Browsing by Author "Ojong, Vivian Besem."

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Academic travel : travelling for work.
(Kamla-Raj Enterprises., 2013) Ojong, Vivian Besem.
This paper endeavours to show how academics become part of cross-cultural production, cultural circulation and ideological circulation. The stand-point of analysis of this paper is the individualised process of academic participation in tourism and the by-product of their participation. This paper is not intended to make academics that travel to conferences look opportunistic, yet the difference from mainstream tourism is that it is part of academic portfolio. Other tourists travel to places to unwind and rest but with an academic tourist, that point of disconnection is not there. This is part of valuable experience. Once an academic is highly connected that academic becomes highly successful. Attending a conference is not only about presenting a paper but also about connecting with people.
Beadwork identity as brand equity: an analysis of beadwork conventions as the basis for craft economies in KwaZulu-Natal, with specific emphasis on the beadwork of Amanyuswa.
(2014) Gatfield, Rowan Christopher.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.; Sithole, Maureen Phathisiwe.
The Zulu identity appears to have enjoyed precedence over other polity identities in KwaZulu-‐Natal for what is largely viewed as time immemorial. Yet, a cursory glance at emergent literature on the Zulu and what has come to be called ‘Zuluness’, the reification of this identity, reveals that in every instance, where the term ‘Zulu’ is perpetuated as if an overarching singular socio-‐political entity, ethical questions emerge. In economic terms these questions become inflamed, particularly within Tourism related industries, where products and services are being sold as authentically ‘Zulu’, thereby negating other potential for varied brand offerings. Much of the body of literature on beadwork appears to be similarly ‘framed’, by this seemingly unopposed view of the Zulu. When juxtaposed against the dire poverty within the province, compounded through HIV/AIDS, and retail sites saturated with ‘Zulu’ product, such as beadwork, the value of brand diversification emerges. Based on this premise, this study examines how polity identity within the Zulu might translate into the alleviation of poverty through micro-‐economic approaches, by capitalising on visual anthropologies in the form of beadwork identity. To this end, this thesis examines whether the people within one such polity, the amaNyuswa at KwaNyuswa, in the region known as the ‘Valley of a Thousand Hills’, in KwaZulu-‐Natal, continue to maintain the use of this identity and elect to define that identity through a beadwork convention. Further, it examines whether such forms of denotation can serve as a basis for a departure from the existing position on beadwork and its relationship to the Zulu brand. This study therefore examines the historical, political, cultural and socio-‐economic factors that continue to impact on the survival of amaNyuswa identity, from numerous theoretical perspectives. Methodologically this study draws on the training and experience of the researcher as a visual communication design practitioner and educator, employing a reflexive ethnographic research framework through which to interpretivistically deepen understanding on beadwork conventions of amaNyuswa, in relation to other beadwork conventions within the Zulu. Drawing on qualitative data gained through unstructured interviews and participant observation, by attending numerous traditional events, and in design-‐ based engagements with three craft collectives -‐ Sigaba Ngezandla, Simunye and Zamimpilo, in KwaNyuswa, and with Durban Beachfront Craft retailers and Rickshaw Pullers, it discusses various prototype handbags and Rickshaw cart and outfit designs developed to test the value of beadwork denotation in serving micro-‐enterprise and polity-‐based brands. The findings of this study point to the value of polity-‐based branding and product development, but also represent the value of visual ethnographic analysis towards understanding the material culture of those from the amaNyuswa, the extended amaQadi, and the larger amaNgcobo polity. Many of these groups elect to denotatively represent themselves through isijolovane , also referred to as isiyolovane , the beadwork convention said to look like colorful ‘peas’ floating in a black ‘soup’, examples of which were found across KZN province. These findings not only point to a new way in which oral records might be validated through beadwork, but also serve to challenge the commonly heralded view, particularly in the Tourism sector, that the Zulu are a singular identity represented by a single beadwork convention known as isimodeni, or the view held by many scholars that Zulu beadwork is simply comprised of a limited number styles, or as merely denoting large regions in the KZN province. Instead the outcomes of this study represent a step towards a reconstituted perspective of beadwork as being a denotative tool for communicating polity allegiance and for representing the diaspora of identities within the Zulu, displaced through time and circumstance across South East Africa. These findings are underpinned through the analysis of secondary data, accessed in museums; in beadwork archives, across KwaZulu-‐Natal; online; and in relevant texts.
Brotherhood solidarity and the (re) negotiation of identity among Senegalese migrants in Durban.
