Browsing by Author "Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle."

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Analysing the effects of informal land markets on self-help housing in eThekwini Municipality: a case study of uMzinyathi.
(2021) Mhlongo, Nandi Kelly.; Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.
The main aim of the study is to analyse the influence of vernacular land markets on self-help housing and its implications on dweller control using uMzinyathi in eThekwini Municipality as a case study. This study assesses the traditional institutions and practices of the impacts of the customary land tenure on self-help housing in eThekwini Municipality. The study analyses the factors that drive the development of vernacular land markets at uMzinyathi. More specifically, the study examines the process and procedures for local recognition of the transaction of land for housing in uMzinyathi; and identify actors and policies that shape the vernacular land markets in eThekwini Municipality. Overall, the study was to dissect the impact of vernacular land markets on self-build housing in uMzinyathi and its suggestions on dweller control. The study has used the theory of neo-institutionalism where views from historical institutionalism and rational choice institutionalism helped to gain insights into the influence of vernacular land markets on self-help housing in South Africa and its implications on dweller control. The study adopts a qualitative research approach which helps with instruments suited to assess practices and impacts of the customary land tenure on self-help housing in eThekwini Municipality. Semi-structured interviews conducted with stakeholder directly involved in vernacular land markets and self-build housing. Moreover, secondary data from government sources and municipal policies were used in order to triangulate both secondary and primary sources of data. The study findings reveal that admission to land in most sub-Saharan Africa nations is proceeding to be dictated by indigenous frameworks of land residency that developed after some time under both provincial and nearby impacts. This study found that the nature of people experiencing the freedom to build is found within communal areas. Overall, the study recommends that bottlenecks affecting “freedom to build” and “dweller control” should be removed considering that there are patterns of good quality of self-help housing development taking place in peri-urban spaces.
Assessing the capacity of municipalities for water provision within a rural context: a case study of uMkhanyakude District Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
(2018) Dlamini, Sinenkhosi Hlalanathi.; Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.
The study assesses the capacity for water provision of the uMkhanyakude District Municipality. To establish a better understanding of the municipal capacity for water provision the study focuses on satisfying four main objectives. The first objective is to describe the arrangement for water governance and the impact it has on the municipality’s capacity for water provision. The second objective focuses on reviewing how governmentality has had an impact on shaping access and control over water resources in the municipality. The third objective focuses on assessing the outcomes of how policy implementation has impacted the municipality’s capacity to provide water. The final objective is to interrogate the influence of politics on water provision in uMkhanyakude municipality. This study adopts the human development, basic needs and neo-intuitionalism theories, to provide a framework of analysis that acts as a lens for interpreting the research findings. Each of these theories provides the study with a critical base of analysis on the various topics discussed. The combination of the theories proves advantageous to the study as they address different research interests. The human development and basic needs theories, for instance, provide useful tools for assessing development with a human-centred perspective. The neo-institutionalism theory, on the other hand, helps the study to assess the municipality as an institution or vehicle for delivering development. The study adopts a qualitative research approach for data collection and analysis to interrogate the complex relationship between capacity and the various factors of governance and politics affecting water provision in the municipality. In-depth interviews with officials from various institutions provided valuable insight into the study. The study found that the municipality’s capacity has been affected by several governance factors. The study also found that the governmentality conditions within the institutional arrangement may have the dual effect of advancing development on the one hand and growing the divide in level and quality of access that exists between urban and rural areas (wealthy and poor neighbourhoods) on the other hand. The role and influence of power and politics have been found to be considerably instrumental in affecting the municipality’s performance, as the abuse of power by politicians has been found to have an adverse effect on the municipality’s functionality. The study concludes that UKDM is regarded to have adequate physical resource capacity to provide water to its constituency. The study’s findings confirm claims from literature reviewed on the capacity of institutions in water provision. UKDM’s capacity to improve performance in water provision has been affected by a range of different factors including, governance issues, politics and the broader institutional dynamics. The study recommends that the municipality undertakes a capacity self-assessment to gauge the level of capacity they currently possess and identify areas of critical concern within the organisation and broader institution.
Developmental local government in a rural context : a case study of Jozini Municipality.
(2005) Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.; Maharaj, Bridgemohan.
