Analysis of the empowerment projects

I am going to analyse the empowerment projects for coloured and black people seen so far. It is written to give feedback to my guides, Eldrid and Owen, to the participants & stakeholders of the various projects, and finally, for my own mental organisation. This is the what & how of my understanding. Hopefully, this outsider's view will have a positive effect on the self-learning processes of all people involved.

This analysis is necessarily cool and abstract. It leaves out the warmhearted reception I received and the open and honest discussion where, more than in this analysis, the hearts were meeting. In particular I remember how both the owner as well as a black participant in the Backsberg project retold the critical phase: The offer had been made and acceptance was not yet decided for. Embarrassment, disbelief, even mistrust, were the unexpected reactions and feelings that only could be understood much later. "Follow your heart", was the key phrase reportedly used to find a way during the moments -- days, hours or even less -- when the critical personal decisions were taken that gave a sharp, irrevocable and historical, turn in many people's lives. Indeed, only the heart can take those decisions. I was deeply touched hearing both sides retold. In similar ways I saw with my heart the existential moments of the other projects: those basic steps in a person's life aren't obvious.

Nevertheless, subsequent decisions, without loosing your heart, require a cooler approach. This is what I have to offer to the reader as feedback.

The projects/enterprises:

Two winefarming projects near Paarl/Stellenbosch:

The Freedom Road project at Backberg Estate Wines. The workers are engaged in a hands-on learning project. Backberg offered to the workers 14ha of leased vineyard where they had full responsibility for the production of grapes/wine. It started as a two-year project. The workers, with their families, had to work in their evening hours and in week-ends. The profit would be theirs. Together with the government housing subsidy scheme, this would make them home owners. Backberg would bridge finance and make land available to build on, whereas for the winemaking and marketing skills, the Backberg staff would support. The project was a success and is continued with further 'training-on-the-job' projects. (Backberg, Klein Babylonstoren, PO Box 537, Suider Paarl, 7624, South Africa, T(021) 875 5141 Fx(021) 875 5144, info@backsberg.co.za)

The New Beginnings project at Nelson's Creek started as a derelict farm bought out of a bankrupt. In an attempt to lift their standard of living, the new owner challenged the poor, demotivated and largely illiterate labour force by a promise to reward them if they would work with him to convert it into a champion wine estate. Eight years later the objective was achieved. The project was supported by extensive training and instruction programs. As a reward he donated 9ha of his farm to his labour force with the condition it should only be used for (wine)farming. He included in his offer free use of the winemaking facilities and other services for the next three years. A former vineyard labourer is now chief cellar assistant to Nelson's Creek's champion winemaker. The project was a succes and is continued with further 'training-on-the-job' projects. (New Beginnings, PO Box 2009, Windmeul, Paarl, 7630, South Africa, T +27 21 863 8453, Fx +27 21 863 8424, Cell 082 935 4948, nelsonscreek@wine.co.za)
Four small-scale project in Khayelitsha:

Vicky Ntozini, blackwoman, started two years ago a guesthouse. The first of its kind in that area/township. She offers full boarding with her own etnic style of meals. Her objective is to show outsiders (africans as well as foreigners -- five danish students stayed there last year -- ) how live looks like in Khayelitsha from the inside. She got in touch with cross-cultural tour operators to make herself known. She interrupted her study as electrical engineer (two years done, two years to go) to pay -- and have time for -- the education of her two children, now two and three years old. Her husband, without specific education, but being a very practical hands-on craftsman, build the house from corrugated zinc sheet and decorated it their etnic style. Vicky plans to resume her study when the children allow her to do so.((021) 387 4422 C-685A, Site C, Khayelitsha 7784)

Six women own a small concrete building brick factory situated in the middle of the housing area. It is a fenced off lot of 10x10meters producing one type of brick only. The basic -- hand operated -- equipment comes from a one-time grant or government backed subsidy. Shed, press, shovels and wheelbarrow. All women share the tasks and income equally. None of the three women present could tell me how they cared for renewal and/or depreciation of equipment. Nor about sales and marketing effort or typical customers. They seem to sell it effortlessly in a seller's market because of the shortage of building bricks in that 'boomimg' township. May be there is some -- de facto -- specialization with the 'woman-who-knows-all' not present. Surely I sensed a no-nonsense atmosphere of not spending time on explanations: Time is money! That could also have caused the non-information. Nevertheless, the women radiated proudness: "This is our own business!".