(2014) Fomunyam, Bilola Nicoline.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
This thesis based on a study titled “Brotherhood Solidarity and the (re) negotiation of identity among Senegalese migrants in Durban” examined Senegalese migration to South Africa, particularly Durban, and sought to show how these migrants negotiate and reconfigure their identities within a transnational context. The study principally set out to critically examine how Senegalese Mouride migrants exploit networks of solidarity and brotherhood through ‘dahira’ membership as an important source of social capital in negotiating their transnational identities. Being one of Senegal’s four major brotherhoods, the Muridiyya brotherhood possesses a deep-rooted organizational practice and solidarity system that plays a fundamental role in influencing migrants on how they make sense of the migratory experience. It is argued that Mouride networks assist its members in the social integration in host societies in maintaining transnational identities and are very important in providing migrants with spiritual and ideological points of reference and aiding the development of entrepreneurial networks and niche formation. The study equally highlights that there are embedded cultural and religious values and beliefs that constitute stepping-stones upon which Senegalese migrants choose this entrepreneurial livelihood pattern. The study opines that migration in Senegal is a complex and multifaceted enterprise which has become an integral part of people’s cultural and social lives. The gendered subject position of the woman as ‘nurturer’ and the man as ‘provider’ constitute an important facet of Senegalese identity construction and is a fundamental determinant of who migrates. The study argues that migration in this context is not simply an economic endeavour but is profoundly influenced by the culture. The Senegalese migrants regard it as a training experience, a rite of passage, an initiation process, an art, a means of world making and self-fashioning that paves the way for them to lay claims to their masculine identities. Migration for these men is associated with knowledge, adventure and ‘becoming a man’. Such a cultural disposition highlights the importance of migration for masculinity and explains why migration in Senegal has remained a male preserve. Women do not have the same autonomy as men to migrate given the stigma often attached to migrant women. It is also contended that failing to do this through non- migration is likely to result in alienation, loss of respect and self-esteem which sometimes lead to masculine gender-role stress. The study emphasizes how in renegotiating their identities in Durban the Senegalese migrants transcend ethnic and religious differences by using the consumption of home food as a common ground for a broader Senegalese identity where all internal differences are muzzled. Food in this context is a metaphor of self, a cultural feature and a non-verbal form of communication through which migrants construct the space in which they find themselves. Cuisine and culinary ways are an essential form of expression and important outlets used by Senegalese migrants to assert, sustain and reconfigure their identities in Durban. Finally, the study shows that deeply engrained in the culture of Senegalese migrants is the spirit of ‘Terenga’ solidarity whereby new social relationships are established while those already in existence are maintained.
A comparative analysis : contestation of two systems of political representation : Isphakanyiswa and Ngcolosi traditional communities.
(2015) Ngubane, Mlungisi.; Naidu, Uma Maheshvari.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
Governance requires the support of different ‘categories’ of stakeholders. One such ‘category’ is comprised by the traditional leaders, who are potentially significant players in the implementation of governmental policies and services, within the contemporary democratic South Africa. As such, they represent a community that is potentially able to contribute to the shape and the implementation of the government’s policies and service plans within their local communities. Their possible role, however, has continued to be limited by both, certain sectors of the government as well as the public. This ‘limitation’ comes in the form of challenge on the capability of traditional leaders in conducting policy implementation within a democratic system and on the legitimacy of the leaders, especially the non-elected traditional leaders – isiPhakanyiswa, regarding tradition leaders and the system as mundane, “old fashioned”, and archaic, thus meant to be done away with the relics of the past society. Local communities also tend to question the legitimacy of the traditional leaders. Thus, two is contesting views are created based on the ability of traditional leaders or institutions to contribute to the promotion of good governance and the role of the government and its personnel in carrying out its services. This study explores this contestation by showing the role played by traditional leaders, both elected and non-elected, in contributing and promoting the government’s services in their local communities, probing the embedded assumptions about their inability to play such a role in a democratic society. The study looked at two local government areas, Ngcolosi and Kholwa -Ntumeni in eThekwini Municipality and uThungulu District Municipality, who have elected and non-elected traditional leaders, respectively.
An exploration of the lives and livelihoods of African professional migrants in institutions of higher learning : the case of University of KwaZulu-Natal.
(2009) Otu, Monica Njanjokuma.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.; Naidu, Uma Maheshvari.
