Abstract
There is limited qualitative case research focusing on the underreported voices of black and coloured men and women employed at nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and living in underserved communities of South Africa. The purpose of this single case study, then, is to explore barriers and challenges to service delivery and funding at one specific NPO in South Africa’s Western Cape Province (WCP). To do so, I rely on observations and indepth semistructured interviews with 11 staff members. According to a majority of the staff, religion and race are the primary barriers that prevent the organization from achieving its goals and objectives. Moreover, they note that poverty and poor living conditions, child abandonment and neglect as a result of maternal alcohol abuse, and racial and cultural tensions are contextual challenges that inhibit organizational effectiveness. While these barriers and challenges are specific to this particular NPO, the contextual factors that staff identified are evident in other townships in the WCP. As such, the findings from this study add to the knowledge of NPOs in the WCP and provide insights into how to improve service delivery for low-income and underserved populations in the region.
Highlights
There is limited qualitative case research focusing on the underreported voices of black and coloured men and women employed at nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and living in underserved communities of South Africa
The complexity of contextual factors explored in this study have impacted the effectiveness of NPOs seeking to improve social conditions in the Western Cape Province (WCP)
As stated by Iwu, Kapondoro, Twum-Darko, and Tengeh (2015): According to the Western Cape Government...NPOs include non-governmental organizations (NGOs), community-based organizations (CBOs), organizations that are registered as Section 21 Companies under the Company Act 61 of 1973, trusts that are registered with the Master of the Supreme Court under the Trust Property Control Act 57 of 1988, and any other voluntary association that is not for profit. (p. 9565)
Summary
There is limited qualitative case research focusing on the underreported voices of black and coloured men and women employed at nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and living in underserved communities of South Africa. The complexity of contextual factors explored in this study (poverty, child abandonment and neglect as a result of maternal alcohol abuse, and racial and cultural tensions) have impacted the effectiveness of NPOs seeking to improve social conditions in the WCP In addition to these contextual factors, though, I find in this study that religion and race often serve as additional barriers for these NPOs. In addition to these contextual factors, though, I find in this study that religion and race often serve as additional barriers for these NPOs This is a single case study of only one NPO, it provides an indepth look at the struggles that NPOs in this region face. Contemporary South African CSOs include NGOs and CBOs; while the former are generally located in predominately “white, upper-middle class enclaves, that tend to be large and well-funded ($30,000-$100,000 USD monthly budget) and fully staffed (fifteen to thirty full-time staff members),” the latter “tend to be small with limited funding ($500-$2,000 USD monthly budget), poorly staffed (zero to three full-time staff members), and located in lower income communities that they serve” (Warshawsky, 2013, p. 597)
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