This document provides an overview of South Africa's Community Development Programme. It discusses the program's strategic goals of empowering marginalized groups and facilitating sustainable livelihoods. It outlines the roles of community development practitioners in identifying and implementing social programs. It then details several strategic focus areas, including youth development, poverty reduction, and improving nonprofit organization governance. Finally, it discusses achievements in these areas and sets targets for further progress in 2007/2008, such as developing an anti-poverty strategy, advocating for sustainable livelihood approaches, and expanding youth job programs.

1. PRESENTATION ON THE COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
to
SocDev Portfolio Committee
16th March 2007

2. Background
Adoption of a developmental welfare strategy that
afforded the poor and vulnerable to play an active
role in promoting their own well-being and in
contributing to the growth and development of
the South African nation
The need to ensure sustainability of the social
security system which requires a pursuance of a
developmental approach.
(1997 Welfare Services White Paper)

3. Community Development Programme
Strategic Goal:
Create an enabling environment for empowerment of the poor,
vulnerable and previously marginalised groups, including
youth, women and people with disabilities to achieve
sustainable livelihoods.
Strategic Objective:
To develop, monitor and facilitate the implementation of
appropriate policies, strategies and programmes aimed at
sustainable livelihoods and human development.

4. Community Development
Community Development is a philosophy that says that
communities are best placed to identify their own problems
and formulate their own solutions and make their own
opportunities.
Some of the key responsibilities of Community Development
Practitioners are to identify, plan and implement integrated
and transformative social development programmes in
partnership with communities and other key stakeholders to
build empowered and sustainable communities.

5. Community Development Programme
Strategic Focus Areas
- A conducive environment for the practice of
community development
- A conducive environment for youth development and
massification of the National Youth Service
Programme
- Poverty reduction and Sustainable Livelihoods
- Improved governance and capacity of NPOs to
implement and facilitate development programmes.

6. Conducive environment for Community Development
Practice
The process of community development involves
community dialogue, bringing a community together to
determine a shared vision and a shared way to proceed
resulting in investments in a multitude of aspects that
support quality of life.

7. Achievements:
- Re-grading of work and salary levels of CDPs
completed
- Standardization of generic qualification for CDPs at
an advanced stage, agreement reached with SAQA on
NQF levels 1,3, & 4
- 1st phase of ISRDP/URP socio-economic study
completed and draft synthesis report received
Challenges
- The unit dedicated most of its time on coordination of
reports on DSD services in the ISRDP/URP nodes;
performance on MDGs; EPWP and IBSA which are
departmental wide activities. These activities have
now been located appropriately.
- The area needs to be strengthened and supported
more

8. CDPSS – Targets 2007/08
Community Development Policy
A community development policy is needed to guide all key
role players and development activists in their work with
communities and to address the following:
- Weak participation of the population in development
activities
- Non-alignment between government and grassroots
community development objectives and actions.
- Weak co-ordination and harmonization of development
activities.
- Low capacity at all levels especially at grassroots level.
- The main objective policy is the reduction and eventually
eradication of poverty.

9. Community Development Policy Outputs 2007/08
- Base document
- Review of regional and international CD policies for
benchmarking purposes

10. Improved conditions for Community Development Practitioners
(CDPs)
Community Development Practice in Social Development is a
function carried out in various areas such as youth development;
NPO sector; HIV and Aids; Poverty Alleviation and Sustainable. In
this regard generic and specific norms and standards and proper
scoping of CD qualifications are required to improve conditions for
CD practice and efficient service delivery
Key Outputs 2007/08
- Scoping of Community Development qualifications
for levels 5 & 6
- Draft guidelines for Norms and Standards

11. Coordinated and integrated service delivery
Development is still a fragmented process and the need to
facilitate integrated and holistic community development
planning is critical. To ensure impact, oversight on
performance and provision of support to various CD
institutions/organizations cannot be overemphasized.
Targets for 2007/08
- Guidelines for integration of
development goals for effective CD
service
- Assessment of CD institutions’
constraints and support required for
coordinated and integrated service
delivery

12. Youth Development
Develops, monitors and facilitates the implementation of
policies, legislation and programmes to protect, empower and
support vulnerable youth to be self-reliant.
Achievements
- Youth Development Strategy approved by MINMEC
- Progress made w.r.t. implementation of the NYSP with
240 youth already recruited
- Scoping of YD with NQF level 4 approved by SAQA
Challenges
- Limited financial and human resources
- Limited support for Youth Development and Work at
Provincial level