This study focuses on the lives and livelihoods of foreign African academics at UKZN. The study attempts to unpack the driving forces behind their decision to migrate and why South Africa has become a preferred destination for these migrants. It explores the kind of networks that inform them of employment opportunities that are available in institutions of higher learning in South Africa. It also sets out to explore the kind of skills possessed by these migrants that are needed for the development of skills in the institution. Research findings reveal a combination of micro and macro factors as reasons surrounding foreign African professional migrancy in South Africa. Macro factors are subsumed under general and structural reasons which include high unemployment rates, corruption, nepotism, and other forms of political oppressions and infrastructural problems. Over and above the relative viability of South African institutions with modern technological facilities and well organised curricular and material structures serve as major attractions to foreign African professional migrancy into the country. The factors of cultural affinity and geographical proximity are also among the reasons that foreign African academics at UKZN cited for their migration into South Africa. The individual in this study constitutes the basic unit in providing a more nuanced understanding of why this group of foreigners migrated to South Africa. In this regard personal reasons such as family pressure and change of geographical space form an integral part of reasons surrounding their migrancy in South Africa. Following the professional convenience that UKZN offers, this research showcases the desire expressed by various migrants under this study to pursue and establish a scholarship that would promote and legitimise Africa as an intellectual space of knowledge production. Being a “Premier University of African Scholarship”, professional migrants from the rest of the continent have indicated their willingness to dedicate their services within their different capacities to develop a curriculum that meets the needs of South Africa and Africa. The study shows some contributions that foreign academic are making in the development of the institution. From a social perspective the study highlights how professional African migrants have reconstructed gender roles and household constitution. Transnational migration as shown by this study reveals changing patterns in gender as African women just like the men are engaged in transnational activities for economic and career advancement. African women with educational skills whether married or unmarried have independently undertaken the decision to migrate for economic and social upliftment.
An exploration of the reasons surrounding Indian businesswomen's involvement in home-based business in Shallcross.
(2008) Moodley, Lucille Claudia.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
The topic of this study is “An exploration of the reasons surrounding Indian businesswomen’s involvement in home-based businesses in Shallcross, Durban”. The objective of this study was to investigate some of the reasons why Indian women choose to venture into small business. This study also explored some of the history of the Indian people of Natal (now known as KwaZulu-Natal) and briefly touched on the past and present lives of Indian women in South Africa. The informants used in this study were Indian women who owned small home-based businesses. They all reside in Shallcross where they operate their businesses from their homes. Shallcross is situated in Durban, in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. Their businesses consisted of various types like hair salons, catering and gift shops. All interviews with the informants were informal in nature. Informal, unstructured yet indepth interviews and life histories were used in the study to collect data. Life histories were summarized to highlight the aims and results of the study. The literature reviewed for this study focused on issues on female entrepreneurship in South Africa. The most part of the literature review paid special attention to the changing role of Indian women, the nature of small businesses and their importance in South Africa’s developing economy, female motives for entrepreneurship and the future of female entrepreneurship. The literature review process has revealed a gap in the literature regarding Indian women involved in small business, but the literature also provided greater clarity and understanding of women entrepreneurship from both historically and contemporary perspectives.
Food decisions and cultural perceptions of overweight and obesity: the case of Zulu women in Durban, South Africa.
