Philosophy Of Ubuntu Research Articles

The agency of the church during COVID-19 and beyond: Koinonia and ubuntu in the context of poverty and unemployment in South Africa

The spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disrupted, affected and changed human lives in many ways, namely: physically, emotionally, financially, psychologically and spiritually. Apart from people losing their lives and the lives of loved ones, others lost their jobs in numbers. Poverty levels and unemployment increased during this period. In order to mitigate the devastating effects of COVID-19, the South African government introduced a relief grant. As we welcome this gesture of goodwill by government, it is argued in this article that the church in every given locality and from every denomination should serve as the agency of change in order to alleviate poverty and unemployment in South Africa. The research question that this article seeks to address is: What role can the church play as a change agent in the context of poverty and unemployment in South Africa? Whilst qualitative literature study is undertaken to unpack issues of COVID-19, poverty, unemployment and church agency, this article is also approached from a broader missiological framework. Tapping into the resourcefulness of the early Christian church koinonia and the African concept of ubuntu, the article locates the church as an agent of change not only as a way of ending poverty and unemployment in South Africa, but also as a way meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 1 (UN SDG1).Contribution: It is therefore the aim of this article not only to call for the agency of the church but to also demonstrate that Christian koinonia as a lived experience of the early Christian church and African ubuntu philosophy can serve as tools for the church to bring about transformation.

“A simple post-growth life”: The Green Camp Gallery Project as Lived Ecotopia in Urban South Africa

ABSTRACT Utopias in Africa is an emerging academic field. While we are witnessing an increasing number of fictional and ideological utopias, little attention is paid to lived utopias. The Green Camp Gallery Project is such a lived utopia, which predominantly strives for realizing desired future imaginations in daily practices. Localized in the urban context of Durban (South Africa), in a derelict house in the industrial area, the Green Camp strives for a “simple post-growth life,” which is closely related to nature and the philosophy of Ubuntu. In so doing, the Green Camp responds to the overlapping crisis of urbanity and offers an alternative future aspiration. The Green Camp is not perfect and it is not able to solve the deep problems of South African society, but it offers an “island” of hope and imagination in a challenging urban environment. At the same time the lived utopia reveals the agency of the urban marginalized and contradicts widespread assumptions concerning environmentalism. Based on a qualitative study, the article takes an unusual perspective by analyzing the imagination of lived utopia in an emerging utopian hotspot—Africa.

OTHERNESS VS. UBUNTU: A POSITIVE DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF SPEECHES OF NELSON MANDELA

Keeping in view that discourse is a tool to construct, reconstruct, challenge and deconstruct the ideologies, and is, thus, capable of bringing socio-political changes, the present study, qualitative and descriptive in nature, intends to conduct Positive Discourse Analysis on the inauguration speeches of Nelson Mandela, the first Black president of South Africa. Taking Van Dijk’s Ideological Square as a point of departure, we have explored that Mandela used different strategies i.e. inclusive use of pronouns, positive portrayal of opponents and skillful choice of positive lexical items to challenge the Western ideology of Otherness in the country to incorporate the African philosophy of Ubuntu in his discourse to persuade his multiple layered audience to work in collaboration to attain the goal of social cohesion. The study concludes that Mandela used discourse strategically to bridge the chasm between different races of South Africa and successfully preached the lofty principles of Ubuntu, thus, emerged on the local as well as the global socio-political scene as an icon of humanity, justice and peace. Key Words: Otherness, Ubuntu, White Supremacy, Apartheid, Positive Discourse Analysis, Ideological Square.

Ethical concerns with replacing human relations with humanoid robots: an ubuntu perspective

This paper considers ethical concerns with regard to replacing human relations with humanoid robots. Many have written about the impact that certain types of relations with robots may have on us, and why we should be concerned about robots replacing human relations. There has, however, been no consideration of this issue from an African philosophical perspective. Ubuntu philosophy provides a novel perspective on how relations with robots may impact our own moral character and moral development. This paper first discusses what humanoid robots are, why and how humans tend to anthropomorphise them, and what the literature says about robots crowding out human relations. It then explains the ideal of becoming “fully human”, which pertains to being particularly moral in character. In ubuntu philosophy, we are not only biologically human, but must strive to become better, more moral versions of ourselves, to become fully human. We can become fully human by having other regarding traits or characteristics within the context of interdependent, or humane, relationships (such as by exhibiting human equality, reciprocity, or solidarity). This concept of becoming fully human is important in ubuntu philosophy. Having explained that idea, the main argument of the paper is then put forward: that treating humanoid robots as if they are human is morally concerning if they crowd out human relations, because such relations prevent us from becoming fully human. This is because we cannot experience human equality, solidarity, and reciprocity with robots, which can be seen to characterise interdependent, or humane, relations with human beings.

