The use of isiNdebele for service delivery in Nkangala District Municipality, Mpumalanga Province.
Nkosi, Khayelihle Phumlani
Nkosi, Khayelihle Phumlani
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Abstract
The government’s mandate (national, provincial, and local government) requires that its communication on issues of service delivery should enhance access to information that enables the public to participate in the country’s transformation and in bettering their own lives and implementation of people-cantered programmes. Subsequently, local government (municipality) is the sphere closest to the people; government representatives are elected by citizens to represent them and are responsible to ensure that services are delivered to the community. At the heart of municipality service delivery is the role played by a local language as a vehicle for service delivery. Therefore, the primary objective of this study is to look at the use of isiNdebele language for service delivery at the Nkangala District Municipality in the Mpumalanga Province. In this dissertation, I explore trends in municipality communication, especially focusing on communication between the municipality and community members for service delivery purposes. Challenges are ascribed to the stumbling blocks linked with the practical implementation of the language policy. This study is qualitative in nature, and a case study design was followed. Interviews were used to collect data from the selected respondents. Document analysis of the municipality language policy and other documents used to communicate with the community formed part of the data for this study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with community members who are isiNdebele L1 speakers and municipal staff members, and the data collected through interviews were analyzed thematically. Content analysis was used to analyze the data collected from the documents. The researcher employed purposeful sampling to select six respondents (all isiNdebele L1 speakers) embracing four community members and two municipality officials. The findings revealed that the policies were only on paper, yet English still dominated as the medium of communication. The findings further revealed that there was a need for interpreters and translators to assist citizens as customers at the municipal offices. The findings also showed that Nkangala District V Municipality did not have enough available resources in isiNdebele and that they did not inform their community about the importance of their language.
Description
Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree Magister Technologiae: Language practice in the Department of Applied Languages Faculty of Humanities.
Date
2017-11-01
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Tshwane University of Technology
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Keywords
IsiNdebele Language, Service Delivery District, District Municipality, Mpumalanga Province, Local Government Communication