Research Output Repository (HSRC)
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Young people changing the world: the theory and practice
No full textPaper presented at the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology, Rabat, Morocco, 6-11 Jul
Informal rental housing in the global south: managing soft densification for sustainable neighbourhoods
No full textA growing proportion of urban residents live in informal rental housing, especially in the global South. While informally constructed rented accommodation offers multiple public policy benefits, the rapid and unplanned growth of rental units can have significant negative impacts on neighborhoods and residents. This paper draws on neighborhood level data from Cape Town, South Africa, to examine how informal rental housing markets drive the soft densification of a low-income settlement. It illustrates the enormous scale, density and diversity of informally constructed and commercially rented accommodation and unpacks how bottom-up building practices intersect with an inappropriate regulatory regime. Widespread informality limits government’s capacity to guide soft densification and mediate between its inherent tensions, trade-offs and conflicting public/private interests. We argue that recognizing the economic logics of informal rental housing markets is crucial to understanding why, where and how informal soft densification occurs. We present a novel framework to assist policymakers in better engaging informal rental housing markets, outlining seven spheres of action, to promote the sustainable
densification of urban neighborhoods and cities. In offering concrete suggestions we contribute to wider
debates about planning for informal urbanism.
A five-year reflection (2019-2024) on the implementation of the former HoD’s 8 principles on advancing inclusivity in the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD), South Africa
No full textHSRC Policy Brief, JulyThis policy brief draws on several sources, including a desktop review, consultative engagements, annual performance plans, reports, and existing research concerning gender mainstreaming in the public service. A
document review was undertaken to assess the status of gender mainstreaming within the Department, drawing on publicly available performance and annual reports from 2019 to 2024 accessible on the national and provincial departmental websites. In addition, annual reports and performance plans provided a comparative analysis of planned versus achieved targets, offering valuable insights into the Department’s progress and performance in gender mainstreaming over time.N/
A synthesis of environmental policies and identification of critical gaps in critical zones of South and East Africa
No full textAfrica’s Critical Zones experience unprecedented environmental degradation but do not have effective governance modalities for policy implementation coordination across jurisdictional and stakeholder scales. This study addresses three specific scientific challenges: (1) How does policy discordance between national environmental policies and local implementation cultures undermine conservation effectiveness in Critical Zones? (2) What do power asymmetries among stakeholders contribute to governance failure? (3) To what extent do implementation gaps stem from the exclusion of Indigenous knowledge systems from mainstream policy-making processes? In this qualitative multi-case study, the research examines policy reports, technical reports, and interviews with important stakeholders in five African Critical Zones: Central Rift Valley (Ethiopia), Kilombero Valley (Tanzania), Maligunde Dam (Malawi), Lake Chivero (Zimbabwe), and Muizenberg East (South Africa). Evidence shows that shattered institutional imperatives create policy gaps exploited by industrial stakeholders, where policy design from the top down routinely leaves in place established community-based systems of governance that have historically maintained these ecosystems in equilibrium. Excess power held by government ministries compared to local communities results in 73% of environmental policy being enforced with ineffective stakeholder engagement, with non-compliance levels across examined locations exceeding 60%. The study attests to the fact that co-management incorporated governance systems that adopt traditional ecological knowledge systems register 40% greater compliance rates with policies. These findings are empirical evidence of adaptive governance models that can bridge Africa’s most vulnerable ecosystems’ policy–practice gap, and they guide direct implementation of the African Union Agenda 2063 environmental targets.
The dynamics of human security impact of the weaponisation of women in terror organisations: the case of Boko Haram and Islamic State
No full textThe modern-day global system is facing wars and conflict of all kinds. However, the twenty-first century’s global system is designed to deal with threats and conflict that are distinct from those of the twentieth century. These threats do not emanate outside the borders of states - they emanate within the borders of states. These threats include intra-state conflicts such as religious conflict and terrorism (among others), which are often linked to a government’s failure to provide basic services that might provide human security to constituents. The vacuum created by the failure of government is normally filled by fundamentalist groups like Boko Haram and the Islamic State. Consequently, these groups have adopted a strategy of including women in their terrorist agenda, as women play a significant role in sustaining the existence of these groups. This led to the concept of the weaponisation of women coming into being. In addition, terrorist groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State weaponise women, who are required to play various roles, including serving as plotters, spies and supporters who gather all the material support and intelligence, publish propaganda and recruit
other women to join those running a terror campaign. Other roles are serving as the wives of insurgency militia members, and bearing the future generation jihadists and suicide bombers. The findings of this study indicate that there are human security impacts related to the weaponisation of women, such as: loss of life; dropping out of school and closure of schools due to the fear of attack by terror groups; population displacement that leads many people losing their homes and shelter; post-traumatic experiences as a result of gender-based violence; rejection from society as a result of stigma attached to rape; loss of citizenship due to affiliation to
terrorist groups. Methodologically, the study relied on the qualitative method of research and content analysis to delve in to the dynamics of human security impacts associated with the weaponisation of women.