South Africa is facing a backlog with regard to service delivery in rural areas. Therefore, local government reform has been one of the pertinent issues which has occupied the political landscape since the early 1990s. Key to this transitional period to democracy was a realization that different communities have diverse experiences with traditional leadership depending on their geographical location in South Africa. But to a large extent the changes that took place in traditional leadership were imposed on the local structures by the national government. Thus, most traditional leaders and their advisers found themselves implementing policies which they did not necessarily support. This study seeks to explore developmental local government in a rural context through the use of the case study of 10zini Municipality. A key issue in this study is to look at the nature of the relationship that exists between the modem and traditional structures and the impact thereof on development. This study draws from the development literature, lengthy discussions with different experts in local government in conferences, seminars, and interviews with different stakeholders such as traditional leaders, elected councillors, community members, and municipal officials regarding the relationship between traditional leaders and elected councillors in the implementation of developmental local government. The findings of this study are revealing. After ten years of democracy in South Africa, there is still no consensus among different stakeholders on the roles and functions traditional leaders should play in mainstream politics in general, and in local government service delivery in particular. The findings show that the majority of participants felt that there is a need for traditional leaders and elected councillors to work together for the implementation of developmental local government in rural local government. Officials find themselves in a dilemma in rural local government as a result of what they perceive to be the silence of most local government policies on the roles and functions of traditional leaders. Some local government officials and councillors believe that the role of traditional leaders in local government is important. In the Jozini municipality they work with traditional leaders because of the mandate from the IFP political leadership but this does not mean that tensions do not exist. There are institutional and political implications emanating from the findings as analysis shows that there is a need for a closer look at the two-tier model that currently exists in rural local government. This study revealed that tensions exist between traditional leaders and elected councillors. This study also demonstrates that a confluence of factors and tensions affect the nature of relationship and the implementation of developmental local government starting from the national government to the communities at local level. As reflected in the study, lack of cooperation at each level has detrimental effects on the overall implementation of developmental local government in the rural context. Therefore, it is clear that all stakeholders have a role to play in ensuring that there is proper implementation of local government policies in rural areas. However, the government must take a vanguard position because it has got all the powers and resources as compared to other stakeholders.
Exploring the effects of land invasion on government in the upgrading of informal settlements in Cato Manor, Durban.
(2022) Mthembu, Sthembiso. ; Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.
This study aimed to explore the effects of land invasion on informal dwellers before and during the in-situ upgrading of the informal settlements in Cato Manor, in Durban. The mushrooming of informal settlements, and the increasing cases of land invasion in metropolitan cities can be attributed to the struggle over the use and control of the urban spaces, as well as a shortage of houses. Informal dwellers and land invaders occupy the urban space to reproduce themselves, even though they are excluded from the formal wage labour, and the formal housing markets. This move has seen individuals collectively acting to defend their access to the urban space, thus countering state-led dispossessions. These dispossessions are some of the crucial aspects of the increasing incidents of land invasion and informal settlements that sparked collective action by individuals to defend their access to the urban spaces from state-led dispossession. This study was guided by three theoretical frameworks – (i) the theory of Quiet Encroachment of the ordinary life, (ii) the Marxist theory, and (iii) the Structuralism theory. These theories pull together the various separate paradigms and perspectives into an integrated theoretical framework to guide the study. This study adopted social constructivism as a central research paradigm. How land invasion is perceived is largely dependent on local and social interpretations and perceptions. As a theory, social constructivism offers a counter-argument to a common perception that social problems arise as undesirable disorders that threaten social and cultural harmony. Social constructionism is based on the fundamentals of knowledge as a central influence in the construction of perceptions on an individual and their position and status in society. Thus, this study was empirical in nature, where the data were collected and analysed. However, it also integrated conceptual research – as the literature reviewed was referred to throughout the study. The study also employed thematic data analysis, which involves organising the data in relative themes and having it coded. The selected study area is occupied by informal settlers where land invasion appears to be common. The researcher had anticipated that informal settlements protests would hinder the collection of the data. The findings of this study suggest that land invaders perceive land invasions as a way of securing shelter and accessing land. However, government is strongly opposed to this. It was also evident that acts of land invasion are carried out largely by the people from the same settlement, owing to general population growth and settlements expansion. Thus, one would be justified to conclude that the effects of land invasion on informal settlements upgrading is a perspective of Governments, whereas beneficiaries of land invasions also note the effects of the Upgrading Projects as a stimulant. This study proposes three recommendations which are: Collaborative Response, Inclusive Housing Settlements, and Planning for Settlements Growth.
Exploring the housing allocation policy for subsidised housing for low-income beneficiaries in South African cities: a case study of eThekwini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
(2018) Shange, Nkanyiso Thobani.; Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.
