Academic literature on the topic 'Housing – KwaZulu-Natal – eThekwini Municipal Area'

Legislative authority in South Africa is divided among the national, provincial and local spheres of government. Section 43 of the Constitution provides in this respect that the legislative authority of the national sphere of government is vested in Parliament; that the legislative authority of the provincial sphere of government is vested in the provincial legislatures; and that the legislative authority of the local sphere of government is vested in the municipal councils. The allocation of legislative authority to municipal councils gives rise to a number of complex questions. One of these is the extent to which municipal councils are entitled to pass legislation that deals with the conservation and protection of the "environment". This issue was considered by the KwaZulu-Natal High Court: Pietermaritzburg in Le Sueur v eThekwini Municipality [2013] ZAKZPHC 6 (30 January 2013). In this case the High Court found that even though the functional area of "environment" has been explicitly allocated to the national and provincial spheres of government and not to the local sphere by the Constitution (see Schedule 4A of the Constitution), municipal councils are entitled to pass legislation that deals with the conservation and protection of the "environment", at least in those circumstances where it forms a part of "municipal planning". While there is no doubt that the functional area of "municipal planning" does encompass certain specific environmental matters at the local level, it does not encompass the broad area of the "environment", as the High Court suggests in its judgment. The approach adopted by the High Court, therefore, is open to some criticism. The purpose of this article is to set out and discuss the High Court’s judgment as well as the criticisms that may be levelled against it in the light of the allocation of legislative authority to the three spheres of government.

Background: The city of Durban in the province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa, falls within a global biodiversity hotspot. KwaZulu-Natal Sandstone Sourveld (KZNSS) is a savanna vegetation type endemic to KZN. KZNSS is endangered; about 90% has been totally modified and 0.1% of the original extent is adequately protected. In response, eThekwini Municipality, Durban’s local government authority, has developed approaches to improve the conservation status of KZNSS and other biodiversity.Objectives: To describe eThekwini Municipality’s work in contributing to securing and managing KZNSS and other biodiversity. This information will contribute to an increased understanding of local government’s role in biodiversity conservation and should be relevant to other local governments as well.Method: Statistics from the municipality’s GIS database and work done and insights gained over about 30 years are presented.Results: By 2012, about 54% of Durban’s original vegetation was transformed and a further 17% was highly degraded. Combined efforts have resulted in 3.06% of the eThekwini Municipal Area enjoying some form of legal protection for environmental purposes with proclaimed protected areas covering 0.6% of the municipal area. Nearly 8% of areas identified as environmentally significant by the municipality are managed as appropriate.Conclusion: Increased and coordinated implementation efforts with a focus on priorities are needed from all role players if biodiversity is to be adequately conserved in Durban. Local government in South Africa can be an important contributor in biodiversity conservation, especially with regard to tools available in terms of its local planning mandate.

Background: The KwaZulu-Natal Sandstone Sourveld (KZN SS) is a grassland ecosystem categorised as endangered by the terms of the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (Act 10 of 2004). Pressure from urbanisation has led to the remaining areas of the KZN SS being physically fragmented, causing low connectivity levels which have diminished the biological persistence of this ecosystem.Objectives: This study aimed to quantify the overall level of habitat fragmentation of the KZN SS and determine the level of connectivity within the ecosystem, and patches of the KZN SS occurring in the eThekwini Municipal area. Using graph theory, we compared the effectiveness of broad-scale and fine-scale data sets in quantifying habitat fragmentation.Methods: The Conefor Sensinode software, which employs the bases of graph theory, was chosen to aid in assessing fragmentation levels. The integral index of connectivity (IIC) (values range from 0 to 1, with 1 highlighting optimal connectivity) was chosen as the best index to determine landscape connectivity.Results: The KZN SS was shown to be highly fragmented, especially at dispersal distances less than 500 m. This resulted in very low connectivity levels, with the highest IIC value recorded at 0.0063. Moreover, the use of either fine-scale or broad-scale data to measure connectivity differed substantially at 1000 m.Conclusion: Broad-scale data were shown to overestimate habitat fragmentation and underestimate landscape connectivity. A more apt description of KZN SS connectivity levels was realised with fine-scale data. This study recommends that crucial KZN SS patches be prioritised to safeguard this endangered ecosystem.