The third Khayelitsha project is part of a larger subsidised institution: a day-care center for children of unmarried mothers. The women live actually on the premises. Up to that, some woman are working in another part of the same premises on a dozen simple looms where art tapistry is woven, either privately ordered of for public sales. Others work outside the premises. Designs come from an outside source and are either figurative or non-figurative with african patterns. The 'yarn' comes from remainders of large weaving mills. No information could be obtained about the management side of buying, selling and depreciation/renewal. I was informed that on similar premises of the same institution 'papier-mache' children's furniture were produced. They were using it here.

Fourth is social cooking, also within the frame of a larger subsidised institution that furnished -- one time -- the equipment. The cooking is done by a volunteer who is a social worker at the same time. The meals are sold for a rock-bottom price, hardly more than the cost of the ingredients, but churches and some other social institutions hand out vouchers. From this income, the ingredients and the cooking gaz has to be bought. Indirect cost, depreciation & repair, apparently weren't part of the responsility of this unit.

In my analysis, I will not be judging so much economical success of the projects as well as its socio-economic viability: Can it live and prosper? Or will it always be dependent on external subsidies?

Apart from its socio-economic viability I will look into the learning that takes place in each individual. What is the 'socio-economic viability', so to say, of the individual after the project is over or, by some unforseeable event, comes to an end? Has the person something to offer to find other employment, either employed or self-employed? Or is s/he as dependant as before from 'given' employement or generosity.

I also want to unravel the rethoric contained in the words entrepreneurship, management and skills, as well as the rethoric in the word 'empowerment' itself. It needs some cool analysis. The well-founded and legitimate enthousiasm of the first steps into freedom, of access to sources of wealth denied before, and of being able to bring into the open and develop suppressed -- often unknown -- qualities of The Self, may obscure what is really in it. Or is like new wine in old bags that will tear soon? You will loose both the bags and the wine.

In other words: I will look upon it as learning processes, self-learning, hands-on learning or existential learning. Who is learning what? And how many of the participants, keeping in mind that you can bring the horse to the water, but you cannot force it to drink. After all, real empowerment comes from the inside.

Three levels of management

I will distinguish three levels of management that any organisation needs, being it big, small, profit or non-profit oriented. These three levels can also be applied fruitfully to the individual. In that case they describe degrees of personal and psychological freedom and independance: The social-economical viability of the person.

first level:
What has to be done is done in the correct & effective way.
The worker is instructed what has to be done. His skill, whether limited or broad, whether taught or natural, is his guideline for the details of the execution.
second level:
To decide and select what has (best) to be done to achieve the organisation's objectives.
The worker has good knowledge of what the organisation aims to achieve, whether it refers to (very)short- or longterm objectives. On the basis of his knowledge of the proces, he selects the adequate tasks and timing to achieve the objectives effectively and efficiently to instruct the first level.
third level:
Making sure that the organisation's objectives are the best ones in view of its capabilities and the environmental threats and opportunities.
The worker --only now to be referred to as en entrepreneur-- knows his own capabilities (and its possibilities for adaption) on the one hand and his environment on the other. From here he dreams up, creates, selects and defines objectives that best guarantee the survival and prosperity of the organisation, either a formal organization, a loose group or an individual, whether existing or to be made or changed.

These levels are also referred to as:
Craft-, Organization- and Existential decisions
Manufacturing, Managing and Constituting
Execute, Manage, Constitute
and many more ...
In this analysis, however, I find these confusing and incomplete.

