Mqanduli

Mqanduli lies in the former Transkei, about 20 kilometres away from Umtata. Mqanduli has 44 villages with 8 tribal authorities. It is one of the areas in the former Transkei that has a particularly high rate of unemployment and illiteracy. In the past, the area was classed as a labour reserve for the mines and the legacy of the migrant worker system still has a negative impact on the communities living in the Mqanduli area. 

Most employment opportunities are provided by government departments, for example, those that are employed mostly work as nurses, police, clerks and councilors. The local community is dependent on social grants and low subsistence farming. There are opportunities for local economic development in regards to poultry farming, crop growing, tourism, stock farming and in the construction sector.

Due to the high rate of unemployment, crime is one of the common social problems and Mqanduli is no exception to the criminal activities that are rampant in the area.

Mqanduli is one of the areas in the Eastern Cape that has been identified as a hot spot for HIV and AIDS prevalence. The women in the area are often the most affected by the epidemic as their partners are mostly mineworkers, some of whom are medically boarded by the mines, often due to HIV related opportunistic infections. In most cases, due to the lack of equality most women experience in their relationships, condom negotiation is not possible. Child headed homes and orphans are becoming more and more common as their parents and caregivers pass away from AIDS or related opportunistic infections.

The major challenges in this area are lack of human rights, stigma around HIV and other medical issues, domestic violence, poverty and unemployment.

The Mqanduli Advice Office was established in 1996 and its main focus lies on human rights education. They do this through handling and referring paralegal cases, providing advice, assistance and mediation. They also assist in disseminating information and simplifying policies for the community.   

As most of the people depend on grants, the majority of cases the office deals with are social or disability grants, child care grants, unfair labour practices and mineworker’s retrenchments. The Advice Office handles about 50 cases a day.

Traditional leadership is strongly rooted in this area. Service delivery is almost nonexistent as municipal officials and traditional leaders have power struggles. Despite the new democratic dispensation the signs of homeland government are also still visible. The communities are conservative, old traditions like forced marriages of teenagers (ukuthwala) are still practiced. But through the Advice Office, churches and other stakeholders’ interventions, things are gradually changing.

One of the main focuses of the Advice Office is to bring together different stakeholders who do not see eye to eye, such as traditional leaders, communities and councilors to focus on communities development matters. This office has been strategic in its approach by building working relationships with all traditional houses and local churches. The Coordinator holds discussion meetings with the heads of traditional houses and churches, introduces them to new laws and policies and then asks them to invite him in their “Imbizos” where he then addresses the community members. This works well as these community leaders feel respected and not undermined.

The Advice Office hosts awareness workshops on HIV and AIDS, because stigma in Mqanduli is very high, often resulting in people being scared to go to the clinics. They also encourage condom use, voluntary counseling and testing.

Mqanduli participate in Scat’s Community Monitoring and Advocacy Programme, which is giving them an added advantage in monitoring how services are delivered to communities. The office has been instrumental in bringing together role players in difficult situations of land disputes and municipal disputes of service delivery with communities.

The Advice Office is doing its work in a strife torn area where democracy is sometimes undermined by strong traditional values. Although they have to face these problems they use all opportunities in all platforms to raise the voice of the disempowered.

The organization needs office space and funding in order to be able to perform it’s valuable life changing work to its full potential.