Marginalized Knowledge: An Agenda for Indigenous Knowledge Development and Integration with Other Forms of Knowledge

2. Background to the KwaNdaya Project

KwaNdaya community gardens were chosen as a pilot project for the Community Production Centre (CPC) concept in the year 1999.

These gardens were started as community garden where individual women who were community members had separate plots for food production with the main aim of feeding their families. The community were also included in the decision making process. These gardens were chosen by Ilembe to be extended, a community meeting was called by the KwaNdaya councillor (the late, Mr. B. Ngcobo), with the special permission for such a meeting from the Inkosi/Chief of the area. The purpose of that meeting was to explain to people that the community garden would be extended and that the government was going to fund the project. All the community members agreed to that proposal and ment of the local community, especially women. The following tasks were expected to be performed by women: skills development, site clearance, levelling, block building, site construction works, fencing and many others. The site-supervising consultant had to provide a larger than normal input so that skillwere also happy about it. The principal purpose of upgrading the existing community garden was to provide employment for the local community and to create business opportunities. The project was feasible with regard to need/desirability on the part of the community and also from the technical point of view. It was envisaged that the proposed upgrading of the community garden would be an economically viable project that would improve the standard of living for the local community by providing them with jobs and an income from produce sold. The National Department of Public Works (NDPW) provided funds under a budget from the Community- Based Public Works Programme (CBPWP) and Ilembe District Municipality's officials, together with the KwaNdaya community, started the project. Most community members held ownership of the land as they had Permission To Occupy (PTO) certificates which are similar to Title Deeds. These members made 10 hectares of land available for the project on a voluntary basis for the benefit of the whole community. KwaNdaya community garden was developed under the KwaNdaya Cluster, which also included market stalls, a crèche for day-time child care, a poultry house and the community sports field. The community was represented by the Ndaya Development Committee, which reports to the Umbumbulu Standing Committee, that in turn fell under the Ilembe Regional Council and now falls under Ugu District Municipality. Ndaya Development Committee is the organization overseeing all the activities with regards to development, maintenance, administration, and many other official functions within the Umbumbulu region. Furthermore, it was proposed by Ilembe, as a requirement of the Department of Public Works, that the project be developed using emerging contractors, Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) and that it place emphasis on the involves development and the involvement of the local community did not slow down the construction programme.