An integration of the livelihoods and asset-based community development approaches: A South African case study

This study provides an integrated framework and practice model of the sustainable livelihoods (SL) and the asset-based community development (ABCD) approaches. A household survey of a rural village in South Africa is used as a basis of analysis to demonstrate the application of the integrated approach. The results elucidate the vulnerability of the people and a range of inter-locking and multi-dimensional factors contributing to poverty in the community. The results also show people's assets, capabilities and activities which enable them to cope and survive despite constraints and shortcomings. It was found that the integrated SL/ABCD framework is a useful framework to understand the strengths of a vulnerable community in order to plan and implement sustainable community development strategies.     

Putting community participation into development work: The difficult case of Winterveld

Community development in impoverished homeland communities like Winterveld is an important priority in this era of transition. Yet, it is rarely effective and self‐sustaining. Government, parastatals, NGOs and international development agencies have all tried to initiate their own versions of community development, but most have failed to get the full participation of the community as an equal and active partner. A community development project should not be seen as an end in itself, but as a means of promoting the development of local communities into key agents with control over their own lives. Before embarking on community capacity‐building exercises, development agencies will have to take more time and effort to understand, respect, and root their work in the experiences and expectations of community members.     

Social capital and self-organised collective action: Lessons and insights from a South African community project

ABSTRACT

Through the lens of new institutional economics, this paper provides exploratory analysis of the elements of social capital behind the success of self-organised collective action in a longstanding and effective community-based conservation and development project. Our qualitative institutional analysis suggests that critical elements of project-level structural social capital in the Umgano project case study include: forward-thinking and capable leadership; long-standing partnerships with external agencies; sound operational structures and management; and legitimate participation facilitated by forms of representation that are transparent and accountable to constituents. In accordance with the theory, insights from the study also indicate that successful collective action relies on processes of long-term and earnest trust building, within and across communities, and between communities and external agents. Such insights serve as a point of reference for role-players in similar community-based projects and have the potential to inform future research on resource governance in South Africa.     

We want to live a better life like other people: Self-assessed development needs of rural women in Ndwedwe,KwaZulu-Natal

This case study was conducted in two tribal wards in the Ndwedwe district of KwaZulu-Natal and was designed to gain a better understanding of how rural women see their role in development, a role which is acknowledged by the new government. Focus group discussions with 40 local women covered their perceptions of community development roles, successful community projects, development needs and feelings of empowerment. Perceived development priorities differed according to standard of living. The women from the better serviced Mavela ward cited piped water and electricity in the home as important development needs. For the women living in the remoter Cibane ward more basic needs such as safe water, housing and access roads were priorities. Women involved in successful gardening projects were bolder in making demands for government assistance in bringing infrastructure development to their area, suggesting gains in empowerment. Generally, the women aspired to levels of service provision similar to those found in the city but stated that they could not afford to pay the installation costs. Their strong commitment to a rural lifestyle prompted the women to call for government support to make their own efforts to develop their rural communities worthwhile.     

Community Development Credit Unions: Securing and Protecting Assets in Black Communities

Credit Unions, with a hundred year history, and Community Development Credit Unions (CDCUs), with a 30–40 year history of serving the under-served, have only recently begun to be recognized by some of the media and the progressive community as “safe havens” and fair lenders. There is little independent, academic research, however, that investigates and evaluates the ways that credit unions are community-rooted and responsive to local needs, and/or their achievements in this area. This paper reports on preliminary qualitative research this author has conducted to help us understand how community development credit unions in Black communities in the U.S. provide affordable financial services, and especially help their clients/members to preserve assets. Major findings include: all CDCUs note that they charge lower rates for their products, and provide higher interest or dividends when possible; both which enable members/customers to save money and build assets. CDCUs work closely with their members to personalize services, to help them avoid loans they cannot afford, and to educate them enough to make sound financial decisions and preserve their assets. Many give some direct options to their members to avoid “payday loans” with check cashing and other predatory lenders. In addition, most CDCUs are deeply involved in their communities, and the bigger ones actually provide donations, encourage their employees to volunteer in the community and are generous employees (creating jobs with benefits and job ladder opportunities). Some are able to help finance affordable housing and contribute to other community economic development projects.     