Decolonial Journalism: New Notes on Ubuntu and the Public Interest

ABSTRACT In this article, we make the case for public interest journalism that advances decolonial societies through the application of the quintessential African moral philosophy of ubuntu. In doing so, we discuss how ubuntu combats colonialism and apartheid to enable individuals to become the most that they can be. In this regard, we see decolonial journalism advancing freedom of expression under conditions that enable truth in the public good to emerge, thus challenging the widely purveyed view that freedom of expression or dissent is alien to the African cultural fabric. Indeed, while holding that decolonial journalism is part of the co-creation of communicative spheres that are marked by freedom, justice and dignity, we acknowledge that a decolonial African journalism is capacious enough to express contending perspectives and to serve goals that empower individuals and communities with truths that enable them to meet their needs in ever-changing circumstances.

Bridging the gap between classroom practice and world of work: A case of competency-based continuous assessment learning activities in Geography, Mutare Urban Cluster, Zimbabwe

The Zimbabwean education system that was inherited from the days when Zimbabwe was still Rhodesia provided strong content knowledge at the expense of critical skills and competencies. In its curriculum framework of 2015–2022, the government of Zimbabwe noted that mastery of subject content was inadequate for the schooling system needed by the country (Government of Zimbabwe, 2015). In response, it explained, it had developed a curriculum framework based on the introduction of competency-based continuous assessments in schools. The purpose of this article is to explore the system of competency-based continuous assessment learning activities (CBCALA) that is being adopted in the assessment of Geography at the Ordinary Level in secondary schools. Further to that, it aims to determine the challenges that Geography teachers face in the implementation of CBCALA. The study at the heart of the article is based on the social constructivism of Vygotsky (1978); and on the philosophy of ubuntu, which is widely espoused throughout southern Africa and further north on the continent. An interpretive research paradigm was adopted for a case study carried out in Mutare District in Zimbabwe. Data were generated through purposive sampling of the participants and were analysed by generating thick descriptions and themes. The study revealed the need for geography teachers to develop CBCALA through the formulation of clearly stated problems and through the assessment of well-formulated objectives that assess learners’ academic knowledge and competencies. This is achieved by developing research-based and practically oriented tasks. Geography CBCALA should be learner-centred, using both individualised and group assessment tasks. A marking guide is critical for use in marking the assessment tasks. Several challenges that impede the implementation of CBCALA include time constraints, the inadequate training teachers receive on the use of CBCALA, large classes, increased workload and inadequate equipment. The study recommends reviewing the quantity of content coverage; computerising the documentation of assessment tasks and student records; recruiting more teachers; and mobilising resources from within the community.

Analisis Efektivitas Dan Kontribusi Pajak Hotel Dan Restoran Terhadap Pendapatan Asli Daerah Kabupaten Jepara Tahun 2012-2020

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effectiveness of Hotel and Restaurant Tax receipts in Jepara Regency in 2012-2020 and to analyze the contribution of Hotel and Restaurant Taxes to Regional Original Income (PAD) in Jepara Regency in 2012-2020. quantitative. The data is obtained from the Regional Financial and Asset Management Agency of Jepara Regency in the Report on the Realization of the Jepara Regency's Budget Revenue from 2012 to 2020. The data analysis used is an analysis of effectiveness and contribution analysis. Results Based on this research, it can be concluded that the average effectiveness of Hotel Tax and Restaurant Tax receipts in Jepara Regency in 2012-2020 is 125% which is said to be very effective. Meanwhile, the average contribution of Hotel Tax and Restaurant Tax revenue to Regional Original Income (PAD) in Jepara Regency in 2012-2020 is 1,4%, thus it is said to be quite contributing (CB).