(2014) Ogana, Winifred Nyatima.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
This study investigates why Durban-based Zulu women in particular are experiencing a fairly recent exaggerated trend in weight gain. Relatively little has been written on this subject from a cultural anthropology perspective in general and in particular a food anthropological approach, which therefore remains a neglected field of study in South Africa. The study consisted of four objectives leading to knowledge that could have wide application towards curbing overweight and obesity among communities with similar belief systems and practices. Since no single theory proved satisfactory to explain weight-related trends among Zulu women, the study hinged largely on cultural aspects supported by postcolonial feminist theory, postmodern feminist theory, acculturation theory and symbolic interactionism theory. Through qualitative inquiry, the following methods were used to gather data: in-depth interviews, group discussions and ethnographic observation. Data was gathered from 50 female and five male participants drawn mainly from the Durban-based University of KwaZulu-Natal, Howard College Campus. The study’s 20 key research participants, half of whom were under 35, were identified for their ability to analyse and interpret their observations on the research topic. The first objective investigated the discourses of food decisions and cultural perceptions associated with weight and attendant health conditions. Related concerns included what participants ate, why, the quantities eaten, how often, when and with whom they ate, and under what circumstances and physical environments. Overarching the above aspects were associated symbolisms that shed light on factors that predispose Durban-based Zulu women to overweight and obesity against the backdrop of a rapidly changing world. Unlike contemporary trends in the Western world, the majority of study participants were not overly pre-occupied by the nutritive value of food or weight gain. The second objective highlighted food consumption patterns and weight-related health implications from an anthropological perspective. Paradoxically, while the plump woman is deemed healthy from cultural Zulu thinking, from a public health perspective such a body is considered unhealthy since excessive body fat is the precursor of a host of nutrition-related non-communicable diseases (NR-NCDs) or chronic diseases of lifestyle (CDLs). The thin ideal of a female body is idolized in the West is considered sickly among traditional Zulu thinkers. For example, to avoid being stigmatized in the contemporary AIDS era, thin women who are HIV-negative deliberately eat fattening junk foods in a bid to put on weight, while HIV-positive women maintain their weight specifically for this purpose. The third objective centred on body image and identity, with participants indicating that weight tolerance among the majority of Zulu men and women was diametrically opposed to the thin ideal of a female body. The participants indicated the Zulus traditionally appreciated the fuller body exemplified by the following positive attributes among others: beauty, sexual desirability, fecundity, healthy, physical hardiness, happiness, being good-humoured, kindness, good nurturance, generosity, respectability, wealth, success and affluence. Thin people, on the other hand were deemed unhealthy, weak or not hardy physically, miserable, miserly and ugly. In the 21st century the above-mentioned buxom woman is still largely deemed the epitome of attractiveness among the Zulu, especially by the older generation. Consequently, a fast-widening generational schism has occurred in the conflicting standpoints between Zulu parents and their young, especially in urban settings. Nonetheless, according to participants, neither generation necessarily deems overweight or obesity as key health concerns, unless faced with accompanying maladies. The fourth objective deliberated on efforts to discipline the body either through dieting or effecting lifestyle changes. The quest for bodily perfectionism has left in its wake a small but rising number of young women (those aged under 35) of Zulu ethnicity who have begun suffering certain extremes found in the West, where the desire to be thin has led to anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa (otherwise known as binging followed by vomiting), over-dieting and over-exercising physically. Such actions among participants suggest they are pursuing an elusive dream that is overly detrimental from both at a physiological and psychological level, as evident among their counterparts in the West. For example, some individuals are torn between two worlds – traditional Zulu and Western – to which they hold allegiance concurrently based on Zulu and Western notions of the female body ideal. In the process, some of the adversely affected women are attaining obsessive levels similar to those in the west in terms of weight watching, where body dissatisfaction heightens based on the disparity between an individual’s imagined and actual ideal. In addition the study noted that over time Zulu women’s body dissatisfaction based on attaining the thin ideal is escalating among participants and fellow community members, especially on the basis of sex, age, education level, and class as well as to a lesser extent, the geographic rural-urban divide. According to study participants this was also the case where, young and older men beginning to show greater preference for slim female bodies that are increasingly perceived to be more-sexually adept in bed than their heftier female counterparts. To this end, participants indicated various measures women of their ethnicity took towards attaining the slender body. As a result, millions of Rand are invested in South Africa’s burgeoning body weight industry. Customers are exposed to a wide array of over-the counter slimming products, as well as concoctions prescribed by izinyanga (herbalists), izangoma (diviners) and pharmacists; body-sculpting products such as underwear with spandex, to rein in body flab in the torso; high heel shoes to create an illusion of extra height thus a slimmer silhouette; weight loss technologies and exercises. In addition, more women of Zulu ethnicity are engaging in forms of exercise that include walking, jogging, swimming, attending the gym, dancercise (dancing for exercise), and sexercise (engaging in sex as exercise), among other activities. Considering the upsurge of overweight and obesity, among key recommendations was that since there is a dearth of information in this study’s area of research in South Africa, a lot of applied research is required in the field of applied anthropology. Such a venture could aim at health education and promotion associated with preventive health as opposed to focusing on curative health; the latter being the main focus at present. The preventive health approach would be more beneficial in terms not only of lessening physiological and psychological trauma of ill health, but also millions of Rand required for curative processes, many of which involve chronic medication. In addition, kknowledge gathered in this study has the potential to contribute towards health promotion geared not only in advocating towards improving women’s health in terms of diet and lifestyle, but that of their families as well. Women’s role in this respect is crucial in that they are best positioned to advocate for change by virtue of not only being key food providers, but as health carers in society as well.