The post-apartheid era (1994) in South Africa, saw the development of legislations, policies and procedures directed towards redressing the socio-economic imbalances caused by the Apartheid government. In its objective to address the illnesses of the country, the ANC government tackled the housing sector with its first reconstruction policy aimed at delivering low-income housing with no detailed plan of distribution. Municipalities later developed policies, bylaws and guidelines responding to the need of having allocation guidelines in place to govern and inform housing allocation. This study explores the extent to which the eThekwini Municipality administers its housing allocation process for low-income housing. The study addresses four main objectives; the first objective explores how subsidized housing is allocated to low income beneficiaries in eThekwini Municipality. The second objective assesses the role of role players in the implementation and allocation of subsidized low-income houses in eThekwini Municipality. The third objective examines the level of community member’s participation regarding the allocation of houses, including low-income housing through the eThekwini Cornubia Housing Project. The last objective unpacks the challenges that contribute to the outcry of people during the housing allocation process in the eThekwini Municipality. The study adopted a qualitative research approach for the collection of information through semi-structured interviews conducted with key informants involved in low-income housing allocation in eThekwini Municipality and Cornubia housing project. The information gathered from the interviews was analysed using thematic analysis. After analysing the information, the results revealed that the present allocation processes are a result of path dependence and lack of institutional transformation. Furthermore, most role players obscure the integrities of the housing allocation process therefore creating confusion, frustration, mis-information and assumptions of corruption for the public. Consequently, the study concludes that eThekwini Municipality’s allocation process is a result of institutional layering, where a gradual shift in the allocation of low-income housing, has occurred but without changing existing institutional arrangements. Institutional conversions occurred only in response to the post-apartheid policies. The study recommends that the government should focus on building the character of municipal officials, as this will curb most issues emanating from the administration of the housing allocation process.
Exploring “breaking new ground” as a job creation mechanism for women in low-income housing construction: a case study of Kingsburgh West housing project in the Ethekwini Municipality.
(2022) Xuma, Anathi.; Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.
This study explored women’s participation in the construction industry, as well as their access to economic freedom in the same context. The study also sought to examine injustices and gender inequalities in the construction industry from the perspective of the Marxist, radical and liberal theorists. This researcher adopted a qualitative research strategy to assess the views of respondents in relation to the “Breaking New Ground” policy as a tool to create jobs for women in low-income housing. The researcher collected the data by conducting in-depth interviews with women-owned construction companies, government officials, employees, and independent organisations. The researcher used one of the low-income housing projects in Durban in the eThekwini Municipality as a case study for this research to established if the “Breaking New Ground” policy enabled the delivery of housing, and whether it is a suitable job creation strategy. The researcher achieved this by asking participants about the challenges they were encountering in the construction industry. This study also examined policies and regulations in place that drive the economic transformation of women in the construction industry in South Africa. Despite having more policies and regulations, the findings of the study revealed that the construction industry is still a male-dominated space. Furthermore, the findings exposed economic injustices and gender inequalities, which pose more challenges for women in the construction industry. The study, in this regard, recommends that the implementation of these policies and regulations be monitored as women in the construction industry are vulnerable and are often victims of patriarchy and gender inequality. This becomes a mandate for all stakeholders involved to improve monitoring guidelines to ensure the proper implementation of these policies. To this end, the study also recommends that the government make funding available for the training of emerging women contractors in management and tendering processes – as all work in South Africa is secured through the tendering process. Government must, in this regard, enter into agreements with financial institutions in South African to assist emerging women contractors with funding to their projects with low interest rates. It is, thus, the researcher’s view that establishing these recommendations will ensure the longterm sustainability of more women contractors in the construction industry.
Institutional matters: exploring the roles of the state and traditional councils in self-help housing in the peri-urban spaces of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
(2020) Hlongwa, Mbongeni Eugene.; Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.
