The efficiency of local citizens’ participation in local economic development projects in Mkhondo Local Municipality in Piet-Retief
| dc.contributor.advisor | Xaba, F.G. | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Mulqueeny, D.M. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Gama, Ntethelelo Abner | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-07-17T12:32:28Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2025-07-17T12:32:28Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2024 | |
| dc.description | Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in the Department of Social Work at the University of Zululand, South Africa [2024]. | |
| dc.description.abstract | The aftermath of colonialism and apartheid resulted in many South African communities being impoverished, having high levels of unemployment and inequality. As a result, municipalities engaged in various programmes and projects to economically empower their communities in response to social and economic challenges. One such programme is Local Economic Development (LED). This study analyses the efficiency of local citizens' participation in LED within the Mkhondo local municipality in Mpumalanga province in South Africa. An interpretivist paradigm was adopted as it was deemed relevant and is appropriate in qualitative studies. 19 community members involved in LED projects, six (6) municipal officials dealing with LED projects, and three (3) local ward councilors participated in semi-structured interviews while thematic analysis was used to analyse the collected data. The study findings demonstrate that the municipality played a crucial role in ensuring that the local citizens understood the importance of participating in LED projects. They further reflected on the benefits of LED as an effective tool for alleviating poverty in rural communities. Despite the successes brought by LED in impoverished and disadvantaged communities, there are challenges that hindered community members’ full participation in LED. The study recommends that more funds be made available to rural municipalities to meet the demands of rural people and that the municipality should employ additional staff to ensure that there are sufficient municipal officials to comprehensively service members of rural communities. | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://uzspace.unizulu.ac.za/handle/10530/2612 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.publisher | University of Zululand | |
| dc.title | The efficiency of local citizens’ participation in local economic development projects in Mkhondo Local Municipality in Piet-Retief | |
| dc.type | Thesis |