the impact of a development centre approach on poverty alleviation in region a of the city of

149 Pages·2012·0.96 MB·English

THE IMPACT OF A DEVELOPMENT CENTRE APPROACH ON POVERTY
ALLEVIATION IN REGION A OF THE CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
BY

MOTLAPELE SYLVIA KOAGETSE
SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR
THE DEGREE
MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK
MSW (SPECIALISING IN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT AND POLICY)

Faculty of Humanities
Department of Social Work and Criminology
University of Pretoria

SUPERVISOR: PROF. DR. A. LOMBARD
NOVEMBER 2010
Pretoria

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©© UUnniivveerrssiittyy ooff PPrreettoorriiaa
DECLARATION

I, Motlapele Sylvia Koagetse, declare that this research report is my own work.
It is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MSW
(Social Development and Policy) at the University of Pretoria. It has not been
submitted before for any degree or examination at the University of Pretoria or
any other University.

-----------------------------------
Motlapele Sylvia Koagetse
Date

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my gratitude to:
 My heavenly Father, for giving me strength to complete this study.
 Professor A Lombard, my supervisor, for her patience, insight, time,
inspiration and her continuous encouragement which greatly facilitated
my work.
 My husband Lesley for his technical assistance, my daughters Monthati,
Motheo and Keabetswe, for love, support and inspiration.
 My parents, Kgosietsile and Mmutle for instilling the value of education
in me.
 The board of Greater Midrand Development Centre for granting me the
opportunity to pursue my studies at their centre.
 The respondents of this study and for those who assisted me during the
field survey. Without their honesty and tolerance, it would not have been
possible to gather all the required data.

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ABSTRACT
The impact of a development centre approach on poverty alleviation in Region
A of the City of Johannesburg

Student: Motlapele Sylvia Koagetse
Supervisor: Prof. Dr. A. Lombard
Department: Social Work and Criminology
Degree: MSW (Social Development and Policy)

One of the most important issues facing the South African democracy is that of
breaking the grip of poverty on a substantial portion of its citizens. In South
Africa, Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs) play a major role in the development of
assistance for the poor and in reducing poverty. As an NPO, the Greater
Midrand Development Centre (GMDC) has played an important role in
supporting and encouraging the development aspirations of Region A of the
City of Johannesburg community in the areas of Agricultural projects, bakery,
poultry and paper making.

The aim of the study was to determine the impact of the Development Centre
Approach (DCA) on poverty alleviation in the Region A of the City of
Johannesburg community and to make recommendations on policy priorities
and challenges that will fast track developmental social service delivery within a
Development Centre Approach. The study focused on the GMDC poverty
alleviation projects in five selected areas. The study followed a qualitative
research approach. Data was collected by means of one-on-one interviews and
focus groups by means of semi-structured interview schedules. The
participants of the focus groups involved both those beneficiaries who were still

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attending the GMDC poverty alleviation projects, and those who have exited the
development centre poverty alleviation projects.
The one-on-one interviews involved five project leaders, members of the board,
staff members, and officials from the Department of Social Development.

The findings indicated that the GMDC has played a crucial role in terms of
poverty alleviation of the beneficiaries. From the study it was concluded that the
poverty alleviation projects of the GMDC appear to be alleviating the poverty of
the beneficiaries by addressing some of their basic needs to a certain extent by
improving a livelihood, but nonetheless still not reducing their poverty levels.
The study recommends the development of a clear exit strategy which is
understood and supported by beneficiaries. The exit strategy should include
factors and elements which will promote sustainability, such as business and
entrepreneurial skills; knowledge on equipment; material; a marketing strategy;
and a strategy or guidelines on networking, including donors and financing
institutions.

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KEY CONCEPTS:
Development Centre Approach
Greater Midrand Development Centre
Poverty alleviation
Developmental social welfare approach
Poverty
Developmental approach
Community development
Participation
Capacity building
Empowerment
Self-reliance
Sustainable development
Partnerships

