dearth of research studies which focused on "teachers' voices". Listening to the teachers themselves is important. The aims of the research were a) to gather information on the teachers' experiences of teaching children from the informal settlements b) to describe the conditions which prevail, beliefs and attitudes which are held, processes which are going on and trends which are developing and c) to present strategies that may assist the teachers in their task. The research was conducted at primary schools in Lenasia. The participants were teachers teaching primary school children at these schools. A pilot study was conducted to eliminate potential unforeseen difficulties in the planned research. Data was gathered by means of a combination of methods, namely, four focussed group interviews, four phenomenological interviews, analysis of pupils' workbooks, analysis of pupils' school reports, analysis of the proceedings at a conference on Multilinguality and field notes. Interviews were audio-taped and transcribed verbatim. The proceedings at the conference were video-taped and also transcribed verbatim. The data was content and phenomenologically analysed by using Kerlinger's Method of Content Analysis (1986) and Giorgi's Method of Data Analysis (1985). Quality was built into the research by the application of strategies such as triangulation, persistent observation, referential adequacy materials, peer debriefing, member checks, purposive sampling, reflexive journals, dependability audits, confirmability audits and literature control. Several categories and themes emerged from the analysis of the data. The experiences of the teachers were categorised into the following divisions: pupil related experiences; parent related experiences; community related experiences; administration related experiences; didactic experience; personal experiences; strategies and suggestions. Teachers' attributed the difficulties that the children from the informal settlements were experiencing primarily to their lack of knowledge of English. The schools being English medium schools they expected the children to know English. They perceived the difficulties as arising from a number of factors such as a) pupils' emotional vulnerability, lack of motivation, classroom misbehaviour, ethnic groupings and cultural differences b) mother tongue instruction at their previous schools c) parents socio-economic status and illiteracy and d) social problems and lack of support from the community. It was generally felt that teachers did not have the necessary training and experience needed to teach children who spoke languages other than English. In addition, the children were of a different cultural group and they did not have the expertise to deal with this issue. Teachers perceived the administrators and subject advisors as not been sufficiently supportive and unable to guide them in their efforts to teach the children from the informal settlements. Further, practical problems such as the large number of children per class, wide range of ability groups in their classes, inappropriate placement of children, syllabus demands, and the policy of condoned passes was complicating their teaching. This often led to frustration, resentment, and 'burn-out'. In spite of these difficulties most teachers had attempted to address the difficulties in innovative ways. Understanding and empathising with the children's difficulties and being flexible in their teaching was one of the strategies used by the teachers. Other strategies included the provision of extra tuition in English. The analysis also revealed that some teachers had reflected deeply about their teaching instruction. From their reflections they concluded that they themselves had to change to meet the new demands in teaching. The literature review and control revealed many similarities between studies undertaken in South Africa and some differences and uniqueness. Drawing the threads of the various studies resulted in the development of the strategies suggested. In essence it involves a) the need for teachers to get in touch with their own beliefs, attitudes, strengths and weaknesses and address the needs b) teachers need to empower the children from the informal settlements to meet the demands of the school. This can be accomplished by a) improving their knowledge, skills, and expertise in addressing the concerns expressed b) enlisting the assistance of the parents and the community c) demanding that administrators and subject advisors provide the necessary guidance support and resources need to accomplish their task. Administrators and education advisors need to support, guide and enhance the teachers' expertise. Ways in which this can be accomplished is by providing appropriate, relevant, practical and challenging in-service training, presenting workshops and seminars, initiating staff development programmes and "just being there" for the teachers by valuing them and encouraging them.

Service delivery and livelihood strategies in informal settlements‟ have been below par as communities find it hard to maintain a suitable standard of living. The provision of basic services, also social and economic upliftment initiatives to the community are very important in transforming Duncan Village: C-Section into a sustainable human settlement. The study analyses the level of service delivery and livelihoods, in-order to meet the required level of service delivery needed to meet the needs of the people in C-Section. Municipal plan(s) such as the Duncan Village Redevelopment Initiative have been adopted by the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality with the relevant government, private and public stakeholders onboard. The study involved qualitative and qualitative research methods with interviews, plans and policies being used to investigate the key aims and objectives. The lack of funding and the right number of staff (officials) has had implication on the efficient delivery of services, with the density and the terrain of the study also adding on the challenges facing the delivery of infrastructural service. Inward migration has also had a negative impact on service deliver efforts and this problem needs to be addressed by implementing better regional planning. Data collected also highlights a low literacy level within the community which limits peoples‟ participation and access economic activities which adversely affects their livelihoods. The study suggests that for better service delivery there needs to be better constructed business plans to sort out funding for projects for the area and the municipality has to also invest in the number of official needed to improve or better service delivery. An all round strategy needs to be adopted to improve all facets of life for the people in the study and the settlement as a whole with an aim of livelihood improvements.