百年未有之大变局与中国共产党外交领导力

当今世界正处于百年未有之大变局,坚持走和平发展道路的中国日益走近世界舞台中央。面对世界大变局,主要大国间的竞争更加激烈和复杂,其核心内容之一是国际领导力竞争。国际领导力融合国家实力和国际影响力两大基本要素,是主观因素与客观条件交互作用的结果。作为新型大国,中国虽已在某些领域形成国际领导力,但就更广泛领域和更高层次而言仍存在不足。中国国际领导力的提升需要通过外交领导力提升来实现,作为执政党的中国共产党的外交领导力提升自然就成为中国外交领导力提升的核心内容。面对机遇与挑战并存、变数与希望同在的当今世界,中国共产党外交领导力提升的战略选择应当是:坚持中国与世界共同发展目标,把促进发展作为第一要务;坚持独立自主的外交原则,不结盟、"不打牌";始终站在国际道义制高点上,坚持正确义利观;坚持推动构建人类命运共同体,努力为世界谋大同;在国际事务中发挥引领、协调、塑造和示范作用,积极推进外交体制机制现代化。     

培养情商提高领导力

情商体现一个人良好的自制力、坚韧的毅力、自我驱动力等方面的素质。随着社会的发展和领导方式的转变,相对于传统的德才兼备的干部标准来说,情商在领导工作中的作用日益显现,成为有效推动工作开展的重要因素,领导干部的个人情商修养,同样成为衡量其领导力强弱和自身素质高低的重要标志。     

Community projects: The possibilities in South Africa

The increasing emphasis being accorded by development agents to community participation and involvement in projects highlights the need for a dear conceptual and operational framework if success is to be obtained given the high levels of alienation and suspicion which occur among many ‘communities’. The first part of this paper provides a brief review of community development theory and practice. The second part outlines the key concepts pertaining to community development, while in the last part (the focus of the paper) a strategy is offered for the introduction of community projects in South Africa. It is argued that until more control is devolved to representative and democratic communities the prospects for introducing community projects will be slight, particularly in the more politicized townships and urban environments.     

Integrative Public Leadership in the private sector in South Africa

Complex social issues exist in many emerging democratic contexts. It has been argued that boundary-crossing leadership is needed to overcome these issues. Scholarship has developed around this, arguing that leadership in these shared power contexts is different to leadership in hierarchical organisations. This study focuses on a sample of senior private-sector leaders in South Africa who have reached across sector boundaries, in their individual capacity, to make a difference. This extends the existing scholarship which has focused on public-sector and non-profit integrative leadership. The intention is to understand the relational context of their boundary-crossing work and to extend the concept of ‘Integrative Public Leadership’. The leaders studied manage relationships with the government, their own company and multi-company partners within a historical context. The findings emphasise three understudied issues: own-company buy-in, historical context and ‘integrative’ conflict. A shared concept of integrative leadership, located in the African context, could further enhance practice.     

Integrated rural development programmes: A historical perspective

The pervasive poverty in rural areas has represented a continuing concern of national governments and development assistance agencies. One response to pervasive poverty has been the design of local institutions to enable rural communities to mobilize their own resources to generate growth and improve the quality of life. Programmes organized under the rubric of ‘community development’ were a major focus of development assistance during the 1950s and early 1960s. During the early 1970s concern about the distributional implications of economic growth again emerged as a major theme in development thought and development policy. This concern gave rise to two new development assistance approaches — ‘integrated rural development’ and ‘basic needs’ programmes. In this paper, I attempt to trace the development, accomplishments and limitations of the community development, integrated rural development and basic needs approaches.     