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................ III 
LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................... X 
CHAPTER 1: GENERAL ORIENTATION ........................................ 1 
1.1  INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................... 1 
1.2  PROBLEM FORMULATION .................................................................... 6 
1.3  GOAL AND OBJECTIVES OF THE RESEARCH STUDY ........................ 8 
1.3.1  GOAL OF STUDY ..................................................................................................... 8 
1.3.2  OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY ..................................................................................... 8 
1.4  RESEARCH QUESTION ......................................................................... 9 
1.5  RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................. 10 
1.6  DEFINITION OF CONCEPTS ................................................................ 11 
1.6.1  POVERTY ............................................................................................................. 11 
1.6.2  DEVELOPMENT CENTRE ........................................................................................ 11 
1.6.3  COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT .................................................................................. 12 
1.6.4  IMPACT ................................................................................................................ 13 
1.6.5  SOCIAL SERVICE DELIVERY ................................................................................... 13 
1.6.6  DEVELOPMENTAL SOCIAL WELFARE SERVICES........................................................ 14 
1.7  DIVISION OF THE RESEARCH PROJECT ........................................... 14 
CHAPTER 2: SOCIAL SERVICE DELIVERY WITHIN A
DEVELOPMENT CENTRE APPROACH ....................................... 16 
2.1  INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 16 
2.2  POVERTY AND DEVELOPMENT ......................................................... 17 
2.2.1  DEFINITIONS AND DIMENSIONS .............................................................................. 18 
2.2.2  POVERTY IN SOUTH AFRICA .................................................................................. 21 
2.3  DEVELOPMENTAL SOCIAL WELFARE ............................................... 23 
2.3.1  THE RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH ............................................................................. 27 
2.3.2  THE INTER-RELATION BETWEEN SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ................... 27 
2.3.3  DEMOCRACY AND PARTICIPATION IN DEVELOPMENT ............................................... 28 
2.3.4  PARTNERSHIPS IN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT ............................................................. 29 
2.3.5  RECONCILING THE MICRO AND MACRO DIVIDE IN DEVELOPMENTAL SOCIAL WELFARE 32 
2.4  THE DEVELOPMENT CENTRE APPROACH (DCA) ............................ 35 
2.4.1  SOCIAL CAPITAL ................................................................................................... 38 
2.4.2  HUMAN CAPITAL ................................................................................................... 39 
2.4.3  ECONOMIC CAPITAL ............................................................................................. 42 
2.4.4  CAPACITY BUILDING .............................................................................................. 43 
2.4.5  EMPOWERMENT ................................................................................................... 45 
2.5  CONCLUSION ........................................................................................... 46 

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CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY, EMPIRICAL STUDY
AND RESEARCH FINDINGS ......................................................... 47 
3.1  INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 47 
3.2  RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................. 48 
3.2.1  RESEARCH APPROACH ......................................................................................... 48 
3.2.2  TYPE OF RESEARCH ............................................................................................. 49 
3.2.3  RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS ....................................................................... 50 
3.3  ETHICAL ISSUES ................................................................................. 57 
3.3.1  HARM .................................................................................................................. 58 
3.3.2  INFORMED CONSENT ............................................................................................. 58 
3.3.3  DECEPTION OF SUBJECTS ..................................................................................... 59 
3.3.4  VIOLATION OF PRIVACY/CONFIDENTIALITY .............................................................. 59 
3.3.5  ACTIONS AND COMPETENCE OF THE RESEARCHER ................................................. 60 
3.3.6  RELEASE OF PUBLICATION OF FINDINGS ................................................................. 60 
3.4  RESEARCH FINDINGS ......................................................................... 60 
3.4.1  BIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION ................................................................................... 61 
3.4.2  KEY THEMES .................................................................................................... 71 
3.5  SUMMARY ............................................................................................ 96 
CHAPTER 4: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........ 97 
4.1  INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................ 97 
4.2  RESEARCH GOAL AND OBJECTIVES ............................................................ 97 
4.3  KEY FINDINGS .......................................................................................... 99 
4.4  CONCLUSIONS ....................................................................................... 101 
4.5  RECOMMENDATIONS .............................................................................. 103 

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5  LIST OF REFERENCES ...................................................... 105 
ANNEXURE A:UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA PERMISSION TO CONDUCT
THE STUDY ................................................................................................... 117 
ANNEXURE B: LETTER OF PERMISSION TO CONDUCT THE STUDY FROM
GMDC ............................................................................................................ 119 
ANNEXURE C: CONSENT FORM FOR RESPONDENTS ............................ 121 
ANNEXURE D: SEMI STRUCTURED INTERVIEW SCHEDULE OF
BENEFICIARIES AND PROJECT LEADERS WHO ARE CURRENTLY
ATTENDING GMDC POVERTY ALLEVIATION PROJECTS. ....................... 124 
ANNEXURE E: SEMI STRUCTURED INTERVIEW SCHEDULE OF
BENEFICIARIES WHO HAVE EXITED GMDC PROJECTS 6 MONTHS PRIOR
TO CONDUCTING THE STUDY .................................................................... 128 
ANNEXURE F: SEMI STRUCTURED INTERVIEW SCHEDULE OF BOARD
MEMBERS AND STAFF ................................................................................ 132 
ANNEXURE G: SEMI STRUCTURED INTERVIEW SCHEDULE OF
OFFICIALS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT. ...... 136 

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Sex of service beneficiaries ............................................................ 61 
Table 2: Age group of service beneficiaries ............................................... 62 
Table 3: Educational levels of service beneficiaries ................................... 63 
Table 4: Period of involvement of beneficiaries in GMDC project(s) ......... 64 
Table 5: Biographical information of the staff members ............................ 67 
Table 6: Biographical information of officials from the Department of
Social Development. ...................................................................................... 71 

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Number of years beneficiaries living in Region A of the City of
Johannesburg area .......................................................................................... 66 
Figure 2: Age of board members ...................................................................... 68 
Figure 3: Years of experience of board members working in community
development ..................................................................................................... 69 
Figure 4: Years of board members’ experience working in GMDC project(s) .. 70 

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