Utilisation of Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) among Students of Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria

Libraries house information in various forms such as prints and non-print materials. Considering the avail ability of various resources in the library, there is need for information retrieval systems that will enable users to have access to required information as at when needed. Modern libraries are increasingly being rede fined to provide unrestricted access to information in various sources and formats. Academic libraries differ from one another in many respects, but they all have the same basic function, which is to aid the parent institu tion to carry out its objectives in the areas of teaching, learning, and community development. Libraries con tribute to the realisation of these objectives and support

Violence against Women and Girls: Female Filmmakers Critique the Menace

Violence against Women and Girls: Female Filmmakers Critique the Menace

Going Back to the Roots

Given growing human influence on the earth system's functioning, caring for nature has never been this critical. However, whether for economic interests or ‘wilderness’ preservation, attempts to save nature have been grounded on a Western scientific philosophy of separating it from people's ways of living, especially through ‘protected areas'. Under the banner ‘convivial conservation', which advocates socio-ecological justice and structural transformations in the global economic system, an alternative idea called ‘promoted areas’ has been proposed, advocating for conservation which promotes nature for, to, and by humans. Here, we argue that ‘promoted areas’ are best fitted with decolonial thinking in conservation science and practice. In southern Africa, one available ‘decolonial option’ is Ubuntu philosophy, which is anchored on the ethical principle of promoting life through mutual caring and sharing between and among humans and nonhumans. Ubuntu disengages from western ways of knowing about human–environment interactions, as it is predicated on promoting the many links between humans and nonhumans. From this, we argue that instituted through Ubuntu, ‘promoted areas’ re-initiate a harmony between human beings and physical nature, as practices of individualistic, excessive extractions of nonhuman nature are discouraged, and human–nonhuman relationships based on respect, solidarity, and collaboration are celebrated.

Duty, Human Rights and Wrongs and the Notion of Ubuntu as Humanist Philosophy and Metaphysical Connection

This article reviews and discusses the issue of one’s duty, rights and wrongs within the Humanist African Philosophy of Ubuntu. ‘Ubuntu’ is an Nguni Bantu term denoting "humanity". It asserts that "I am because we are" and expresses of having a sense of "humanity towards others" which in the Zulu language is stated as “umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu”. The roots of African Life, culture and value systems in Southern Africa in particular are found in the philosophy of Ubuntu but they have also been partially influenced by specifically the Judaeo-Christian tradition. Ubuntu considers human rights as moral principles or norms that designate certain standards of human behaviour that are required in dealing with other human beings. One’s rights and duties in society are grounded in a multifaceted philosophy because of the moral aspects which are a mixture of heritage and tradition. Ubuntu avows that society, and not any transcendent being, provides human beings with their basic humanity. An authentic individual human being is part of a complex and important relational, communal, societal, environmental and even mystical world. One’s actions are correct to that extent that they are a matter of living harmoniously with others and doing one’s duty while acting ethically and within the ambit of the law, and thus demonstrating reverence towards others in communal associations. It calls for apology, and forgiveness when doing something wrong and ultimately reconciliation with guilty or injured parties. Keywords: Ubuntu; Rights; Wrongs; Duties; Metaphysics; African humanism

Emancipatory Tendencies of Ubuntu-like Classrooms as an Enhancer of Student Academic Prowess

Classrooms are sometimes laced with various pedagogical styles, which even though professional, may be alien to the students, leading to demotivation. Such demotivation usually results from a lack of affectionate pedagogical processes that affect students’ academic prowess, such as academic performance, achievement and attainment of academic goals. A teaching-learning process that does not accommodate professional affections may lead to an unpleasant end where the classroom purposes are defeated. Hence, this study presents Ubuntu as an emancipatory philosophy that ensures unhindered student achievement and performance. The study is positioned to answer a question: How can Ubuntu be presented to unravel ineffective classroom practices towards students’ emancipation. The study is designed within the transformative worldview to emancipate students and challenge the classroom status quo. This study was analysed using conceptual analysis, in which concepts derived from Ubuntu are subjected to intellectual and deductive interpretation for meaning-making. In this study, Ubuntu is presented alongside its three cardinal assumptions based on the researcher’s view. The assumptions (collaboration and togetherness; humanness; recognition and respect) were analysed and correlated with the classroom activities to promote students’ academic prowess. The study concludes that Ubuntu-like classrooms are the dimension of productive classroom practices towards students’ academic prowess. Therefore, the study recommended that classrooms be laced with collaboration, togetherness, and humanness, where students’ voices and opinions are recognised and respected. Keywords: Ubuntu philosophy, ubuntu classrooms, academic prowess, transformation, emancipation.