Gender contestations in the migration site : the case of Nigerian migrants in Durban, South Africa.
(2014) Hingston, Claudine Anita Cassandra.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
At the end of the apartheid era in 1994, South Africa attracted a large number of migrants from other parts of Africa such as West Africa. The declining political and economic situation in the West African country Nigeria after the early eighties, led to increased migration of Nigerians to post-apartheid South Africa, where they either pursued higher education or sought employment in both formal and informal sectors. However, like any other migrants, they found themselves positioned in a new gender regime as gender regimes differ across countries. As such, they were faced with gender specific problems and challenges and their prior gender roles, relations and identities underwent some transformation. It became even more complicated as men and women are affected differently by these challenges and they respond differently as well. They therefore had to frequently contend with gender issues and they struggled to either adapt to or resist their new gender regime. Very little research however had been done in this regard and there was a need to provide knowledge on this subject. To this end, a qualitative methodology was employed in this research to explore the gendered lives of Nigerian migrants in Durban, South Africa. The research explored the ways the migrants adjust in their new gender regime and the gender issues they had to grapple with. It also examined the gender challenges they encountered and their responses to them. Significant findings from the research are that Nigerian male migrants in Durban use religion to keep their women subordinated and that even though the migration site generated new gender perspectives for some of the migrants, the realities involved were complex. Further findings showed that migration impacted greatly on the gender power relations in the households of the migrants and that Nigerian migrants were more prone to xenophobic attacks than other African migrants and there were gender dimensions to it. This research advance that gender cannot be separated from the migration process. It further advances that the migration site is one of struggle and contradictions in which the migrants gender identities are constantly being challenged, negotiated and reinforced.
Gender oppression and Pentecostal Christian religion: an exploration of the position of Africa migrant married women in Durban.
(2022) Ajimakin, Ifedayo Adesola.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
Discourses about oppression against women are linked to different factors. Against this background, this study explored the nexus between gender, religion, migration, and patriarchy in a context of black migrant women living in Durban, South Africa. Accordingly, this study argues that Pentecostal hermeneutics is an incubator for subtle oppression against married women. Although the church has been presented as a place for liberation, it is still a place where patriarchal values thrive. The study also explored the gender ideologies associated with migration, as the women found themselves in a new gender regime as it differs from their previous gendered lives; as such they were faced with gender-specific problems and gender roles that challenged their quality of life and selfidentity. It became more complicated as these women’s experience of gender oppression in their marriage affects their self-esteem and they continue to contend with these gender challenges, and they respond differently as well, either to adapt or to resist patriarchal values. To this end, the study adopted a qualitative research methodology to explore the lived experiences of black migrant women on gender oppression through the lens of Pentecostal Christian religion. It presents the key narrative of these women’s experience of oppression to gain an insight into the role of Pentecostal churches in the establishment of women’s identity. Drawing from the arguments of selected socio-religion scholars, this study advances the argument that African women across traditional African cultures and history adopt various strategies and ideas for circumventing and negotiating patriarchal structures and thus gain a position of significance within familial and intimate terrains. In this research, the theoretical arguments of social constructionism, gendered geographies of power and Nego-feminism were deployed to examine the nature of gender oppression in transnational spaces and how they negotiate their space for shared autonomy in marriage. This study discovered that too little attention has been paid to the role of Pentecostal Christian religious teachings and the interpretation of the Bible in shaping power relations, oppression, and its corresponding effect on women’s identity within marriages. Further findings are that negotiation, compromise, food and sexual activities are strategies adopted by these women to influence the power dynamics of their households.
The life and experiences of young women (19-35 years) living on the streets of Pietermaritzburg CBD and surroundings.
