Journal of Social Development in Africa (1992), 7,2 19-38 
Africa at the Crossroads:Major 
challenges for Social Work Education 
and Practice Towards The Year 2000- 
RODRECK MUPEDZISWA+ 
ABSTRACT 
The paper focuses on social work education and practice into the next millennium 
with particular reference to Africa. It argues that as the year 2000 draws near, the 
most insurmountable challenges for social work education and practice in Africa 
are likely to emanate from issues that traditionally have not been regarded as falling 
within the domain of the social work profession. Issues falling in this category are 
identified as including the refugee problem, the AIDS issue, unemployment, the 
ecology and structural adjustment programmes. