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Abstract

This paper examines the notion of empowerment and what it entails in housing development. Through a critical analysis if the different phases in one particular housing project analyzed by the author, the paper highlights the areas of empowerment and emphasizes that it is a process, which in the case of Nthutukoville in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa began with securing land tenure. Access to resources and acquisition of skills are important. Both external and internal factors may be responsible for women’s inability to take charge of their lives. External factors include political violence, unsupportive local authorities, and a hostile environment as well as lack of resources and skills. There is, however, often an internalized problem of the failure to challenge the prevailing gender ideology that reinforces women’s subordination and male dominance in power. Although state policies may be favourable, women, through mobilizing resources, negotiating with authorities, and strategizing must be responsible for their own empowerment.

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