(2018) Zondi, Lungile Prudence.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
Little was known about the life and experiences of young women (19-35 years) living on the streets of the Pietermaritzburg CBD and surroundings in the Province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa prior to this study. In order to investigate this subject, a combination of qualitative research (by means of the life history method through the use of in-depth interviews, focus group discussion and direct observations as data collection methods) and four theoretical frameworks (being the African Feminist theory, the Vulnerability Model, the Social Identity theory and the Social Network theory) were used. Collected narratives relating to streetism which were anthropologically recorded contribute to this study and overall, to the existing body of knowledge. This thesis contributes to the existing literature that a myriad of factors such as ancestral calling, food poisoning, whoonga/nyaope addiction (side effects comes with not having a monthly menstrual cycle as well as stomach pains called roosta), self-defence, forced/arranged/early-marriages, food distribution and corporal punishment, grandmother and big brother headed families, family connections on the street as well as hereditary recurrences are push and pull factors that has led the twenty (20) young women to the street. These push and pull factors validate that street-related reasons are homogenous and they need to be contextually studied. The study also finds that these women possess obscured and misconstrued identities that comes with living on the street and they actively use fending strategies for survival. Fending strategies include, hourly prostitution, standing on the road intersections and working as car-guards during the day and night. I argue that their vulnerability context includes being treated less of human being, smuggling whoonga/nyaope, unpaid prostitution, being beaten up by law enforcers and the death of their friends while sleeping. Despite such, the study finds that they are sceptical about being reunited to their families. Street groups/networks are influenced by prison life as they appear on the streets as either the 26’s or the 28’s and that such groups shape their identity as well as the language that they speak on the streets. Research recommendations as well as responsive interventions that policy custodians can embark on based on other African countries are part of the content of this thesis.
Local community participation in coastal tourism: experiences from Nonoti Beach in KwaZulu-Natal.
(2018) Gumede, Ntshekane Goodness.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
This study investigates the extent to which the rural community of Nonoti Beach participates in coastal tourism taking place in their ancestral land. During the apartheid era, this community was forcibly removed to make way for agriculture and the area was later identified for tourism development. After 1994, the first democratic government of South Africa made it its priority to restore the displaced communities back to their land through land reform and redistribution, and the community under study is one of the communities that received land through the land claims process. Fourteen years after the settlement was made on this land claim in favour of the community, but the government and other stakeholders with vested interest in coastal tourism have not delivered on the promise made to the local community to provide them with low cost housing and to develop a coastal resort that was to benefit this community through profit sharing and in other ways. Previous studies have been conducted on other communities with a similar experience but no study has been carried out to understand the experiences of Nonoti Beach Community from their own perspective as a significant stakeholder as well as from the perspective of other stakeholders with a stake in coastal tourism. The objective of this study is to investigate the level of participation of the local community in coastal tourism and to assess the strategies in terms of skills development as well as strategies to assist them as new land owners to live sustainably on restored land. The role of various stakeholders to give post-settlement support and to ensure that land ownership through restoration results in sustainable livelihoods, leading to poverty eradication is also assessed. The policies regulating coastal tourism are also evaluated to find out if they enhance or limit the local community participation and, lastly, the model is proposed to assist in improving local community participation, thereby ensuring that the benefits accruing to them are maximized. This study is anchored on the sustainable livelihoods framework, the Stakeholder Theory, the Social Exchange Theory and the Common Property Resource Theory. This study was conducted using a mixed method approach and data was collected using in-depth interviews, focus groups and questionnaires in order to have a varied and in-depth understanding of the phenomenon under study. The participants in this study were the members of the local community, which is predominantly black and two adjacent communities that are predominantly white to compare the understanding of tourism as well as the awareness of marine and coastal governance. The other participants that were sampled are the government agencies, the district municipality, the democratically elected leadership and tourism enterprises operating around Nonoti Beach. The findings of this study show that the various stakeholders’ interests are often times conflicting, and this study recommends that various stakeholders come out with a coordinated plan to create a balance between their conflicting interests for the benefit of the local coastal resources, the local community and the local cultures. This study proves that the level of understanding of coastal tourism and associated benefits amongst the local community is limited, and as much as the land was restored back to the local community, but they were not fully capacitated to live sustainably on this land. It was also discovered that South Africa has adequate policies regulating coastal tourism and associated marine environments, but the greatest challenge lies with their implementation. The findings above are all contradictory to sustaining livelihoods. Since this is a PhD study, a model of local community participation is proposed, based on the gaps that were identified in the existing community participation models as well as gaps in the policy regulating marine resources and coastal tourism in the study area. The proposed model serves as part of the researcher’s recommendations for enhancing local community participation in coastal tourism to ensure that maximum benefits accrue to them, consequently, leading to sustainable livelihoods.
Perceptions of intercultural marriage: the lived experiences of South Africans and African foreiners in intercultural marriage.
