From Surrey, UK to South Africa
Macey Ho Learns More About Social Work Through a 6-Week Placement in Africa’s Southernmost Country
My trip to South Africa came about after praying to God about where I could go for my overseas placement as part of my Masters in Social Work, and Him answering me with offers to shadow two different organisations.
The first was LIV-Village (http://www.liv-village.com/) in Verulam, just outside Durban, who support orphaned, abandoned and abused children. The organisation helps them rebuild their lives by placing them with a foster mother recruited from nearby communities. In the village they have an ECD (Early Childhood Development or nursery / kindergarten), a junior and high school, a medical centre, therapy centre (with Occupational Therapists and a Psychologist), social services and a church. It is a well set up as an organisation, relying on staff who live on site and off, and volunteers who come for as little as 5 days to 2 years to help with a specific ministry.
Spectacular sunset over Verulam at LIV-Village after 2 days of thunderstorms.
From a social work perspective, they very much work in a multidisciplinary way to try and meet the holistic needs of each child, and it was interesting to see how the organisation worked on both a faith and Zulu cultural context- which appeared quite complex for my little brain that had only ever experienced working in English local authorities and non-faith charities, excluding church! UK Social Work codes of conduct specifies the need to maintain ethical boundaries in our practice, which includes being impartial and neutral when it comes to faith and working with others. Even though I'm a Christian, it took a bit of time to get used to the children, foster mothers and staff speaking openly about how important it was to look to Christ, and let Him lead the work we did. Learning how to praise and worship in Zulu however, definitely helped me get over this! The kids themselves have had quite traumatic starts to their lives. For example, most are not where they should be academically, and when they are first placed, they have not met their physical developmental milestones. And on top of that half are HIV positive. But, they are so gifted, funny and full of love so it was difficult to leave them.
Next was East London, with a counselling service called Masithethe (Xhosa for "let's talk" http://www.masithethe.co.za/). The Eastern Cape is one of the poorest areas in South Africa (SA) and a lot of people here experience on a daily basis, really terrible things like abuse, violent crime, rejection and bullying- along with carrying the load of an HIV diagnosis, physical and psychological trauma as a result of cultural rituals and traditions. (I can tell you about the circumcision rituals for teenage boys in graphic detail if you like..!) and the list goes on...
Macey on a hike up Table Mountain.
Macey at Cape Agulhas, the Southernmost tip of Africa where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet.
Masithethe have 5 social workers who also act as counsellors but the organisation also relies on 60+ volunteer lay counsellors (who have undergone specific training) and work in collaboration with many other local charities and the community to provide free support for people of all ages and from all backgrounds. Jackie, the Director and also my host, kindly arranged shadowing opportunities with many of these partner organisations and it was so heartwarming to see the varied range of projects and services on offer.
My time in SA has been challenging and rewarding in so many unexpected ways. Challenges included so-called "African time" i.e. the more relaxed attitude to time-keeping than what I'm used to in the UK, and I struggled with the fact that all case reporting and paperwork was done exactly so - on paper! We are spoilt in the UK to have electronic systems in place, which in some instances can be accessed across different multidisciplinary teams. Also, it seems in SA that a lot of people are attracted into going into the profession because the government gives bursaries for further study so unis (universities) are churning out a lot of social workers who actually lack in quality, vision and motivation.
It was also interesting to see the power dynamics in play, especially between different levels of staff and between white and black people. The country has 11 official languages and has gone through a lot of change throughout its history; to my novice eyes the dust has yet to settle regarding uniting the country, and the political pendulum appears to be swinging from one extreme to another (look up the 'fees must fall' protests re. University tuition fees that have been in the headlines during my time here for a little bit of a taste).
Mr Mandela mural in Cape Town.
Saying that, God has really blessed me in opening my eyes and heart for the country and her people, who have taught me on a newer level what it means to be hospitable and generous with what little or much they have, how resilient they are in spite of the complexities and hardship as a result of recent history and daily life, and how much untapped potential and talent that exists, just awaiting for an opportunity to arise. I have made new friends (some of whom are praying I will find a nice Zulu man to marry!), learnt words in new languages (if the ladies are having a good "skinner" it means they are enjoying a gossip session!), and feel deep down inside that I may have some African blood in me!
I can honestly say it has been a privilege and honour to live and walk with the friends I have met in this country, and see their heart for the vulnerable, those in need and experiencing injustice, and witnessing how they are living out Mark 12:30-31 to 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength' and to 'Love your neighbour as yourself. There is not greater commandment than these.'
I end my trip with Cape Town and driving the Garden Route with a friend from home, experiencing the top places and things to do as a tourist, whilst reflecting on my 6 weeks spent in a country I have fallen in love with, and which I hope to see again.
Meeting people in the community and townships of Verulam.
Macey Ho spent most of her 20's in the music and advertisement business in London before deciding to take a leap into the world of Social Work. She is now finishing her last year of her Masters after spending 6 weeks in South Africa working and learning about the social needs of her people. Macey is from the U.K.