Background: KwaZulu-Natal Sandstone Sourveld (KZNSS) is an endangered subtropical grassland type, of which a large proportion occurs within the eThekwini Municipal Area (EMA).Objectives: Examining the flora of KZNSS will allow a more fundamental understanding of the potential variability across remnant patches of this vegetation type, increasing the ability to accurately delimit KZNSS from adjacent similar vegetation types.Method: Floristic data were collected using quadrats and transects for three recognised KZNSS sites (Giba Gorge Environmental Precinct (GGEP), Inanda Mountain (IM) and Springside Nature Reserve (SSNR)), all within the EMA. Alpha diversity (Shannon’s exponential and Simpson’s inverse indices) and beta diversity measures were calculated and compared across all sites. An unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) analysis using the Jaccard index and a non-parametric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) ordination were used to assess similarity amongst quadrats across the three sites.Results: One hundred and thirty-one plant species were found to occur in GGEP, 95 in IM and 121 in SSNR. However, of the total 193 species found to occur collectively (i.e. quadrat and transect data combined) across the three sites, only 50 species were common to all these sites. The results of the alpha and beta diversity analyses revealed significant floristic variability both within and across the KZNSS sites sampled, with Shannon’s exponential index being highest in SSNR, followed by GGEP and lowest in IM. The lack of controlled access and unregulated burning regimes appear to have clearly affected the flora at the IM site in terms of species richness and increased evenness, as well as the relatively greater presence of introduced alien species and lower abundances of taxa of conservation concern. The pristine GGEP site had the highest number of species in total, with species being less evenly spread across the site, as well as the highest number of taxa conservation and low abundances of alien species. The main separations in the ordination results can be attributed to quadrat sampling performed pre- and post-burn.Conclusion: The floristic distinction of IM from GGEP and SSNR is attributed here to the intermediate disturbance effect of fire in grasslands which can lead to species loss if burning is too frequent. The implications of these findings are discussed in the context of the delimitation, classification and management of KZNSS

Disparities between housing, water and sanitation policy initiatives continuously undermine the efforts of informal settlements upgrading programme of transforming living conditions of people living in informal settlements. The objective of this research project was to explore the disparities between the above mentioned policy initiatives in informal settlements upgrading with the view to develop an understanding of various elements leading to these disparities. To achieve this research two case study areas were selected from which data was collected. The case studies were selected purposively. Household surveys were conducted from each of the two case studies and interviews were conducted with housing, water and sanitation officials. Findings of the research indicate that there are indeed disparities between housing, water and sanitation. It indicated that the disparities manifested themselves at various levels of policy. The nature of these disparities also varied according to the level at which they manifested. The research concludes that disparities in housing, water and sanitation manifest themselves in informal settlement upgrading. Various levels of policy indicate the manifestation of these disparities. Informal settlement upgrading efforts are undermined by the lack of coordination and integration in the implementation of policy. The research therefore recommends adjustments from all levels of policy from formulation to implementation. Housing, water and sanitation policy formulation process should be conducted in an integrated and coordinated manner. All parties involved in policy development and implementation should adopt high level of communication and consultation on all policy related issues. Policy objectives should be consolidated.
Thesis (M.Housing)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