Environmental social work through the African philosophy of Ubuntu: A conceptual analysis

Social work has been involved with the interactions between human beings and their environment since its inception. Environmental social work can expand the profession beyond its boundaries. Similarly, Ubuntu is the philosophy that has the potential to provide global messaging for the interactions between human beings and their environment. Utilizing concept analysis, this article endeavours to expand Ubuntu philosophy to the concept of Environmental Social Work. Notably, Ubuntu is relevant in the components of human relations to nature, food security, climate change, natural disasters, sustainable development and ecospiritual social work. Unequivocally, Ubuntu is a philosophy relevant to Environmental Social Work.

Perceptions and experiences of teachers in Zimbabwe on inclusive education and teacher training: the value of Unhu/Ubuntu philosophy

ABSTRACT Inclusive education initiatives have been endorsed globally, especially by international development agencies. This study sought to get the views and experience of both in-service and trainee teachers about inclusive education and teacher training in the aftermath of the implementation of the ‘new’ Curriculum Framework for Primary and Secondary Education 2015–2022 in Zimbabwe. This new curriculum is said to be grounded in Unhu/Ubuntu philosophy. I use Unhu/Ubuntu philosophy as an evaluative and conceptual framework to examine inclusivity issues within the new curriculum. Drawing on a qualitative study involving content analysis, two key informant interviews and four focus group discussions on teacher education and inclusive education conducted in Manicaland province in the eastern part of Zimbabwe, findings highlight challenges faced in realising the Unhu/Ubuntu philosophical value of inclusivity in education. These impediments are unsurprisingly similar to those reported in other studies, both in Zimbabwe and in other countries. The paper identifies and highlights some of the reasons why inclusive education has remained elusive and makes some recommendations. It calls for teacher education premised on the indigenous Unhu/ Ubuntu philosophy. In doing this, the paper contributes to debates on inclusive education and discussions on decoloniality of education in postcolonial states.

Managing feeding needs in advanced dementia: perspectives from ethics of care and ubuntu philosophy.

The response to feeding needs in advanced dementia patients is a subject of ethical inquiry. Advanced dementia is the debilitating result of a range of neurodegenerative diseases. As this terminal illness progresses, patients develop mild to severe dysphagia that can make swallowing difficult. Of the two available options, artificial tube feeding or oral hand feeding, an estimated one-third of these patients will receive artificial tube feeding. However, observational studies have failed to validate the clinical benefits of tube feeding. Ethics of care, the feminist philosophical perspective, and Ubuntu philosophy offer arguments for the choice of oral hand-feeding as a preferrable first option by caregivers as far as possible. These moral theories acknowledge that human beings can be dependent for long periods, mostly early and later years of life. Both views reflect an approach that draws people into a system of interdependent caring relationships. They encourage hand feeding as a way of exhibiting solidarity and respecting human dignity even at the end of life.

Ubuntu is under siege: a reflection on the challenges of South Africa then and now

Ubuntu is an African philosophy that has held together African communities for a millennium and its ethics ensures that law and order are maintained across different African communities. This philosophy ensured and still to a degree ensures that conflicts amongst tribal communities are resolved amicably. The poor, widows, and orphans have always existed in Africa. However, Ubuntu as a philosophy taught Africans how to treat others with dignity. Ubuntu taught Africans that their existence depends on one another. Having mentioned this, the African continent continues to experience a high level of corruption, ethnicity, xenophobia, and intolerance, especially for the LGBQI+ community. Hence, some scholars have concluded that Ubuntu is dead and no longer exists, paying more attention to high inter alia crime rates, corruption, xenophobia, ethnic wars, and homophobia. This research argues that despite the challenges Africa faces, Ubuntu still exists; however, it has and continues to be under siege due to the legacy of slavery, colonization and apartheid. The research argues that factors that destroy this African philosophy of Ubuntu are the socio-economic factors, which have cost Africans their way of life as they have to ‘swim or sink’ and, in the process, lose who they are as a people. The research is based on a desk research methodology. It concludes that due to the effects of colonialism and apartheid systems and the challenges that persist post-1994, the teachings of black consciousness the interventions of sectors such as education and religion can enforce the teachings that will enforce values of self-sufficiency. African patriotism, which this research argues can assist in keeping African values such as Ubuntu alive.

Establishing the relevance of the Ubuntu philosophy in social work practice: Inspired by the Ubuntu World Social Work Day, 2021 celebrations and the IFSW and IASSW’s (2014) Global Definition of Social Work

The philosophy of Ubuntu has gained momentum in the social work fraternity to the extent that the theme for the World Social Work Day, 2021 celebrations read, ‘Ubuntu: I am Because We are – Strengthening Social Solidarity and Global Connectedness’. Through the use of a qualitative research approach, underpinned by a document analysis method, the article initiates a discourse which expounds on the philosophy through the lenses of the IFSW and IASSW 2014 Global Definition of Social Work. Substantially, it proffers justifications that cement the relevance of the Ubuntu philosophy in both the practice and theoretical frameworks of social work.

