The thesis argues that there is a common core conception of childhood in traditional African communities and that this understanding of childhood is different from the image of childhood in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Children‟s Charter. In order to successfully implement children‟s rights in Africa care must be taken to ensure that the cultural norms and values that inform the conception of childhood in Africa is accommodated. Failure to do this is problematic on at least two grounds. First, it increases the economic and social costs of implementing children‟s rights in many African communities. Second, implementing children‟s rights norms that are considered by some communities in Africa as alien without adopting those norms to the African context will continue to increase the resistance of local communities to children‟s rights. Such an approach will be seen as replacing local cultural values with alien cultural norms. This could result in multiple-lived experience for children, weakened family structures and support and, possibly, compromised cultural identities of children. To minimise these consequences, the thesis recommends the application of the norms in these two children‟s rights treaties in a context-and child-specific manner. It is further argued that a „universal pluralistic‟ theoretical framework will facilitate reasonable deference to local contexts that further the cause of children‟s rights and. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / Centre for Human Rights / LLD / Unrestricted

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-10T11:21:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TAMIRIS MAIA GONCALVES PEREIRA.pdf: 6798907 bytes, checksum: f67a2235e2697ac9d14d8c3e43094fa7 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-03-11 / This paper aims to examine aspects relating to food production contained within the ritualistic kitchen, traditional yoruba african group, Ègbé Mògàjí Ifá, to understand the meanings contained in the practices and knowledge. The research examined issues relating to identity construction, hinged from the Nigerian religious tradition of worship of deities, brought to the city of Goiânia - Goiás, in 2001. It also sought to understand food production, the rites and the yoruba cosmology, since their meanings and forms of expression are intertwined, permeated by the relationship with the sacred. The results presented contemplated bibliographic data and imagery obtained through participant observation and interviews with the constituent members of the community. / O presente trabalho se propõe a estudar os aspectos referentes à produção alimentar contida no espaço da cozinha ritualística, do tradicional grupo africano yorubá, Ègbé Mògàjí Ifá, para compreensão dos significados contidos nas práticas e saberes. A pesquisa analisou questões relativas à construção identitária, articulada a partir da tradição religiosa nigeriana de culto aos orixás, trazida para a cidade de Goiânia Goiás, no ano 2001. Buscou também compreender a produção alimentar, os ritos e a cosmologia yorubá, uma vez que seus significados e formas de expressão estão imbricados, permeados pela relação com o sagrado. Os resultados apresentados contemplaram dados bibliográficos e imagéticos, obtidos através da observação participante e entrevistas com os membros constituintes da comunidade.

There is ample academic evidence indicating high levels of HIV stigma among BSSA communities. The research suggests that disadvantaged and marginalised social groups like the BSSA communities experience high levels of HIV and sexually transmitted infections. There is a significant amount of quantitative research in the public domain on HIV and stigma. Quantitative research has shown that BSSA communities present late with HIV and sexually transmitted infections often owing to HIV stigma. Currently there is limited published qualitative information on the factors influencing HIV stigma and sexual health seeking behaviour among BSSA communities, particularly from the perspective of the communities themselves. This research study explored beliefs and perceptions in the construction of HIV stigma and sexual health seeking behaviour among Black sub-Sahara African (BSSA) communities in one city in the UK. The Silences Framework, which sits within aspects of feminism, criticalist and ethnicity-based approaches, provided the theoretical underpinning for this study. An exploratory qualitative study methodology was used to identify and explore the key factors influencing the construction of HIV stigma and sexual health seeking behaviour among BSSA communities. Five focus groups and fifteen one-to-one semi-structured follow-up interviews were conducted to collect the data. The institution of Marriage, Religion, Reported HIV statistics, Politics and Immigration, HIV as a Sensitive subject, sexual health professionals Cultural competence, gender stereotyping, Sexual Orientation and Social Media emerged as key pillars underpinning the social scripts associated with the construction of HIV stigma and sexual health seeking behaviour. The experiences emanating from the pillars of HIV stigma, identified in this study, showed the impact of social, political and personal contexts associated with specific sexual scripts among the participants impacting on the construction of HIV stigma and sexual health seeking behaviour. The 'silences' contained in the socially determined scripts were important in understanding the phenomenon under investigation. The findings from this study were reviewed in light of current sexual health policies and strategies to consider how sexual health professionals and services can best meet the health care needs of BSSA communities. This thesis contributes to current knowledge of HIV stigma and ethnicity, by concluding that the construction of HIV stigma and sexual health seeking behaviour among BSSA communities takes place during different contexts of socialization, in a bid to conform to the perceived expectations of society which may be real or imagined. Furthermore, conformity is also influenced by commonly shared and personal appraisal of socially determined relevant issues. These contexts form the bases on which sexual scripts are given meaning and HIV stigma is constructed alongside a socially sanctioned pattern of sexual health seeking behaviour. This study makes an additional contribution in that it is the first time that The Silences Framework has been used to research HIV and stigma among BSSA communities. This research study compliments the currently available pool of quantitative data linking issues of HIV stigma and ethnicity in the United Kingdom. The findings from this exploratory qualitative research study reveal a wide range of critical issues to encourage further qualitative research in the area, while indicating new issues to consider in developing UK based interventions to address HIV stigma and sexual health seeking behaviour among BSSA communities.

Emergency medical technicians (EMTs) usually participate in disaster response in rural African communities. Disasters in African communities are often characterized by huge fatalities, which are associated with a slow pace of response. The use of information and communication technology in disaster response is recognized as an effective conduit for enhancing response. Previous research indicates the efficacy of the use of mobile telephones in disaster response in advance countries. However, there remains a critical gap in the available literature on the experiences of EMTs with the use of mobile telephones in disaster response in rural African communities. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to explore the experiences of EMTs with the use of mobile telephones in disaster response in rural African communities. The innovation diffusion theory served as the theoretical framework of the study. Data were collected through face to face, semi-structured interviews with 10 EMTs from 2 institutions in Sierra Leone. Data were analyzed with the use of Nvivo. The findings of this research include (a) The key areas in emergency response where mobile telephones are most useful; (b) The benefits of the use of mobile telephones in disaster response, including the enhancement of communication and search and rescue efforts; (c) Challenges to the use of mobile telephones; and (d) Ways to improve the use of mobile telephones. The results of this study may enhance positive social change through contribution to the reduction of fatalities usually associated with slow disaster response. It is recommended that future research be conducted on the experiences of other categories of first responders, and to explore alternative funding sources for disaster response in rural African communities.

This dissertation profiles the way in which primary school children from socio-economically deprived communities in South Africa, specifically Heideveld and Eersterust, identify with music. The purpose of the study is to investigate how these children do, think, feel and talk about music and to explore the implications thereof for music therapist working in these specific or similar South African communities. The sentence completion responses of the children conveyed two ways in which they view identifying with music. The first is identifying with music and the second is using music as a tool through which one can identify with others. The way in which the children identify with music or through music in music therapy sessions, influences the therapeutic relationship as well as clinical interventions of the music therapist. Therefore, music therapists need to be sensitive to the way in which clients identify with music. / Dissertation (MMus (Music Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Music / MMus (Music Therapy) / Unrestricted