Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (former Departments)
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Browsing Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (former Departments) by browse.metadata.advisor "Khan, Firoz"
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- ItemMulti-purpose community centres : a local economic development strategy towards sustainable community empowerment and poverty alleviation in the Dwars River region(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2003-12) Bruiners, Natasja; Khan, Firoz; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic & Management Sciences. Dept. of Town and Regional Planning.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In South Africa, Multi-Purpose Community Centres (MPCCs) have been identified as the primary approach for the implementation of development communication and information as they potentially offer a wide range of services that communities can utilise for their own empowerment. This affords the community an opportunity to become more self-reliant. The new Local Economic Development (LED) policy paper (2002) highlights the mobilisation of internal resources, capacities and skills consistent with the sustainable development objectives that government is now more aggressively pursuing. Community participation and empowerment play a significant role in any community, therefore, municipalities need to create the conditions for greater public participation and empowerment. It should be done with regards to the disadvantaged or marginalised groups in accordance with the conditions and capacities in a municipality. In the Dwars River region, various services are being planned ranging from skills development to tourism, but these depend on sufficient financial aid. The nature and location of the MPCCs in South Africa makes financial sustainability difficult because the majority of them largely serve historically disadvantaged communities with limited financial resources to pay for services. It is also important to note that economic growth does not necessarily imply poverty alleviation and/or skills development as components of the government's communication and information approach. MPCCs can transform communities but will be time consuming and requires participation from all spheres of government and civil society.
- ItemThe role of community participation and community empowerment in the planning and delivery of low-income housing : an evaluation of housing project 59 in Paarl(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2003-12) Oosthuizen, Jolandie; Khan, Firoz; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic & Management Sciences. Dept. of Sustainable Development Planning & Management.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In the past, the policy for the provision of low-cost housing was, by and large, ineffective because apartheid planning spatially and economically marginalised the majority. The disenfranchisement of the majority and social engineering denied this majority any access and voice in shaping, or influencing the shape, of their living environment. Today, there are various pieces of legislation that emphasise and highlight the importance of community participation in development planning. The concept of community participation has repeatedly appeared in the literature as an approach that empowers people to take control over their own lives. The involvement of people in all aspects of planning and development programmes that affect them is a fundamental requirement for sustainable development. Satisfying basic human needs in participatory, empowering and sustainable formats is the essence of development. The study is descriptive and issue-orientated, limiting itself to the understanding of the process of community participation and empowerment in low-cost housing. Interviews were conducted with 75 respondents from male- and female-headed households, using a semi-structured questionnaire. The study records how respondents participated in the shaping of their living environments, and the extent to which they were/felt empowered by the housing delivery process. The findings suggest that participation contributed to empowerment, and an overwhelming 91% of the sample were satisfied with their level of involvement in the project. The findings of the study further indicates that, although there had been some effort to involve the community as a whole, as well as individual members in the project, the level of involvement, particularly of individuals, was not satisfactory. Beneficiaries were given information regarding the housing development and were offered opportunities to participate, but their views were not taken into account during the design and implementation phases. The recommendations provide some insights on how low-income housing delivery can be made more participatory, empowering and sustainable.
- ItemUrban agriculture : food for thought(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2003-12) Van der Merwe, Louise; Khan, Firoz; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Managment Sciences. Dept. of Sustainable Development Planning & Management.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: An ever changing urban environment, limited economic opportunities and rising poverty, have brought into sharp relief the need for strategies that support the livelihoods of the poor. Urban areas are complex and dynamic systems. No town or city is immune from either external forces (globalisation) that dictate the need to adapt, or to internal pressures (the natural growth pattern of an urban population and rural-urban migration) that collectively can precipitate growth or decline. The formal sector cannot, in most instances, fulfil the need for secure, regular employment in the urban areas, which leads to increases in unemployment, gradual breakdown of basic services - visual evidence includes large squatter settlements in and around urban centres - and the not unlikely increase in food insecurity. There is no doubt that the future of urban centres is dependent on the effective absorption of the increasing number of urban dwellers into its environmental, economical and social structures, and public policy plays an important role in the success of this process. The important contribution of urban agriculture in bolstering food security of urban households raises critical planning issues. The spatial integration of our settlements is critical; it holds the potential to enhance economic efficiency and social development. Spatial strategies should be combined with economic and environmental programmes to form an integrated approach towards development. Urban agriculture could possibly catalyse broader developmental processes such as local economic development, whereby disadvantaged communities could potentially secure the benefits of employment and increase food security. The provision of opportunities for urban agriculture not only makes it possible to meet the food needs of the urban poor, but to also ensure sustainable human settlements.