Reform of the shareholding system for collective assets,residents' participation,and community debts risk

The reform of the shareholding system for collective assets (SSCA) has made clear the community members' rights to collective assets and their possessory rights, while changes in the residents' rights may alter their behaviors and community interests. In this study, the Difference-in-Differences estimation method is used to examine the impact of the SSCA reform on residents' participation in community governance. With residents' participation as the mediating factor, the mediating effect model is used to study the impact of the reform on community debts risk (CDR). When the household, community, and economic variables are controlled, the probability of residents in communities that have undergone reform being willing to participate in community governance is 5.6% higher than those in communities that have not. The results are significant at the 5% level. In terms of CDR, the SSCA reform has significantly reduced the debts–assets ratio by 7.9%. These findings have passed a series of robustness tests. This conclusion provides new ideas for promoting communities' democratic participation and debts risk management.     

Measuring impact and contributions of South African universities in communities: The case of the North-West University

Using the North-West University (NWU) as a case study, this article argues for and demonstrates the value of empirically assessing the impact of universities on their communities. A cross-sectional survey design (n?=?984) was used to investigate the NWUs impact on three different communities, as well as to empirically assess the needs of these communities. Results suggest that community-based projects and services, work-integrated learning activities, and, to a lesser extent, the quantity and quality of a university's graduate students, as well as initiatives such as science and engineering weeks, open days, sports weeks, and botanical gardens likely represent the most powerful and viable avenues for universities to achieve impact in their communities, especially when such endeavours are specifically tailored to community needs. The findings also suggest that universities’ outputs do not necessarily equate with or guarantee impact, and that impact is optimised when outreach activities are based on the actual needs of communities.     

Minority firms, racism and economic development

Despite the prominence of minority firms within inner-city areas across the country, relatively little is known of their makeup, problems and relations with external agencies. Drawing on a study of 50 Asian employers and key players in local support bodies in the typical inner-city area of Wolverhampton, this paper assesses the market and managerial structure of minority firms, and their links with support agencies. It is argued that racism is a significant constraint on the development of such firms; and that current support from external agencies is lacking. A more focused and higher profile role for a dedicated “Asian Business Unit” is suggested as a strategy for the development of minority enterprise.     

Comprehensive Community Initiative: Evaluation of a transformation system in Mhakwe community in Zimbabwe

This article explores community perceptions on implementation and impacts of the Mhakwe Comprehensive Community Initiative (CCI) in Mhakwe Ward, Zimbabwe. A mixed-methods research methodology was adopted. Qualitative data were collected from action research, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Quantitative data were collected using a structured questionnaire from a random cluster sample, and were analysed using SPSS and Stata with binomial logistic regression to determine factors significantly affecting selected variables and the chi-square test for independence to determine association between variables. Thematic reviews were utilised to analyse qualitative data. Community perceptions on issues affecting multi-stakeholder collaborations, ownership, and control, internal and external enabling factors were explored. The article concludes that leadership development, strengthening family institutions, enhancing ownership and building capacity of local institutions to coordinate such initiatives are fundamental building blocks for CCIs. This article recommends CCIs as a practical framework for empowering marginalised communities.     

科学发展观在领导工作中的重要意义

科学发展观的提出,为构建社会主义和谐社会提供了重要的世界观和方法论指导,特别是其所蕴含的深刻领导价值对领导工作水平的提高具有重要的现实意义:科学发展观要求领导者树立科学生态的政绩观、构建以人为本的价值观、树立求真务实的领导作风、树立系统的领导思维和进行科学民主领导决策。最后阐述了贯彻落实科学发展观的具体途径和方法。     

A project management approach to the implementation of development programmes within the local government sphere: An empirical analysis

Local government constitutes that part of the public sector that is closest to the inhabitants and is therefore indispensable in its role of promoting their general welfare through, inter alia, undertaking various development initiatives. Furthermore, legislation imposes upon local authorities the obligation to promote the social and economic development of local communities and to participate in implementing national and provincial development programmes. The efficiency and effectiveness with which local government fulfils its developmental role will largely depend on the ability of local authorities to manage development projects. The purpose of this article is to investigate the application of a project management approach as a tool for implementing development programmes in the local government sphere. This is done by means of a comprehensive study of the relevant literature and empirical research based on a research questionnaire that was distributed among selected municipal officials in leadership posts throughout South Africa. The findings of the empirical study are utilised to make specific recommendations with respect to the application of a project management approach to service delivery and local government development initiatives.     

