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Dr 

Nojiyeza, Innocent Simphiwe

Faculty: Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: Anthropology & Development Studies
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1335-4532
Research Interest(s): Water resource management, Rural livelihoods, Political ecology, Environmental/ecological economics.
Biography: Innocent Simphiwe Nojiyeza is a senior lecturer and the Head of Department for Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Zululand. The author has contributed to research in topics: Chrysopogon zizanioides.
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20231
Subject: Postdevelopment theory ×
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    Are we citizens or subjects? service delivery at the intersection of modern and traditional leadership in Emaqeleni
    2023
     | Ontario Internationa...
    Much of Africa’s encounter with Euro-American modernity has dictated that Africans should abandon their ways of life and adopt those of modernity. This has permeated the entire life of Africans, including how they should govern themselves in the post-colonial era. In rural areas, such as in parts of the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province in South Africa, local governance has been complex, as both traditional (represented by izinduna-headmen and amakhosi-chiefs) and modern governance systems (ward councilors) continue to co-exist. Such a nexus has had implications for the delivery of services in Emaqeleni, a rural area in one of KZN’s most historically important towns, Eshowe. Through multiple key informant interviews, this qualitative study explores the insights of traditional and modern leaders to understand the relationships, roles, and experiences they have had working together. These first-hand accounts are important for our understanding of the goings-on in the internal affairs of local governance. Furthermore, community members were also interviewed to understand their experiences of how this nexus has affected their lives. The study took interest both in how residents understand the presence of traditional and modern leadership, along with how this affected the residents’ lives. Guided by the postdevelopment theory, the study found that there is confusion over the responsibilities and roles of modern leaders and traditional leaders. This confusion leads to citizens (for modern leaders-who are also subject to traditional leaders) being confused about who is responsible for delivering the services needed by the communities. Confusion exists amongst citizens and leaders as well. This mystification of roles and responsibilities seems to imply that no one and everyone is in power, thus residents are sometimes dissatisfied with the leadership nexus, and with no specific person/institution to hold accountable when needing assistance with some services, there is no one to hold accountable and no one to send requests for assistance to. This empirical study affords us insights and reflections that were unavailable at the democratizing moment and further helps us reflect on the realities of what South Africa’s rural areas may need to develop meaningfully, with key considerations from local government officials, traditional leaders, and community members who live through these dynamics, a feature often missing from studies on this subject. Thus, the case of Emaqeleni helps us reflect on how the residents of rural areas may desire to be governed, drawing from empirical findings, and studying how power relations shape rural areas.
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