An evaluation of selected steps to achieve successful community development projects with specific reference to crime and housing in Langa Township within Cape Town

Abstract

There is mounting dissatisfaction among South African communities concerning the state of housing and safety and security in South Africa. This, coupled with intentions of government, which have not always been as successful as anticipated, has led to situations where communities that were promised development, embark on uprisings against poor service delivery, which they receive. This study investigates involvement of all stakeholders, specifically the community, in community development projects, in order to determine what effect this has on the end result of community development projects. The main focus of this study comprises involvement of the community and the impact that it could have on the initiation and planning steps of the project management process. The study uses both a qualitative and quantitative approach. The quantitative survey was administered through use of two closed ended questionnaires; one was directed at residents of the N2 Gateway, as the beneficiaries of the N2 Gateway Housing Project, and the other at residents of Langa on four subdivisions of Langa, namely northern, southern, eastern and western Langa. The qualitative survey was administered in the form of interviews that were held with managers in the Provincial Government of the Western Cape who are responsible for implementation of the Bambanani Against Crime Project and the N2 Gateway Housing Project. The study reveals that both projects made little use of community engagement during the initiation and implementation stages, which had a visible effect on results of the project, as confirmed by results of the survey. However, the project had a different approach owing to the nature of the project. The Bambanani Against Crime Project solely relied on volunteers from the community for implementation and this aspect had a big impact on the end result of the project. The N2 Gateway Housing Project did not accommodate community involvement at any stage of the project, which ultimately led to dissatisfactory results in respect of views of the community, and the department that implemented the project.