13. National Youth Strategy
The strategy seeks to (amongst others):
- Develop empowering and enabling youth development
systems to reduce the number of vulnerable youth and to
build and strengthen the capacity of youth organizations
within the Social Development sector
- Facilitate youth work professionalization
- Promote social cohesion and integration of youth issues
- Establish youth development coordinating mechanisms
Targets 2007/08
- Completion of the costing exercise and guidelines for
implementation

14. Massification of the National Youth Service Programme
The high levels of unemployment amongst the youth have
rendered them vulnerable. Opportunities have been sought
within the social sector for employment of the youth and
through a partnership with Umsobomvu, the department is
implementing a pilot youth service programme.
The department plans upscale the number of youths
participating in this programme to 2000 during 2007/08. A
policy option has been submitted to National Treasury for more
funding.

15. Non-Profit Organizations
Improved governance and capacity of NPOs to implement and
facilitate development programmes.
Achievements
- Improved governance and registration – 20107 orgs
applied and 12597 registered
- Improved capacity for support of the NPO sector
through train-a-trainer programmes
- Inter-Ministerial Task Team established to address the
fragmented regulatory framework
Challenges
- Limited capacity for support of the sector
- Role of provinces in the registration process

16. Targets 2007/08
Registration and Compliance
The NPO Act requires that organizations be registered within 2
months after receipt of a complete application and that
organizations should submit financial and narrative reports.
Target 2007/08
- Improvement in the registration process and capacity
of NPOs to comply
- Provision of appropriate support for de-registered
NPOs and those not meeting registration requirements

17. Enhanced capacity for the NPO sector
The Department is obliged to support NPOs in their endevour
to register and to improve their governance.
Targets 2007/08
- Develop and facilitate implementation of
relevant capacity building programmes
- Continue the train-a-trainer programme
and assess impact of training

18. Creating a platform for dialogue between government and the
NPO sector
The department will hold a Social Compact Conference as a
means to open dialogue between government and the NPO
sector
Improved access to information
There are several databases existing on NPOs and the
department is in the process of facilitating means of
integrating these databases.

19. Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Livelihoods
Develops, monitors and facilitates the implementation of strategies
and programmes that will impact on poverty and underdevelopment
to achieve self-reliance
Achievements
- The 1st and 2nd Phases of the pilot project on Linking
Grants to Sustainable Livelihoods and Cooperatives
completed and 1st Phase launched during May 2006.
- A documentary and case study on the 1st Phase
produced.
Challenges
- Lack of appropriate human capacity
- Conflicting decisions over the development of Anti-Poverty
Strategy

20. Targets 2007/08:
Comprehensive DSD Anti-Poverty Strategy
The department implements various poverty alleviation initiatives
through its branches and provinces. However, there is no
integrated national DSD anti-poverty strategy that guides
provinces. As a result some provinces have developed their own
Anti-Poverty Strategies. The process of developing a
comprehensive APS will not ignore the work done already and
during 2007/08 focus will be on:
- Comparative analysis of existing provincial and
national APS
- Analysis of international social development APS
for benchmarking purposes
- and development of a framework
-

21. Advocate for the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach
A livelihood comprises the capabilities, assets (including material
and social resources) and activities required for a means of
living. It becomes sustainable when it can cope with and recover
from stresses and shocks or enhance its capabilities and assets
both now and in the future.
While the SLA is not new, its adoption and integration into
development planning and interventions requires knowledge and
understanding of its relevance towards building empowered
communities. Targets for 2007/08 for advocacy are:
- Road shows and
- Development of a Conceptual Document and Orientation
Manual
-

22. Local ‘best practice’ to link grants to livelihoods and cooperatives
A pilot project is being implemented in the Eastern Cape in
Dutyini to develop best practice specifically to link grants to
sustainable livelihoods and cooperatives. The objective is to
restore beneficiaries of grants as quickly as possible to self-
reliance. A new principle termed ‘sweat equity’ is also tested in
the process as an essential ingredient for ownership and
accountability. The 1st and 2nd phases have been completed and
a case study and documentary produced for the 1st phase.
Targets for 2007/08
- Implement 3rd phase of Dutyini Pilot
- Introduce 1st phase in Limpopo and North West

23. General
- Community Development remains a step-child of the
Department
- Lack of a shared understanding on the roles and
function of CD
Corrective Measures
- Improve on communication and information sharing
- One-on-one meetings

24. THANK YOU