Attitudes and Perceptions Towards Local Government Poverty Alleviation Efforts in Limpopo Province, South Africa

Abstract

Poverty continues to be one of the biggest development challenges in the new democratic South Africa. Recently, the country has been experiencing several violent protests in poverty stricken townships and localities. Hence, this study aims to explore the attitudes and perceptions of officers and community representatives regarding the local municipalities poverty alleviation efforts in Polokwane, Lepelle-Nkumpi and Aganang local municipalities in Limpopo. Techniques such as analysis of secondary data, interviews, group discussions and questionnaire were used to collect data. Results from interviews and group discussions depict that poverty alleviation is still remaining behind as there is high level of unemployment, projects are collapsed and initiatives are limited in local areas. The attitudinal analysis also depicts that despite efforts made by the local municipalities, poverty continues to be a serious challenge in the study areas. Likewise, the analysis on the degree of response revealed the key factors that affect the local poverty alleviation, inter alia: shortage of funding or staffing; lack of meaningful participation of the poor; lack of commitment from stakeholders; and having less power to make decisions over programming and spending. Therefore, it is recommended that the local municipality should focus on: increasing meaningful local participation in development process; build the institutional capacity; and promote the partnership among public, private and civil societies at the local level. Moreover, local municipalities need more autonomy over programming and resource allocation. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n25p263