- Title
- Engaging Namibian informal settlement community in social innovation
- Creator
- Jagodick, Jana; Nashima, Etuna; Courvisanos, Jerry
- Date
- 2017
- Type
- Text; Conference proceedings
- Identifier
- http://researchonline.federation.edu.au/vital/access/HandleResolver/1959.17/166676
- Identifier
- vital:13487
- Identifier
- ISBN:20491050 (ISSN); 9781911218555 (ISBN)
- Abstract
- Investment is increasing throughout Africa. However, there are still major development difficulties in many regions. One of the major challenges is implementation of innovative solutions through social learning in disadvantaged communities. This paper reports on a research project that has been carried out in an informal settlement community in Katutura. Katutura is the poorest part of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. In the informal settlements of Katutura live the poorest of this disadvantaged suburb. These settlements have members who lack access to water, electricity and sanitation. The project pioneers the concept of a new sanitation solution which is a social innovation that aims at enhancing communication among their members. This paper addresses three interrelated research questions pertaining to social innovation, social learning and whether transformation can happen without human change agents. At the beginning of the project, beneficial family members were actively recruited to dig holes for the water toilet tanks. After installation of ten environmental friendly toilets by ten disadvantaged families, interviews were conducted with female and male members of beneficial families, their neighbours and external contractors. The interview data was categorised into six representative case studies and analysed by using grounded theory. From this investigation emerged that such a new sanitation solution can, via social learning, play the role of social innovation. This was evident through the change of behaviour by most members who were actively or passively engaged. In this regard, new relationships were established between previously separated individuals and groups. A great number of studies emphasise the importance of human agents in the process of change. The finding of this paper suggests that social innovation itself can stimulate change if implemented by a small number of people. After implementation of social innovation by beneficial families, the communication patterns changed because their neighbours became interested in the same sanitation solution. This implies that transformation can materialise in disadvantaged communities. Tribal barriers can be overcome through social learning in the context of social innovation without a formal planned effort. These new findings are useful for educators, NGOs and government policy decision makers. © 2018 Academic Conferences and Publishing International Limited. All rights reserved.; Proceedings of the European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, ECIE
- Publisher
- Academic Conferences and Publishing International Limited
- Relation
- 12th European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, ECIE 2017; Paris, France; 21st-22nd September 2017 Vol. 2017-September, p. 323-329
- Rights
- Copyright The Authors, 2017. All Rights Reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission may be made without written permission from the individual authors.
- Rights
- This metadata is freely available under a CCO license
- Subject
- Informal settlement; Katutura; Namibia; Social innovation; Social learning
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