The participation of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in poverty reducation in livingstone City, 2000-2012

Type Thesis or Dissertation - Master of Public Administration
Title The participation of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in poverty reducation in livingstone City, 2000-2012
Author(s)
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 2014
Abstract
This dissertation discusses civil society organisations’ (CSOs’) participation in poverty reduction in Livingstone city,specifically in three high density wards namely; Mulungushi,Libuyu and Zambezi wards, from 2000- 2012.The general objective of the study was to determine the impact of CSOs’ participation in poverty reduction in Livingstone city. The specific objectives were:(i) To ascertain the nature of CSOs’advocacy and sensitisation activities towards poverty reduction in Livingstone. (ii) To establish the direct services that CSOs’ provide to the poor in their efforts to reduce poverty in Livingstone. (iii) To establish the impact of CSOs’ advocacy, sensitisation and service provision in Livingstone.This study used interviews to collect qualitative data, while questionnaires were used to collect quantitative data. Random sampling was used to select the target wards, purposive sampling was used to sample key informants and systematic sampling was used to select house hold respondents. Quantitative data was analysed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences while qualitative data was analysed manually. Generally, on the basis of the information provided by the respondents of the study, it was established that the impact of CSOs’ participation in poverty reduction in Livingstone city was limited to only a minority of residents due to factors such as; limited finances, poor sensitisation strategies, lack of consultation and involvement of local leaders, lack of cooperation among CSOs, among others.Based on the responses of the study respondents, the study established that CSOs in Livingstone were less involved in advocacy activities mainlydue to lack of awareness on methods or channels of advocacy. The findings showed that civil society advocacyon children’s education rights had limited impact. This is because despite their efforts to advocate for orphaned and vulnerable children to be sponsored to schools, onlysix were sponsored out of the many orphaned and vulnerable children in Livingstone city. The information provided by respondents of the study revealed the following as sensitisation activities engaged in by CSOs in Livingstone city: income generating activities,HIV/AIDS, children’s education rights and property grabbing. It was established that sensitisation activities had limited impact in that they were limited to a minority of the residents. The sensitisation activities by CSOs brought some changes in the lives of those who were sensitised. However, this was limited to the minority and it limited the impact that sensitisation activities could have had on poverty reduction in Livingstone city.The study established that the services provided by CSOs in Livingstone city were: skills training, income generating activities, relief food, agricultural inputs and education.The information provided by the respondents of the study suggests that the provision of services by CSOs in Livingstone had weak impact on the beneficiaries.This is because with the exception of skills training services, most of the beneficiaries of other services such as income generating commodities, food relief, agricultural inputs and education indicated that they experienced no change from the services they received. The researcher recommends that CSOs should embark on inventive and sustainable strategies to generate income. CSOs should also consult local leaders and residents on what services to provide.

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