This study sought to explore the perceptions of violence by the youth and to investigate the causes and consequences of violence amongst the youth. Specifically, the study aimed at exploring why the youth are predisposed to violence and violent crimes in informal settlements. A qualitative research design was used in this study. The researcher made use of the qualitative design because it allows for the richness of the personal experiences and meanings of the respondents to be explored, allowing the researcher to uncover variations between respondents. Based on the qualitative design, the study utilised the in-depth interview to solicit the views of young people living in New Brighton Township in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape Province. The objectives of the study were - To identify consequences of violence.- To assert if violence is normalised within a particular social environment.- To explore what predisposes the youth to violence.- To find out if parenting styles influence youth violence.- To explore the role of models in youth violence and crime. The respondents were selected through purposive sampling as the researcher sought typical and divergent data from the respondents. Data was collected through focus group interviews with nine young people aged nineteen to twenty- four years. The study established the following: Firstly, that violence is high in South African communities. It also found the following factors to be contributing to these high levels of violence: socialisation, unemployment, and family structures. The findings also indicated that some kinds of violence are normalised within the societies in which young people grow up in. Findings also indicate that, as a result of these violent behaviours, many South African youth lose their lives while others are imprisoned. This study also found that the environment in which a child grows up in has a greater impact on the child’s later behaviour in life. Overall, the study concluded that violence amongst the young people is a major problem facing South African communities. As one of the recommendations, the researcher indicated that punishing young people through imprisonment is not the solution, especially in a country where so many people are living in wretched poverty. Rather, the researcher recommended that minimising the levels of violence to which young people are exposed to on a daily basis could be one of the effective intervention strategies for decreasing this pandemic. This can be achieved by involving families, schools and communities in minimising this kind of exposure.

Thesis is submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2016 / Keywords/key concepts: Dolomite, Dolomitic ground, Disaster Risk Management, Physical Vulnerability, Low-income settlements, Housing Policy, Services delivery, Responsibility, Living with risk, Human Behaviour, Basic Human Rights Ground underlain by dolomite may be hazardous to development due to the potential occurrence of subsidence and sinkholes. These potentially disastrous occurrences are in many instances caused by human interaction with the soil through the ponding of water or leaking of wet infrastructure such as water and sanitation services. Construction materials and techniques, as well as effective maintenance of waterborne services have traditionally been acknowledged as having a significant bearing on the level of risk that communities face when living on such potentially dangerous land. The spatial distribution of settlements on dolomite in the Gauteng City Region (GCR) is already widespread and expected to increase as urbanisation intensifies. Similarly, the challenge of considering the physical vulnerability of low-income settlements is expected to intensify. Welldefined procedures and guidelines govern the development of human settlements on dolomitic ground. However, the classification and characterisation of low-income and informal settlements are not as advanced as that of formal residential developments. In addition, the guidelines regarding management of settlements on dolomite focus significantly on geotechnical interventions, leaving a gap in the influence that human behaviour can play in possible disaster risk reduction on such ground. The thesis considers the significance of different low-income settlement types on dolomite, relative to perceived human behaviour in association with principles of disaster risk reduction. It hypothesizes that an understanding of settlement type in relation to human behaviour and a stronger emphasis on monitoring via official channels could address some of the conflicts in the development-on-dolomite debate and thereby reduces settlement vulnerability. The research methods included quantitative and qualitative components, commencing with a literature review that spanned multiple disciplines and sectors. Fieldwork included spatial investigation and consideration of low-income settlement types with regard to, for example building material use, dwelling size and dwelling layout, and wet services infrastructure provision and location. The thesis subsequently identify and explore low-income settlement types in the study area. The research explores a number of sample settlements to consider the physical vulnerability and potential key areas of intervention and risk reduction, outside of the traditional geotechnical arena. The evaluation then applies the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), a form of Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA), to identify important variables and indicators related to human behaviour and the physical vulnerability of settlements on dolomite that can be harnessed to intervene in the debate, and possible improve the safety of communities living with this risk. Although not affecting the research outcome directly, a specific observation during the course of engagement with specialists across disciplines was that experts in even closely related practice areas view low-income settlement development and upgrading on dolomite differently. The differences in viewpoints result in contradictions in approaches between housing officials, disaster managers, socio-environmental practitioners, engineers and geologists. Even small differences in approach have been shown to have significant effects on the practicalities surrounding decision making related to low-income settlements and especially informal settlement relocation or upgrading. The outcome is a set of prioritised indicators that could enable specialists, officials and the public to consider different elements of low-income settlements based on its physical vulnerability. By focussing on the indicators most likely to result in reduced vulnerability, actions that drive settlement development, upgrade and resettlement could be prioritised. Interestingly, one of the findings of the research is that it is not so much the settlement type based on informality that makes a difference in the exposure to risk – physical vulnerability is deemed to be significantly affected by official (municipal-sphere) actions, monitoring and awareness. Finally, the research enables the integration of technical knowledge with behavioural considerations when living on dolomite, thus highlighting opportunities to bring technical and non-technically skilled stakeholders in the debate closer together. / MT2017

No description available.