Given that access to adequate housing is defined under South Africa's constitution as a fundamental human right, it is understandable that the post Apartheid government focuses significant time and expense on establishing human settlements intended to redress the historically unequal distribution of wealth and resources. This thesis is concerned with looking at why, in spite of this attention, the government has underperformed in delivering low income housing projects that evolve into socially sustainable and integrated communities. Since there is no substantial evidence that a comprehensive study of the consolidation of human settlements has been done in South Africa, this research and the recommendations it engenders will be an important resource for planning truly sustainable and integrated human settlements in the future. Both theoretical and applied research methodologies were utilised in this thesis to examine specifically six human settlements in the KwaZulu-Natal Ethekwini region, selected for their diversity in terms of social, economic and location characteristics, as well as the differing historical circumstances surrounding their establishments. That the analysis included three settlements with Greenfield and social housing projects developed during the Apartheid regime and three settlements established after the 1994 democratic elections, permits comparisons to be drawn and so facilitates a deeper understanding of the successes and failures of the creation of sustainable housing settlements. A thorough review of the limited literature in South Africa in this field and an assessment of strategies contained in the National Housing Policy, was complimented by a more practical approach, including the use of a Delphi survey method, which was conducted with experts in the housing field, policy makers and settlement inhabitants, and extensive on site data collection. This investigation shows that, paradoxically, the Apartheid housing settlements, designed to entrench racial segregation and inequality, have in fact flourished as consolidated communities, in comparison with post Apartheid housing projects. The thesis draws the conclusion that in the Apartheid settlements inhabitants are using their housing units as an invaluable asset to improve their living conditions and to create a sustainable environment. However, in the settlements developed by the post Apartheid regime, inhabitants are struggling to use their home as an asset to improve their living conditions and to create a convenient and sustainable environment. Consequently, poverty, social exclusion and vulnerability of the beneficiaries of low-cost housing are deepening. While this does not justify the Apartheid policy of enforced removals or the subsequent social evils, the sense of ownership that ensued from forcing inhabitants to thererafter pay for their dwelling based on a calculated proportion of household income, is key to understanding this disparity. In comparison, post Apartheid housing policy, framed within a socialist agenda, does not allow for equitable distribution based on income levels and so for the mainly poor and economically inactive inhabitants, there is an absence of this same ownership incentive to either care for or improve the dwellings that they are given. Furthermore, the current National Housing Policy fails to take a holistic approach to the issue since its priority is simply meeting short-term high demand to eradicate the most visible effects of Apartheid. Subsequently, the National Housing Policy has failed to consider how access to education facilities for children, availability of consumer goods and the proximity to commercial activity, jostle with the need for shelter as high priorities for low income households, which fundamentally affects the success of any housing policy. For this reason, several beneficiaries of post Apartheid housing units have sold their homes to raise income to meet more pressing needs. All social housing settlements that formed the sample of this research study have long term viability issues and so replicating any model is problematic. The thesis suggests therefore, that in the future, legislators and policy makers look towards cultivating mixed use housing settlements centred around vibrant commercial, business and retail sites with connecting public transit and pedestrian networks, and various tenure options, including rentals, rent-to-buy and outright purchase. Development initiatives taking into considerations the reforms and recommendations outlined in this thesis could be implemented on housing projects that use developed buffer zones of land that were left over from the Apartheid era housing policy or on "lost spaces" within existing human settlements. The advantages of such a new approach for creating sustainable housing settlements provides an opportunity to link spatially and economically dislocated communities while ensuring beneficiaries and stakeholders in housing settlements meet a wider variety of needs. The conclusion that this thesis draws is that South Africa needs a post Apartheid approach to create sustainable human settlements. The Delphi Study reveals that the strategy to be adopted should represent the expectations of both policy-makers and beneficiaries. Consequently, this thesis proposes a sustainable housing development model and has developed guidelines and processes that take into consideration the many issues affecting housing policies and so becomes a workable tool for future housing professionals. Consolidated and integrated settlements that evolve into socially sustainable communities then becomes a real possibility.
Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

This thesis set out to examine the application of the supporter paradigm in the incremental housing process in South Africa, and the way support for housing consolidation has been orchestrated in practice. It aimed to determine the forms of housing support that constitute preconditions of housing consolidation in the South African low income housing context. The supporter paradigm upon which post-apartheid housing policy is based takes its cue from the proponents of self-help housing, and the institutions that have entrenched it internationally. It outlines the housing support actions that would enable poor households to achieve housing adequacy incrementally . In South Africa, such households would constitute housing subsidy beneficiaries, seeking to achieve housing 'depth' through the process of housing consolidation, where the national subsidy programme would primarily only have delivered housing 'width' , or housing starts. Contrary to the expectations of the policy, the pace of housing consolidation has been slow, and the standard of the resultant housing poor. The thesis ' point of departure is that households which have not improved their dwellings, or whose improvement efforts have only yielded temporary housing, continue to experience housing inadequacy, despite subsidy support. This outcome contradicts the policy 's goal of enabling households to reach housing adequacy. That subsidy support is but one of a number of supports needed to enable housing consolidation is acknowledged by current policy. This study critiques the way support has been lent to households in consolidating situations conceptually and empirically. Conceptually, the study analyses the international and South African policy discourse around the support approach to housing delivery, as well as looks at some precedents in housing support practice internationally for useful lessons. Empirically, the study makes use of qualitative and quantitative research instruments to examine and analyse the housing support experience in three different types of incremental housing projects, located in eThekwini municipality, in the KwaZulu Natal Province of South Africa . The housing support findings are analysed within the context of what both the housing policy and the study 's key informants consider to be a holistic packaging of housing support, that should be attendant to any incremental housing project. On the basis of the study's findings, housing support practice is critiqued on two levels. At policy level, the study reveals that the foundation of South African housing policy in a neoliberal context, in the absence of support targeted at improving the incomes of the mainly very poor beneficiaries, sets them up for failure in their housing improvement efforts. At the implementation level, the study identifies three key areas of weakness. Firstly, there is absence of strategic direction at the National level, resulting in the treatment of housing support as an optional function by the housing implementation levels. Secondly, most housing authorities experience difficulty in understanding what housing support entails, because of its multifaceted nature and lack of specificity . Consequently, the support attendant to incremental housing projects is ad hoc and intermittent in nature, and is delivered on the basis of how the particular authorities or project staff understand housing support. As a result, in any given project, housing support is rarely comprehensively packaged. It is also largely an unfunded mandate. Thirdly, at project level, the thesis establishes that many of the problems that confront consolidating households can be attributed to projects that are poorly planned from the outset, and that support in this regard lies in the development of capacity at municipal level, to plan projects that have the potential to be consolidated in the first instance. As its main contribution, the thesis develops a multidimensional, comprehensive framework for packaging housing support. One dimension specifies upfront, the support elements considered important in the pre- and post-subsidy phases of the project, as well as in the project implementation phase. The exact form these would take in any project would be informed by the project and beneficiary characteristics. The second dimension packages the institutional roles for housing support, thereby removing the institutional ambivalence towards the housing support function, and specifying the institutional and role changes needed to enable housing support to occur. The third dimension packages support according to project type, indicating which forms of support apply to all types of projects, and which to specific modes of delivery in the South African context. The study concludes that while current housing policy is clear on the need to support households to meet consolidation goals, specificity of both process and actions needs to be lent to housing support practice. The multidimensional support package developed by the study is deemed a useful tool in providing such specificity, and clarifying how support for housing consolidation in South Africa should be set up in both policy and practice.
Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