Enchantment and Disenchantment: The Role of Community in Natural Resource Conservation

The poor conservation outcomes that followed decades of intrusive resource management strategies and planned development have forced policy makers and scholars to reconsider the role of community in resource use and conservation. In a break from previous work on development which considered communities a hindrance to progressive social change, current writings champion the role of community in bringing about decentralization, meaningful participation, and conservation. But despite its recent popularity, the concept of community is rarely defined or carefully examined by those concerned with resource use and management. We seek to redress this omission by investigating “community” in work concerning resource conservation and management. We explore the conceptual origins of the community, and the ways the term has been deployed in writings on resource use. We then analyze those aspects of community most important to advocates for community's role in resource management — community as a small spatial unit, as a homogeneous social structure, and as shared norms — and indicate the weaknesses of these approaches. Finally, we suggest a more political approach: community must be examined in the context of development and conservation by focusing on the multiple interests and actors within communities, on how these actors influence decision-making, and on the internal and external institutions that shape the decision-making process. A focus on institutions rather than “community” is likely to be more fruitful for those interested in community-based natural resource management.     

团队心理安全与团队效能的关系研究——以领导行为为调节变量

团队已经成为企业工作中必不可少的组织形式,团队心理安全作为团队效能的重要前因变量,得到实践界和理论界的广泛关注。团队心理安全能够促使团队健康发展,有效提升团队效能。文章以207个团队为样本,先后探讨了团队心理安全的四个维度与团队效能的相关关系,并将领导行为作为调节变量,分别探究变革型领导和交易型领导的调节作用,结果表明团队心理安全对团队效能具有显著正向预测作用;领导行为与团队心理安全有显著的相关关系;领导行为在团队心理安全与团队效能这两个变量中起到调节作用。本研究将团队心理安全、领导行为和团队效能纳入同一框架,丰富了相关理论研究,并从领导行为的视角就如何维护团队心理安全以提高团队效能提出建议,以期对相关领域的研究有所裨益。     

Health and development: The Venda care group organisation

Health is one of the crucial problems confronting the development of Third World countries. Community‐based primary health care is the best instrument for mobilising community development.Development through health, however, can only be achieved if primary health care is implemented in a comprehensive approach in which a supportive environment and living conditions are as important as the provision of health care services. The Venda care group organisation, like other village health workers, is involved in primary health care and community development in the communities of the care groups. Such supportive community‐based organisations are able to alleviate health and development problems at the grass roots provided that programmes and activities are based on community participation, self‐reliance and the development of local decision‐making and leadership skills. The degree of success of the Venda care group organisation in achieving these objectives was investigated.     

Beyond community participation? Alternative routes to civil engagement and development in South Africa

Although community participation still enjoys a high level of support across various sectors in South Africa, its practice is fraught with conceptual and practical difficulties. This paper starts out by examining some of the problems and limitations associated with community participation, including the heterogeneity and fragmentation of many poor communities, the lack of social and material resources and community members' expectations of receiving a return from their involvement in development projects. Participatory rural appraisal (PRA) or participatory learning and action (PLA) is used as an example to illustrate some of the conceptual and theoretical limitations that characterise most approaches to participatory development. In particular it is argued that approaches such as PRA/PLA lack the theoretical basis for effectively getting to grips with the problems of participatory development. What is needed is a conceptual framework not only to understand the responses of communities, but also to locate such communities within their socio-economic contexts. The second part of the paper therefore examines three developments in social science theory that may be able to contribute to the development of a richer conceptual framework for popular participation. These are the concept of social capital, the asset-based approach to development, and the debate around the role of the state in development.