and development
WELCOME TO
PALA FORERUNNERS
We are forerunners in enabling rural communities in South Africa to formulate and implement solutions that address their socioeconomic challenges.
Unemployment, poverty and inequality are rapidly growing challenges that require timeous, creative and practical interventions – not just from the state, but from businesses, NGOs and civil society as a whole.
Collective responsibility and action is needed to grow a more prosperous and harmonious South Africa for all and everyone can play a meaningful role in addressing the problems strangling the growth and potential of the South African economy and its people. Pala Forerunners is an ideal vehicle through which this can be done. There are plenty of opportunities for the business and international community, government, volunteers, philanthropists, trusts, foundations, universities, and civil society to become involved.
We are a vibrant and creative organization that has the communities’ needs at heart. We come alongside rural communities in a process that enables them to identify, prioritize and address their socioeconomic needs.
Over the past 20 years we have made a meaningful impact in remote rural areas where we are well received… and we invite you to partner us in this process.
ABOUT US
Vision:
Our vision is to demonstrate, document, promote and make our proven methodology available throughout southern Africa in order to bring a laser focus to socioeconomic planning and budgeting thereby boosting socioeconomic development and self-sufficiency in our rural communities.
This will lead to a better managed, better organized, more prosperous, more stable and happier South Africa.
It is a plan by the people for the people and the communities find this to be a truly liberating process.
Mission:
Our mission is to demonstrate a comprehensive yet simple and easily replicable framework within which rural communities are enabled to identify their socio-economic needs by themselves and thereafter to assist and equip them to address those needs.
We have developed and refined our needs analysis model over the past 20 years and are now focusing on a specific geographic area comprising 58 communities where we will conduct our needs analyses.
The project area is small enough for us to effectively carry out our work, but big enough in a national context to give significant direction and momentum to the future development of rural communities in South Africa.
In the project area we have identified:
- 400 of the 500 boreholes (water wells) are no longer operational seriously compromising community health and the ability to produce fresh vegetables
- Around 50% of the people are malnourished
- Thousands of orphans and vulnerable children lack proper care and nutrition
- There are massive opportunities to develop and utilize the agricultural potential of the area – providing not just much needed nutrition but also creating employment and entrepreneurial opportunities
- There are significant opportunities to complement and also enhance the quality and levels of education that the children receive
- A laser focus will be brought to the overall developmental requirements of the 58 communities and this will substantially assist government with their budgeting and work priorities. It will also aid businesses operating in that area in allocating funds for their Corporate Social Investment programs
- It is a plan by the people for the people and the communities find this to be a truly liberating process.
OUR PLANS
For the next three years (until the end of 2024) we are focusing our effort and years of experience into a specific geographic area to maximise the development impact and to create a developmental blueprint for the rest of South Africa.
The outer boundaries of this focus area are:
Hazyview north to Acornhoek via R538
Acornhoek east to Orpen Gate via R531
Orpen Gate south to Paul Kruger Gate
Paul Kruger Gate west to Hazyview via R536)
There are 58 communities situated in this 3 000km² focus area.
We will conduct a needs analysis in each of the 58 communities and based on our previous experience this will inter alia reveal the following:
- The socioeconomic development priorities for each community
- The skills and competencies of community members that can be employed in addressing these priorities
- Priorities that need to be brought to the urgent attention of government
- The availability and sources of water (400 out of the 500 equipped boreholes in this region are presently not operational seriously compromising community health, the fight against Covid-19, and the ability to cultivate vegetables). There are also many water springs in these communities that should be protected and better managed as a primary source of water. There are also many dams in the area that need to be repaired and/or have their capacity restored
- Opportunities to complement and also enhance the quality and levels of education that the children receive
- The orphans and vulnerable children (OVC’s) in each community and who cares for them and whether this care is sufficient
- The needs of these orphans in terms of health care, nutrition, clothing, bedding schooling and home care
- The community members who have eyesight problems and that need assistance e.g. cataract operations or spectacles
- The community members that have hearing problems and that need assistance
It is a plan by the people for the people and the communities find this to be a truly liberating process..
PALA FORERUNNERS TEAM
We are a Christian non-profit grassroots organization that inspires and empowers rural communities. We create hope and a future through community developed and led solutions that systematically identify and address their most pressing challenges.
The foundation of our work is our tried and tested needs analysis where virtually all the adults in a community are interviewed one on one in the comfort of their own homes to ultimately establish exactly what that community’s needs and priorities are.To ensure the credibility of the findings, our community-based interviewers are trained to establish each individual’s needs and priorities without asking any leading questions and there are checks and balances in place to ensure that this happens.
The results of the individual interviews are then consolidated for each community and formally presented to that community. Thereafter a prioritized development plan is discussed and agreed to by everyone in the community. This includes identifying the functions and responsibilities that various members in the community will have in implementing that development plan.
It is a plan by the people for the people and the communities find this to be a truly liberating process.
Forerunner Researchers and Community Co-ordinators.
Paul de Bruyn
Piet Marimane
Reckson Ntimane
Adrian Newton
Iris Nxumalo
Uys Sambo
Eulleth Mdluli
Delight Ntsako Ndlovu
Allimo Mahanuke
Wonder Khosa
PALA FORERUNNERS GALLERY
SUPPORT PALA FORERUNNERS
Pala Forerunners depends on the support, generosity and goodwill of like-minded individuals and organisations to fund its operations. No matter how big or how small, your donation will be well invested.
First National Bank account:
Pala Business Cheque,
Account Number: 62698593699,
Branch Code: 270552
Testimonials
“As part of the Ford Foundation Grant, I feel obliged to thank you for the excellent work you did on the Dixie Community. It is seldom that disenfranchised rural black people of South Africa find an honest broker who is prepared to risk his own life for their real economic empowerment…”
Dr Hector Magome
Director Conservation Services
South African National Parks.“For the last seven years Mr de Bruyn has continued to walk right beside with every step, even though it tooks so long and we could only help to pay his petrol and cell phone costs only a few times.
He has never given up on fighting all our rights even when he received death threats and though he has been intimidated so much.
This is our promised land (16 500ha/40 000acres) and Mr de Bruyn has been sent to help us enter into it.”
Mabel Sedibe
Chairperson
Maorabjang Communal Property Association