Determinants of Climate Change Awareness among Rural Farming Households in South Africa

Climate change and rural livelihood capitals remain the major inextricable dimensions of sustainability in this twenty-first century globally. It is known to be an important challenge facing food security status among African countries. Additionally, it is an indisputable fact that climate change and agriculture are intertwined. In view of this, climate change awareness needs to be strengthened in the rural farming households. The study was carried out in Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, in the North West Province of South Africa to determine awareness of climate change. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select three hundred and forty-six (346) farmers who were interviewed from the study area. Data were analyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS). The binary logistic regression model was employed to analyse the factors driving climate change awareness. The study established that majority of the rural farmers in the study area aware of climate change, in which farm size, education, who owns the farm, information received on climate change, source of climate change information, climate change information through extension services, channel of information received on climate change and support received on climate change are statistically significant (p<0.05) determinants of climate change awareness in the study area

Social Protection: A Panacea To Alleviating Poverty In The Republic Of South Africa

This paper examined the effectiveness of Social Protection as means of alleviating poverty in the Townships of Tsakane, Kwa-Thema and Duduza of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality of Gauteng Province in South Africa. The study was expected to contribute to the body of knowledge in social protection services as a way of alleviating poverty. Stratified random sampling with a proportional representation method was employed to select 200 respondents. The data collection tool used was simple closed-ended questionnaires.  Interviews were conducted face-to-face with respondents. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyse the data.  Both descriptive (percentage, frequency et.c) and inferential statistics (binary logistic regression) were employed to analyze the collected data. The descriptive result reveals that secondary education was the highest (59, 5%) form of education among the respondents while 42 percent of the respondents have no income. Also the results revealed that 61, 5% of the respondents thought that government assistance made a difference in their welfare while 38, 5% thought otherwise. The binary regression analysis result revealed that the significant variables that had an effect on social protection were: the location of the respondents; their gender; their level of education; the type of dwelling of the respondents; and their income outside farming. The study concluded that assess to social protection is a good panacea to poverty alleviation in the study areas. The study therefore recommends that the significant variables that had an effect on social protection be considered when measures of social protection are implemented. &nbsp

Analysis of the Living Conditions at eZakheleni Informal Settlement of Durban: Implications for Community Revitalization in South Africa

This study investigated the living conditions of the eZakheleni informal settlement, Durban metropolis of Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa. The utilized data were collected with the use of a well-structured questionnaire through a multistage sampling of 255 households. The descriptive results indicated low levels of educational attainment, large number of female headed households, high unemployment rates, inadequate sources of income, poor security and low government intervention programmes. The results of inferential analysis indicate that factors such as water accessibility, toilet accessibility, years of working experience, food security status, educational status and access to good health were the significant factors that were key to improving the living conditions of the residents in the study area. The study therefore concluded that education, basic housing services (water accessibility, toilet accessibility), food security, working experience, social connectivity and health are key contributors to households’ living condition in the study area and recommended several future research and policy directions which could improve the living conditions of the informal settlement