(2019) Tshibangu, Andiswa Preetyangel.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
Over the years there has been an increase in migration of immigrants from African countries to South Africa. This migration has led to even more cultural diversity in South Africa. Romantic relationships which lead to intermarriage between African migrants and black South Africans are becoming more prevalent in society. This has created a need for intermarriage to be understood and theorized in an African context. The purpose of this study was to investigate the lived experiences of intermarried South Africans born nationals and African migrants. Perceptions about intermarriage according to both intermarried couples and the public were explored. Another aim of the study was to ascertain if intermarriage helps the assimilation process of the migrant spouse. To gather the descriptive narratives of intermarried couples and the public this study made use of semi structured and open –ended interview questions. The primary findings of this study showed that individual, structural and contextual factors affect how couples experienced being intermarried. Intermarried couples are negatively affected by external stressors .These stressors are namely family and societal disapproval, institutional discrimination and lack of social support. These factors are mainly based on how the family and public perceive African migrants and those who decided to marry them. Based on negative perceptions held against intermarriages in South Africa it can be concluded that intermarriages do not necessarily help assimilate the African migrant spouse. Finally this study also showed that besides external factors that impact intermarried experiences each couple has internal challenges that stem from being culturally different. Major life decisions such as identity, religion, child rearing methods and gender roles were a challenge as each individual in the marriage was socialised in a different culture.
The role played by foreign African migrants in the promotion of African scholarship in the faculty of humanities, development and social sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
(2012) Otu, Monica Njanjokuma.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
This thesis is based on a study examining the concept of African scholarship through the contributions of foreign African academics at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) on the Howard College and Pietermaritzburg campuses. Being branded “The Premier University of African Scholarship” the study principally set out to investigate the role played by these academics as possible conduits in the expansion of African scholarship within the knowledge production circuit. The concept of African scholarship, though not a novel term, remains an elusive category that still needs to be defined within the global knowledge economy. A cursory look at written literature around African scholarship reveals a general tendency that presents „the debate‟ much more as a theoretical engagement and less at empirical engagements that could help advance the practicalities of this concept within the different intellectual debates. Among the different pockets of intellectuals concerned with the vision of African scholarship, the African diaspora outside the continent has always played a leading role in the need to address the African knowledge paradigms within the global intellectual production of knowledge. This study is of significance because it engages with an emerging African diaspora within the South African space and attempts to highlight how their experiences as migrants help in broadening the understanding of the African experience as a knowledge site. Using in-depth interviews within a qualitative research framework in combination with the technique of observation, the findings of this study reveal that as an emerging diaspora, foreign African academics at UKZN, are actively taking advantage of the university‟s slogan to meaningfully (re)insert „Africanness‟ in the kind of knowledge that is produced in the institution. Their contributions are measured in terms of postgraduate supervision, new research agendas, pedagogic and curricular development and networks of collaborations with other universities in Africa. Using an anthropological approach the study equally examines the implications of the attempt to position African scholarship within the global knowledge production map. The study further highlights the role that social identities such as gender, language, nationality, and race can play as epistemic spaces in the advancement of African scholarship. By engaging with these markers, the debate advances beyond the current ad hoc manner of presenting African scholarship simplistically within political rhetoric to a more nuanced incorporation of other markers which should occupy epistemic spaces within the discourse of African scholarship.
Surviving marginalization in development-induced displacement in Zimbabwe: a case study of Tokwe Mukosi Dam Project.
(2019) Nhodo, Lloyd.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
This thesis focuses on the state-people relations in the Tokwe-Mukosi dam project and the subsequent displacement in Masvingo, Zimbabwe. It dwells on the implications of the displacements on social networks and local institutions. It then proceeds to look at the adaptation mechanisms deployed by the flood victims in the new environs. Emphasis is made on the significance of livelihood assets, social capital, social networks and local institutions in dealing with marginalization. The study was grounded in qualitative methodology and participant observation, unstructured interviews, Focus Group Discussions and secondary sources of data were used as data gathering techniques. The study is actually based on the actual narratives of the Tokwe Mukosi people derived from twelve months of research at Chingwizi. Findings point to ambivalent relations between the Tokwe Mukosi people and the state. Of note is the fact that from the state’s perspective, the displacements are necessary in the interest of ‘the greater good’ and development. Conversely for the affected villagers, these displacements can never be justified since they had adverse effects on their livelihoods, social networks, local institution, as well as their social wellbeing. This has culminated in an unpalatable impasse between the residents and the state in this development-displacement paradox. Of note is the fact that despite enormous interest on the plight of the Tokwe Mukosi people nationally and internationally, research tended to evaluate