#FeesMustFall: lessons from the post-colonial global South
No full textThe protests that engulfed South African universities in 2015 and 2016 revealed a dissatisfaction by students with regard to higher education fees. This article looks at some of the lessons that could assist South Africa in understanding the role of universal fee-free higher education or fee-free higher education for the poor. Most countries in the post-colonial global South indicate a shift to cost-sharing as mounting financial pressures on state budgets make universal free education unsustainable. The current study shows that the cost-sharing model in South Africa has not resonated with students and may also be exclusionary to poor students. The lessons from the post-colonial global South show that the trend in higher education is that the poor are often left out of most fee structures - including dual track, universal fee-free, and cost-sharing models. The current study explores some implications and considerations of the current means test model that has been introduced by the current South African president, while using the global South as reference point for the implications of this fee structure,
particularly in relation to poor and working-class students.
Monitoring and evaluation of the 2024 National Science Week
No full textCommissioned by the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, SeptemberThe 2024 National Science Week (NSW), conducted from 30th September to 7th October under the theme "Living in a high-tech world: should we be concerned?", marked a significant shift in the implementation format. For the first time, the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) adopted an unfunded model, inviting organisations to conduct activities at their own cost rather than providing direct financial support. This evaluation, led by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), assessed the effectiveness of this approach across multiple dimensions, including participant experiences, organizational reflections, and communication strategies.N/
Lessons for life: why Africa’s classrooms must tackle climate change now
No full textClimate change could have devastating impacts on nutrition, economies, and public health throughout Africa. However, with an increasingly young population, the continent could leverage its youth to drive sustainable practices through education. A new HSRC paper presents a transformative approach that could empower young people to become climate leaders, influence policy and implement local solutions for a more resilient future.
Factors associated with acceptance of vaccination against human papillomavirus in eThekwini district of South Africa
No full textSouth Africa launched a school-based human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme in 2014 and has achieved a national coverage of more than 80%. However, there is subnational variation in coverage, with eThekwini District in the province of KwaZulu-Natal having the lowest coverage at 40%. Knowledge of the factors associated with vaccine acceptance in this district would inform tailored strategies to improve coverage, which could be extrapolated to similar settings. We conducted this cross-sectional study to assess the factors associated with HPV vaccine acceptance in eThekwini District. Methods: We used stratified random sampling to select caregivers of children aged 9–14 years in the district. We interviewed participants in April–May 2023 and employed bivariate and multivariate logistic regression models to assess the factors associated with HPV vaccine acceptance. Results: Of 793 individuals contacted, 713 (89.9%) participated. Most were women (86.1%) and had a mean age of 42.6 ± 11.6 years and secondary or lower education (83.8%). Most participants knew about the HPV vaccination programme (86.0%) and accepted HPV vaccination (93.5%). The latter includes 42.9% who had already vaccinated their daughters and 50.6% who were willing to allow their daughters to be
vaccinated. A negligible proportion was either undecided (2.1%) or unwilling (4.4%) to accept HPV vaccination. Awareness of the programme (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 5.22; 95% confidence interval [95%CI] 2.01–13.56), confidence in vaccine safety (aOR 19.69; 95%CI 5.86–66.15), and endorsement by religious leaders (aOR 5.06; 95%CI 1.56–16.45) were independent predictors of vaccine acceptance. Conclusions: Our findings highlight the
critical role of the provision of information and education about the benefits and safety of HPV vaccination.
COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and barriers to vaccination in South Africa
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic created significant social, economic and health-related challenges. The rapid development of vaccines that could help curb transmission and mortality from the virus was vital. The University of Johannesburg/Human Sciences Research Council (UJ/HSRC) COVID-19 Democracy survey was established as a cross-sectional online and telephone survey designed to provide rapid response data to inform the pandemic response. Between December 2020 and November 2021, the survey fielded questions about vaccine acceptance, hesitancy and structural barriers to vaccination. Drawing from the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) Vaccine Hesitancy Determinants Matrix, this article explores the intersection of contextual and individual reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. We find that young people, particularly those aged 18–24 years, were the most vaccine-hesitant. Also, White adults exhibited more than double the odds of hesitancy of Black African adults, yet were also much more likely to be vaccinated. The article explores this seeming paradox by analyzing explanations for vaccine hesitancy as well as considering structural barriers to vaccination. Explanations for vaccine hesitancy mostly related to concerns about side effects, the effectiveness of the vaccine and distrust in the vaccine and/or government. In contrast, structural barriers, such as a lack of information about where to receive a vaccination and vaccination sites being inaccessible, may have deterred those who were broadly favorable about vaccination from accessing one. Overall, our analysis illustrates the
importance of understanding health crises as more than medical problems but as fundamentally social problems. It is therefore vital that social science research informs future responses to public health emergencies.