3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item Social capital, civil society, and good governance: civic traditions in Johannesburg's shack settlements and Greater Pietermaritzburg's villages under chiefly rule(2013-05-15) Hlela, Kenneth SipheleloThis thesis explores the relationship between social capital/civil society and good governance/economic development both conceptually and empirically through case studies in the urban, rural, and peri-urban South Africa. As a starting point, this thesis attempts to answer the following six questions: How is social capital identifiable? Is its production exclusively confined to horizontally structured forms of associational life? Can peasant societies generate social capital? Do social capital networks accentuate divisions within communities between those who have access to authority and those without? Can political institutions play a role in producing social capital or does the enlargement of state authority take place at the expense of the associational networks which do produce social capital? And what kind of organisations in rural settings can best bridge sectional concerns and promote wider communities of trust? Can traditional existing political institutions be adapted to modern democratic requirements? I believe that in answering these questions I have gone some way in resolving some of the conceptual dilemmas identified by critics of the concept of social capital. I was then in a position to test and explore two hypotheses. Firstly, I argue that there is a relationship between social capital (a product of civil society) and good governance as well as economic and democratic development. Secondly, I argue that positive social capital will be under-produced in societies in which there is a weak market economy, that is, where members of civil society do not have independent sources of income. I demonstrate that civil society, the state, and markets have a symbiotic relationship and that they all have a role to play in the production of positive social capital. This thesis employed various data collection methods in order to navigate around the case studies chosen for the purposes of this study, viz. individual and group interviews, focus groups, direct observations, research surveys, secondary literature, and local newspapers. Evidence emanating from this thesis suggests that there is a vibrant civil society and, by implication, social capital in poorly resourced areas found in urban, peri-urban, and rural areas of South Africa, which has to some extent contributed to good governance as well as economic and democratic development. However, I conclude by arguing that the informalisation of the economy as well as high levels of unemployment in these areas certainly inhibit civil society from playing its important democratising and governance role since the production of positive social capital is constrained by this new reality.Item Food insecurity in Southern Africa :causes and emerging response options from evidence at regional, provincial and local scales(2007-02-19T13:26:47Z) Misselhorn, Alison AnneThe overarching objective of this thesis is to determine causes of food insecurity in southern Africa, and how it can best be addressed. This objective is addressed through a number of research questions and methods at three geographic scales: the regional, through a technique of meta-analysis which is used to synthesise 49 local-level household economy case studies; the provincial, through a Delphi panel of practitioner experience; and the local, using multiple research techniques, including participatory methods. An extremely diverse range of factors contributing to food-insecurity are found at all three scales, indicating that community- and household-specific dynamics give rise to forms of food insecurity. Two common processes, however, are argued to be common across all the casestudy communities in the regional-scale research. These are the closely related processes of cycles of intensifying vulnerability associated with livelihood ‘trade-offs’, and of communitylevel social capital changing into forms that undermine resilience to food insecurity - such as the decline in two-parent families. A further probing of social capital at the local level suggests that while social capital takes multiple forms, and further remains in many respects a problematic concept, it nevertheless provides a valuable lens through which powerful social dynamics might be examined in developing responses to food insecurity. Policy makers and change agents should carefully consider their role in building community social-capital that might enhance the ability of vulnerable communities to overcome livelihood constraints and adapt to the tremendous challenges posed by changing economic environments in southern Africa. Drawing on the research at all scales, a framework is provided that calls for a reconceptualisation of food-security interventions to focus on intervention processes, applicable at all scales and in all contexts across the region. The development of social capital, participation, co-ordination and learning interactions are explored as central elements in these processes. The framework asks for closer attention to both the appropriate mechanisms (such as policy) necessary to effect change, and the human dimensions that give these mechanisms agency. The findings of the thesis represent an additional shift in understanding food security to acknowledge that the value of a political economic interpretation of food security is limited independent of an understanding of the cross-scale social networks and relational interactions that ultimately configure and reconfigure it.Item Gender social networks and income generation among Congolese migrants in Johannesburg(2007-02-16T13:29:22Z) Monche, FelixA significant number of refugees and asylum seekers are living in urban areas in developing countries. In addition to the fact that they receive little assistance from international organizations, host government policies represent obstacles to their livelihoods. Generally, the economic behaviour, reasons for migrating and experiences of female migrants often differ from those of male. This research report examines the impact of gender on social networks and how gender might influence access to income. In contrast to other studies on social networks that focus on the social relationships between individuals and communities located in sending and receiving societies, this study produces greater understanding of urban migrants’ livelihoods by exploring how women use social networks to generate income and contrasting these with those of men. This is rooted in the assumption that women refugees are facing additional challenges to livelihood including their social responsibilities and job stereotyping. To document how gender might influence social networks and access to income, qualitative data collected through semi structured, face-to-face, in-depth interviews among Congolese refugees in Johannesburg was used. Findings reveal that gender does not have impact on the nature of social networks used by Congolese men and women to facilitate their access to income generating activities. However, friendships and social relations among Congolese refugees are based on gender and as a result Congolese refugees may be channelled in gender-dominated occupations. Congolese women are facing specific challenges such as domestic labour and child care that may limit their access to jobs and businesses.