them as passive victims of the state. The study nonetheless reveals that the Tokwe Mukosi people are far from becoming passive victims of their situation. The aptitude of the displaced people of Tokwe Mukosi to act based on agency is very clear in their ability to resist perpetual relocations at Chingwizi, as reflected in this study. In the same philosophy, the findings reveal their capacity to mobilize local resources to build resilience in the post displacement milieu. Central to their survival is a cocktail of livelihood assets, social capital and social networks. I highlighted that a significant number of the displaced people are falling back on local institutions. Emphasis was on how they are mobilizing and or creating new local institutions to build resilience. I also argued that their strategies for survival range between individual strategies and collective responses. These responses are enabling them to deal with the evacuated futures, and to continue aspiring for better life in the hostile and marginalized environment. I however argue that many of the livelihood options adopted by the residents in question border on immorality, illegality and criminality. Nevertheless, the displacee status becomes the sanctifier of those anti-social and immoral strategies. The thesis also revealed that the livelihood options for the Tokwe Mukosi people are binary in nature. This means that they are either survivalists, or they are more sustainable in orientation. Findings also revealed that the Tokwe Mukosi people have been surviving for more than half a decade with very little state protection, but there is always a danger of justifying the state’s inaptness under the guise of agency. The research highlighted that some residents are actually suffering from the unintended consequences of intended actions (survival strategies). In this study, I triangulated the Sustainable Livelihood Framework, the Actor Oriented Approach and the social capital theory to analyze the findings made herein. Complimentary concepts like legibility, strategic essentialism, capacity to aspire, times and the futures are also used to have a nuanced understanding of the Tokwe Mukosi people as rational calculative and strategic actors.
Transnationalism and the (re) construction of gender identities amongst foreign studies of African origin at the univeristy of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban South Africa.
(2010) Muthuki, Janet Muthoni.; Ojong, Vivian Besem.
The transnational migration of students is a vast yet under-researched area with most studies focusing on skilled and unskilled foreign immigrants. The transnational experience of studying outside their home country and constant negotiations of new social and cultural environments provides students with an opportunity to either challenge or reinforce their perspectives of gender. An examination of gender in a transnational context however continues to be a much neglected domain. Gender is salient in migration because not only do gender relations facilitate or constrain both men's and women's movements but they also structure the whole migration process including practices and the construction of self. This thesis interrogates the reconstruction of gender identities by foreign students of African origin at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN hereafter) in Durban South Africa. This study aims to contribute to the fields of gender and migration by examining ways in which gender shapes migratory flows and examining how migration shapes gender relations. Through exploring the tensions that students perceive and undergo and struggle with as they bring their own cultural insights , values and practices to a new context at UKZN, I seek to highlight the complexity of their gender identities as negotiated in a transnational context. By using an interpretivist theoretical paradigm which is a qualitative approach, I highlight how the communal process of the views and perceptions of the students and my multidimensional positionality intersected to produce knowledge. I also highlight the gender relations as an important dynamic in the data collection process. The body of data reveals that men and women cite different factors as influencing their propensity to migrate namely gender role socialisation on the part of the men and education and empowerment on the part of the women. In spite of the gender differences in facilitating their migration to South Africa, both men and women display resonance in terms of choosing South Africa and UKZN in particular as a study destination showing gender to be situational. This is in light of opportunity structures in place at UKZN that are available to both men and women thus enabling the foreign African women students to take advantage of opportunities they may not have had in their home countries The study also generates critical insights about the complexities experienced by these students as a result of immersing themselves in UKZN embedded in Durban a multiracial environment which is still a much divided society. I also examine how these students perceive and interpret gender norms in South Africa and how these gender norms challenge or support conceptions of gender norms in their country of origin. The themes presented in this study reveal that gender identity construction is related to the struggle over power and social status. A significant aspect of the findings was how the students were re-interpreting and re-defining their gender roles and expectations in the transnational space. Gender roles were enacted in different ways by students to express social status, position and power. This study also interrogates how the interplay of social ranking such as gender, class, ethnicity and nationality serve to construct several versions of masculinity and femininity in the transnational space. The exploration of the students' engagement with the gender discourse highlights the dilemma based on the dialectic between modern gender roles as a result of western education and maintaining traditional gender roles as a result of cultural upbringing. The study also explores the development of hybridised gender identities within the transnational space. In the course of the study religion was highlighted as key factor in influencing the ways in which migrants renegotiate their beliefs, practices and attitudes and personal as well as social identities in the host country. The study examined how religion informed the transnational students' ethnic and gender-based identities and their experiences of social life and their appropriations of religion to form alternative identities.