THE ROLE OF UBUNTU IN SOUTH AFRICA’S FOREIGN POLICY

This article focuses on the role of Ubuntu in South Africa’s foreign policy. Since independence, African intellectuals have tried to develop their own strategies and approaches to solve problems on the continent. These ideas were aimed at rescuing the African younger generation from enslavement by Western culture, to invent new approaches and to reanimate traditional concepts that would contribute not only to the revival but also to the protection of African culture. They were designed to promote traditional values both within the African continent and globally, to be the antithesis of Eurocentrism, to carve new Afrocentric ideas from their own historical experience and current conditions, socio-economic priorities, with African interests at their center. Among modern concepts aimed at protecting Africans and promoting the African position on the global arena is the traditional philosophical system of Ubuntu. It is the ideas of Ubuntu that have been adopted by South African politicians back in the late 90s and formed the basis of South Africa’s foreign and domestic policy. In 2011, the White Paper “Building a Better World: Ubuntu Diplomacy” was published, proclaiming the promotion of a multipolar, just and equitable world order and the desire for development and prosperity in Africa as one of its main theses. South Africa was the first state of the continent to base its foreign policy document on one of the main codes of African identity: Ubuntu. This gave the foreign policy document an African character.The Republic of South Africa presents a unique example of an attempt to implement into state strategy a philosophical concept that is a defining element of African identity, a significant part of the traditional culture for more than 350 million people living almost all over sub-Saharan Africa. The notion of Ubuntu is also reflected in the state documents of the Congo, the Republic of Chad, Uganda, as well as Kenya (harambei). By promoting the Ubuntu philosophy, South Africa claims the existence of African values, spreading their importance in the international space through various instruments of public diplomacy. Various magazines, radio stations and a national Ubuntu Awards have been created. All these tools are aimed at informing and sensitizing the public about South Africa’s foreign policy, promoting a multipolar world and establishing an alternative model to the Western system of individualism.

A framework for good health governance during the Covid-19 pandemic response and recovery in South Africa

From the Ubuntu philosophy to peace management, good governance application enables socioeconomic and environmental development. It happens that a fear atmosphere due to global disaster in health care management compromise good governance sustainability. This study seeks to design a framework for good health governance during the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic response and recovery in South Africa. Using a case study, research data were collected through questionnaire and analysed using correlation, variance and regression tools in statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS). 75%, 74%, 69% and 82% of respondents agreed and strongly agreed that good health governance metrics, government modernisation, pandemic governance strategies and pandemic governance challenges constitute the components of an effective framework for good health governance during the response and the recovery phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, there was a positive, strong and significant connection between the framework for good health governance and its constituents. Although health measures were taken at the early stage to limit the severe consequences of the pandemic in South Africa, the government is still required to redouble efforts in implementing rules of laws, initiate and develop capacity building, build integrity cultures together with the implementation of e-governance to ensure effective responsiveness and recovery. Countries in respective regions around the world should join forces to combat the spread of the virus through adoption of international good health governance solutions as proposed by the World Health Organisations. In South Africa specifically, government should incessantly initialise post-pandemic resolutions beforehand to counterattack continuous shocks on the country’ economic growth.

Decolonizing Assessment in Dance Education: Ubuntu as an Evaluative Framework in Indigenous African Dance Education Practices

ABSTRACT This article examines how the philosophy of Ubuntu is reflected in assessment and feedback provision systems of Indigenous dance education in African communities. In environments where urbanization, globalization, digitalization, and existing traces of colonialism are contesting Indigenous epistemologies, examining how communities value and leverage Indigenous philosophies to teach Indigenous dances is necessary. I draw on hermeneutic phenomenological stories and my participant observations to reveal that the complex assessment and feedback mechanisms support individual growth and community connections as a basis for knowledge production and holistic education. Manifested in music, community connection, embodied observations, community values and ethics, communal participation, and peer support, the assessment and feedback are engrained in mutuality, dialogue, connection, care, open-mindedness, moral maturity, inclusion, belonging, embodied participation, and individual innovation as ethos of interhuman relationships and relationality. Insights are provided on how dance practitioners can approach creating, performing, teaching, and sharing dance as community-building experiences and interhuman connections.