The central hypothesis of this thesis is that the universal fundamental right to adequate housing must be equally enforced by all states irrespective of its non-entrenchment as a constitutional, legislative and/or policy entitlement. Despite being a minority, poor Canadians still face the same sordid living conditions that the majority are experiencing in South Africa and India. If a developed country such as Canada, despite its available resources and housing policies, and, similar to South Africa and India as third world countries, fails to improve the poor’s standard of living, the right to adequate housing will remain a distant dream for many. Any housing implementation strategy must be able to reduce housing backlogs, eradicate homelessness and slums and in general improve the poor’s standard of living. The thesis considers the diverse implementation strategies of the right to adequate housing as adopted by South Africa, Canada and India and reveals how each country has experienced systemic challenges. Against the background of international and regional human rights obligations, key issues are investigated to determine how to properly implement, enforce and monitor the right, include the role of a constitutionally entrenched right, the adoption of a housing legislative and/or policy measures, the role of the judiciary, (in)action on the part of government and the part played by national human rights commissions. While each of these three countries approaches the issue in their own unique way, and each country makes its own contribution, what is required is a coordinated and multi-faceted housing implementation system. Although the point of departure was to determine what South Africa could learn from Canada and India, the conclusion is that both Canada and India can draw inspiration from South Africa. Nevertheless, the main conclusions are that South Africa must urgently conduct a comprehensive review of its regressive 20 year housing implementation strategy and India’s 61 years five year plans. The Canadian judiciary should be looking at ways to enforce the right within the Canadian Charter as well as its domestic legislation to include ‘social condition’ as a discrimination ground. While both Canada and India must review their housing policies their judiciaries should be evaluating the history of homelessness and the reasonableness of their adopted housing policies. / Private Law / LLD

The central hypothesis of this thesis is that the universal fundamental right to adequate housing must be equally enforced by all states irrespective of its non-entrenchment as a constitutional, legislative and/or policy entitlement. Despite being a minority, poor Canadians still face the same sordid living conditions that the majority are experiencing in South Africa and India. If a developed country such as Canada, despite its available resources and housing policies, and, similar to South Africa and India as third world countries, fails to improve the poor’s standard of living, the right to adequate housing will remain a distant dream for many. Any housing implementation strategy must be able to reduce housing backlogs, eradicate homelessness and slums and in general improve the poor’s standard of living. The thesis considers the diverse implementation strategies of the right to adequate housing as adopted by South Africa, Canada and India and reveals how each country has experienced systemic challenges. Against the background of international and regional human rights obligations, key issues are investigated to determine how to properly implement, enforce and monitor the right, include the role of a constitutionally entrenched right, the adoption of a housing legislative and/or policy measures, the role of the judiciary, (in)action on the part of government and the part played by national human rights commissions. While each of these three countries approaches the issue in their own unique way, and each country makes its own contribution, what is required is a coordinated and multi-faceted housing implementation system. Although the point of departure was to determine what South Africa could learn from Canada and India, the conclusion is that both Canada and India can draw inspiration from South Africa. Nevertheless, the main conclusions are that South Africa must urgently conduct a comprehensive review of its regressive 20 year housing implementation strategy and India’s 61 years five year plans. The Canadian judiciary should be looking at ways to enforce the right within the Canadian Charter as well as its domestic legislation to include ‘social condition’ as a discrimination ground. While both Canada and India must review their housing policies their judiciaries should be evaluating the history of homelessness and the reasonableness of their adopted housing policies. / Private Law / LLD

This thesis is a decolonial feasibility study on the National Department of Housing’s (now National Department of Human Settlement) policy of eradicating informal settlements by 2014. In this thesis I argue that the policy intent of eradicating informal settlements by the proposed date of 2014 cannot be feasible without transcending the structure that produce these informal settlements in the first place. This is why even though we are towards the end of 2014 there is not yet clear evidence that the informal settlements are being eradicated or will be eradicated in the near future. In this dissertation, I argue that informal settlements are a product of a global power structure of coloniality (multiple forms of colonialisms that survive the demise of apartheid) that produces inequalities among human beings including the habitat sphere. I deploy the experience of Mshenguville informal settlement to demonstrate that the experience of informal settlement is just but a marker or sign of inequality among human beings in the age of Western-centred modernity. Thus those in informal settlement are considered to exist on the darker side of modernity as opposed to those in splashy suburb who experience the brighter side of modernity. / Development Studies / M.A. (Development Studies)