Tafadzwa Mabemba

Children from child-headed households face several challenges, including vulnerability to abuse and lack of necessities, such as food, shelter, and clothing. Support is provided from formal structures such as social services; however, not all can access these services and rely on informal community networks. In this study I explore the psychosocial support provided to child-headed households by informal community networks in a rural community in Hogsback, Eastern Cape, South Africa. I used a qualitative exploratory descriptive study design. The population comprised children aged 10 to 17 years from child-headed households. Purposive sampling was conducted to select participants. Data were collected using in-depth interviews and analysed thematically. The study received ethical approval from a research ethics committee. The study found that informal community social networks played a key role by providing emotional and physical support. The findings suggested that while informal community support is indispensable, there is a pressing need for greater coordination, structured interventions, and integration with formal support systems to enhance the sustainability and comprehensiveness of assistance provided to these households. This study supports the development of psychosocial interventions for vulnerable children by identifying ways to effectively leverage local resources to assist child-headed households.

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the empirical studies and scholarly articles on child marriages and mental health implications for young female adults in Africa. Methodology : A systematic literature review was conducted to understand child marriage and the construction of mental health implications for young female adults in Africa. The authors did a comprehensive search of electronic databases using relevant key terms. Findings: The review revealed that mental health and child marriage are under-researched in Africa. The majority of the studies on child marriages were centred on the impact, factors causing child marriage, and human and children’s rights being violated as a result of child marriage. This paper aims to fill in the gap in the literature on child marriage and mental health. Practical implications: Captivating propositions which could be used as a reference to understand child marriage and mental health implications for young female adults in Africa were proposed.

The purpose of this study was to explore the strategies used by the School Management Teams (SMTs) in dealing with poor academic performance in rural high schools of Mopani West District, Limpopo Province, South Africa. The study utilized a qualitative methodology, specifically employing an interpretative case study design. The study employed purposive selection, a type of nonprobability sampling, to pick one principal, their heads of departments (HoDs), and learners from each of the six sampled schools in the Mopani-West area to participate in the study. Out of the sample, three schools have shown outstanding performance, while the remaining three schools exhibited underperformance. The process of data collecting involved conducting semi-structured interviews, while the acquired data were analyzed using theme analysis. The results demonstrated that the active participation of parents, local leaders, and volunteers in outreach activities conducted by SMTs offers important resources and specialized knowledge to cater to the specific requirements of students in remote regions. The results also indicated that the SMTs support programs not only enhance academic achievement but also cultivate a feeling of pride and ownership within the community, demonstrating the twin advantages of these initiatives. Through engaging in collaboration with people of the local community, educators can get a more profound comprehension of the cultural milieu and obstacles that learners encounter, enabling the implementation of educational interventions that are more customized and pertinent. These programs frequently incorporate mentorship, tutoring, and extracurricular activities to establish a comprehensive learning environment. Keywords - School Management Teams, Strategies, Academic Performance, Pandemic, Rural South Africa

This study phenomenologically looked at women’s access to funding in flea market businesses located in Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe. It involved 16 semi-structured interviews with purposively sampled women and men involved in the flea market business. The data collected was analysed using phenomenological analysis. The study used the women empowerment framework as its lens. The findings revealed that women were exposed to a lack of funding, discrimination, and predatory funding practices that hindered their socioeconomic freedom and development. This was despite the existence of laws and policies meant to protect them. Many of them despaired that gender equality in funding was no longer achievable. Others feared speaking out for fear of conflicting with society. The greatest risk this created was the normalization of gender inequality in funding from both the male and female perspectives. The author concluded that women were mostly disempowered along all five levels of empowerment, i.e. welfare, access, conscientization, participation and control in their businesses. Therefore, the author recommended that the Government should be lobbied to actively implement international and regional instruments that protect women from discrimination while upholding their rights to social and economic equality and freedom. Also, a more active civic sector is needed to champion women’s access to funding and economic opportunities. The study provides a framework that could be applied to better manage women’s access to funding and to reverse the developing gender inequality normalization risks as well as direct and indirect discrimination in funding. Keywords: Gendered Struggle, Funding Resources, Women Flea Market Owners, Zimbabwe