Worldwide, it has been recognised that local governments are uniquely placed to bring about positive environmental change in their areas of jurisdiction. This research was conducted to assess how one South African local municipality, the eThekwini Municipality, Durban, is faring in its efforts to achieve sustainability. Hajer's (1993, 1995, 2003) discourse approach to environmental policy making was used as the key theoretical and methodological basis of the research. This approach recognises the power of discourse in shaping how society's relationship with the environment should be managed and sustained. In global environmental politics, ecological modernisation has emerged as the dominant environmental policy discourse and reflects a weak approach to sustainability. An alternative is the strong sustainability discourse, which argues that sustainability cannot be achieved without giving attention to issues of social and environmental justice and including local communities in environmental policy making. These two discourses are used to structure the assessment of environmental policy discourse in the eThekwini Municipality. A recent municipal project, "eThekwini Catchments 2002: A Strategic Tool for Planning" was used as the research case study. The project provides an assessment of the environmental health of each of the 18 river catchments identified in the municipal area, using environmental indicators. The intention of the project was for this information to be used by municipal planners as a tool for environmental decision-making. Municipal officials, representing several municipal sectors, and the project consultants were interviewed to determine their perspectives on the project. The interview transcripts, as well as the Catchments Project report and other municipal documents, were analysed using Hajer's discourse methodology to uncover the key discourses operating in the municipality that influence environmental policy making. Municipal discourse was then reviewed in terms of the EM and strong sustainability discourses to determine whether the municipality is moving towards stronger sustainability. This research also contributes to an improved understanding of how discourse shapes environmental policy projects and their outcomes. By identifying the environmental discourse dynamics at work, it is possible to stimulate a more deliberate approach to environmental policy making to bring about positive environmental change in the municipality.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2004.

The post-1994 era saw a deluge of housing legislation designed to shake the foundations of repressive Apartheid housing policy. Regrettably, the social housing sector began operating without the support of relevant legislation to guide social housing delivery. Institutional arrangements for social housing only came into effect in the late 2000s. This study sought to evaluate the institutional arrangements for social housing to assess why they have failed to deliver adequate social housing output to satisfy the latent demand on the market. Therefore, the study sought to assess whether the limited delivery of social housing was a result of institutional inertia in the planning, provision and management of social housing in eThekwini Municipality post-1994. Qualitative information on institutional arrangements for social housing was sourced through semi-structured interviews conducted with key informants involved in social housing development in eThekwini Municipality. The information gathered from the interviews was analysed using thematic analysis. After analysing the information, it was discovered that disjointed institutions have contributed to inadequate social housing whose shortage should be viewed not as primarily an issue relating to limited supply and excessive demand, but as reflective of the underlying institutional power struggles arising from the ad hoc and silo process of implementing social, land and economic policies. Therefore, the research concluded that the social housing sector would continue to deliver inadequate social housing output unless a supra-institution that integrates social, economic and land policies is enacted. To maximise the allocation and use of land and financial resources needed for social housing delivery, the intent of the legislations within the institutional arrangements for social housing must be synchronised to have clear strategies and procedures to deliver social housing at scale in inner city areas.
Thesis (M.Housing)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