Discussion

The only clearcut entrepreneur is Vicky Ntozini: An independant enterprise in a free society, taking full responsibility for the three levels of management, that, therefore, can survive and prosper.

From the remaining projects it is not clear, given the facts I have at hand, whether the people on their way to empowerment are really, or will become, entrepreneurs in an economic sense.

The two winefarming projects, like Vicky's guest house, enjoy at the level of the owner, a economic independance. The Nelson's Creek project, by donating starting capital in the form of land, is in the same position. Essential services are free for only three years, forcing the young entrepreneurs to invent 'something' to be able to pay for it later out of their own pocket. This, and some other details, proves that Nelson's Creek unmistakably strives at 'education' for the third level skills and responsibilities. Some participants may well become entrepreneurs in completely other fields.

At Blackberg's the aim at third level responsibilities not visible or, possibly, absent. From what I can see 'empowerment' is concentrated on two elements: The "shift of wealth to previously disadvantaged communities" and enable people "to acquire, for the first time, a substantial tangible asset", as the press release is saying. This is made concrete in helping them to acquire housing and all skills needed for the various functions in winemaking and winefarming in one and the same project. This opens the possiblity of a wine estate with black staff and owners only. That will be truly 'the latest thing'. The objectives as well as its concretization leave out the third level responsibilities and skills for an enterprise. This does not exclude, however, that the participants for their own lives have learned the third level skills and responsibilities. 'Learning the untaught' is typical for all hands-on & project learning. There is no 'teaching', there is only 'opportunity'. It's like the horse that is led to the water. The 'student' is learning what he is up to, more than in a teaching situation, where 'what-has-been-taught' determines, rather limits, the outcome. Marking exams after a teaching project is boring; it's dead. Listening to 'students' after a self-learning project is fascinating; it's alive.

From the remaining Khayelitsha projects, the brick factory comes closest to a full-opportunity learning project, if only the six women take into account that their market position is temporary. If not, they will be at a loss when even a forseeable change in market demand or competition emerges. In spite of the unmistabable empowerment already gained, they will be dependent again. Hopefully, some time will be left to learn from the crisis on their own, so that they can continue with a better balance between the three levels om management. Now they seem stuck at the first level with some aspects of the second only. The hopeful thing, however, is that these women surely will have experienced what it means to enjoy the freedom of personal choice and development. Nobody can take that away and it will help them, together or individually, to overcome.

The weaving comes next in line. Like the brick manufacturing, their seems to be attention for the first level only. May be there is not even opportunity for more, because the responsibility for the design and the supply of yarn seems to reside elswhere, beyond their horizon. The third level learning opportunity is even more remote.

At the end of the list are the day-care center and the cooking project. Not only its coming into existence depended on external funding, also its keeping in existence lies beyond the workers in the project, being paid or voluntary. There is only learning of the first level skills and responsibilities. Probably a bit of the second level too. For the individual participant, however, this does not exclude gaining empowerment, personal autonomy or capacity to self-learn. Once having passed that barrier, there is no limit to personal development, how meager the starting conditions have been.

So far, I have only been analyzing what participants learn from the project. But there is a lot more. The bystanders and onlookers undergo essential learning. Seeing these things happen, will unavoidably change quite a few of them from hesitant disbelievers to active participants, whether in the white, black or coloured community. This puts a social obligation on the project's participants: to make public what they are doing, thinking or achieving. I'm not referring to high profile publicity. On the contrary. For many this is counterproductive. Rather spreading the word in one's own environment, supporting it with adequate facts, will be more convincing: The medium is the message! How important is it to see those thing happen whith people like you, living near to you. Nothing is more convincing.

I am taking the last phrases at heart myself. Not being a participant, I participated with my heart while observing, listening, interviewing and reflecting. I feel obliged to spread the word. I do it my way: In writing. To start with, I offer it to my guides into that world and to the participants of the proyect. And to my friends.
Yzerfontein, feb, 8th, 2000
Gérard van Eyk, traveling writer.