The main aim of this thesis is to explore the roles of the state and traditional councils in self-help housing in the peri-urban spaces of KwaZulu-Natal. This thesis primarily explores the extent to which the roles and power relations of the local state and traditional council impact on self-help housing in peri-urban spaces, considering the history of institutional segregation and the contesting powers introduced by the crafting of the post-apartheid state, land management and government functions in both planning and housing development. The thesis develops an understanding of the multiplicity of planning and housing policies as well as agencies converging around housing development in the urban edge in order to gain insight into the historicity of self-help housing and governmental practices in eThekwini Municipality. More specifically, the thesis traces the historical narrative of housing and its effects on periurban spaces in South Africa; investigates how the concept of self-help housing has a bearing on the production of governable spaces in the context of rural spaces in eMaphephetheni in South Africa; examines how the influence and powers of the state and traditional councils contribute to the mass production of self-help housing in eMaphephetheni; examines the role of peri-urban place-making in generating a culture of suburbia, wealth, lifestyle and new African urbanity; analyses different role players involved in self-housing within the peri-urban areas and their influence in housing products; and develops a framework that will contribute to the sustainability of selfhelp housing in the peri-urban spaces in South Africa. The thesis also interrogates the application of various South African building laws, in particular the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act No. 17 of 2007, and their implications for the self-builder. This thesis has utilised the work of influential post-structural and critical theorists – Foucault, Lefebvre and Gramsci, and that of institutionalists – Pierson, North and Thelen, in order to gain a critical insight into the challenges of self-help housing development at eMaphephetheni. The thesis adopts a qualitative research approach and interpretivism paradigm which offer a research design suited to explore the powers and roles of diverse institutions. Interviews were conducted with 50 respondents that were comprised of 30 local homeowners and the various stakeholders in both the agency of the state and that of the institution of traditional leadership, and documentary analysis from government sources and municipal policies was carried out. These theoretical framing and methodological tools were used in order to triangulate both secondary and primary sources of data. The findings of this thesis reveal that self-help housing development is faced with a variety of challenges of an institutional, economic, social, constructional and architectural nature, among others. The thesis found that peri-urban spaces are governed through constrictive normative planning practices and regulatory control on the one hand, and a firm capture and control of land by the traditional institutions and elites on the other. Overall, this thesis developed a framework that will contribute to the sustainability of self-help housing in the peri-urban spaces in South Africa, while also facilitating the institutional assemblage of the agency of the state and that of the institution of traditional leadership. The essence of the framework is the introduction of a digital platform that seeks to host and harmonise user friendly land data which can be accessed and used by various stakeholders. It is an attempt towards advancing hybridity in land governance using modern technology readily accessible to everyone. The framework further suggests technical advisory support to self-builders through localised housing support facilities. To give effect to the envisaged cooperative arrangement suggested in the municipal SPLUM bylaw, the framework makes suggestions about how the Service Level Agreement between the traditional councils operating within eThekwini municipality and the municipality itself, could be operationalised.
Planning and Social Housing in the context of spatial justice and right to the city in Alexandra Township, South Africa: 2001 TO 2016.
(2022) Mndze, Siphumeze.; Mchunu, Koyi Humphrey.; Myeni, Sithembiso Lindelihle.
This study aims to investigate the manner in which social housing contributes to spatial justice and the right to the city. It shows that social housing does not create spatial justice and the right to the city, although it contributes to them. The study applies concepts such as spatial justice, social justice, integration and participation. The theories that are applied constitute critical theory, Rawls’ theory of justice, new urbanism and smart growth theory. The concepts and theories help in guiding the argument in terms of investigating the manner in which social housing contributes to spatial justice and the right to the city. A mixed-method approach was used as the research methodology and design. Semi-structured interviews and questionnaire surveys were conducted with social housing beneficiaries in Alexandra Township, which is in the City of Johannesburg in South Africa and was used as a case study. The research findings demonstrate that in Alexandra Township there has been a noticeable but limited contribution of social housing to spatial justice and the right to the city. Through construction of social housing apartments, people had access to shelter and services such as water, electricity, and sewerage, but many still do not have access to sustainable job opportunities. Additionally, there is no consistent access to services such as sewerage, water, and electricity, with frequent outages and blockages in water pipes and sewerage. The rate of crime is high, and people do not enjoy access to amenities and facilities because of fear of being attacked by criminals. The thesis recommends that for social housing to contribute to spatial justice and the right to the city, consultation and participation with the beneficiaries must be undertaken; there needs to be alignment of policy and legislation to facilitate the contribution of social housing to spatial justice and the right to the city; spatial inequality in the cities must be dealt with; and urban safety and security must be improved. This study contributes to academic discourse by providing perspectives about social housing in terms of spatial justice and the right to the city. The research provides notions about re-conceptualisation of social housing policy and legislation in terms of the ideas of spatial justice and the right to the city. Additionally, the study provides notions and a platform for the scrutinisation and discussion of social housing within the context of spatial justice and the right to the city. Finally, this study presents a framework for social housing in relation to spatial justice and the right to city. The framework outlines organised thinking and orientation about social housing regarding its contribution to spatial justice and the right to the city. This thesis argues that future research needs to adopt a broader contextual approach to investigate and understand the urban planning processes leading to limitations of social housing in contributing to spatial justice and the right to the city for beneficiaries. Such future research should utilise procedural planning theory because it deals with making and implementing plans. Additionally, a comparative study which may assist in investigating, analysing, and evaluating social housing in different cities must be undertaken to detect similarities and differences. This must occur to compare social housing in terms of contributing to spatial justice and the right to the city in various cities. This may assist to broaden the thinking and understanding of the way social housing contributes to spatial justice and the right to the city.