International evidence demonstrates that Small, Medium and Micro-Enterprises (SMMEs) play a critical role in the growth and stimulation of developed and developing country economies. Within the South African context, the National Framework for Local Economic Development (LED) aims to support the development of sustainable local economies through integrated government action. This Framework will ensure that SMMEs have an element of support from a local government perspective. With greater responsibility being allocated to local government, interrogating what local authorities could do to support SMMEs is important. The dissertation reflects on the eThekwini Municipality’s approach to this issue by focusing on the support of small enterprises through business linkages, and assesses the role played by Small Business Fairs in this regard. The primary empirical component of the research examines the effectiveness of the municipality’s flagship SMME support initiative – the annual SMME Fair. Over 160 small businesses were surveyed. The survey found in general that the stallholders felt the Fair was beneficial. Apart from the usual problems related to the organization of the Fair, the exhibitors also identified a number of weaknesses that hinted at the municipality’s strategic approach. Much of the frustrations of the respondents were linked to not receiving direct benefits from the SMME Fair in relation to business contacts and increased sales and it is argued that the municipality should explore further the benefits of business linkages. The role of local government in stimulating SMME Fairs to establish suitable business linkages with the big businesses may assist in addressing this major weakness that was identified. The SMME Fair has the potential to provide an ideal platform SMMEs from which to create business linkages.
Thesis (M.Dev.Studies)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Business Administration, Durban University of Technology, 2017.
This study was premised on the knowledge that the democratic government of South Africa has availed a lot of funding for SMMEs to start or develop their ventures. This is because it is an accepted fact that this sector has the ability to grow the country’s economy. The study then aimed to ascertain the extent to which the competence of Small, Medium and Micro Entrepreneurs (SMMEs) can impact sustainable economic development in eThekwini Municipal Area of South Africa. The study scrutinized the ability of the SMME managers and operators on how they can utilize available resources effectively and efficiently to ensure that their enterprises contribute to sustainable economic growth. Also, the factors that militate the growth and performances of SMMEs in eThekwini Municipal Area were examined. The basis through which this study was undertaken was that of human behaviour of SMME managers, operators and business owners as to how they can contribute to the economic development and survive in the competitive market. Using simple random sampling, data was collected from various SMMEs in the eThekwini Municipal Area. A total of 229 entrepreneurs responded to the questionnaire, which made the sample of the study. This data was captured and analyzed on SPSS (version 24) and yielded both descriptive and inferential statistics. The key findings of the study were that the entrepreneurs alluded to the fact that knowledge, skills, value judgments, behavioural characteristics and social networks were all very important in establishing and running a successful business. A challenge that emerged from the respondents was that they were not well equipped to identify business opportunities. They were, however, taking good care of their environments and were using their businesses to employ community members. Some of them did contribute to community development programmes. The main recommendation that is made here is that potential entrepreneurs must be assisted with tools on how to identify business opportunities. This could also be an avenue for further research.
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Most low cost housing beneficiaries either work in the informal sector with little income to meet all their basic needs, or do not work at all. They live in poverty because many of them are unskilled, unemployed, poorly represented economically, politically and socially. Hence the new South African Housing Policy is said to be enabling the housing environment to play a more meaningful role in job creation and employment sustainability. This is said to be achieved through skills transfer and giving support to small businesses which are geared towards more labour intensive opportunities. Job creation, in the context of this study, means training ,and the use of housing beneficiaries in housing construction. The provision of skills enhances beneficiaries to engage in self-employment programmes. Sustainability, on the other hand, looks at the use of dwelling units for small business purposes, the proximity of housing projects in relation to areas of employment, and the transfer of skills from place to place when required. After conducting a survey of 98 beneficiaries, the study revealed a lack of an effective mechanism for job creation and employment sustainability within greenfields housing projects. In order to provide both guidelines and recommendations for the effective implementation of housing projects, this dissertation assesses the extent to which greenfields housing projects have been able to create and sustain employment opportunities for housing beneficiaries. Case studies used to assess this aspect are Wiggins uMkhumbane in Cato Manor and Westrich in Newlands West. This study outlines failures and successes in the manner in which the above mentioned housing projects were implemented in relation to the creation and sustainability of income generating activities. This dissertation is structured as follows: The first chapter introduces the research problem, research question hypothesis, and the research method used to conduct the study. The second chapter provides both the conceptual framework and the literature review for the topic being investigated. International, national and local case studies are used to support the flow of the argument. Chapter three introduces the geographical and historical background of case studies in which the study was conducted. This historical background is linked to the topic of study to help to understand the phenomenon of employment. Chapter four deals with the presentation and analysis of data collected. The conclusion drawn from the findings and recommendations are found in chapter five.
Thesis (M.T.R.P.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.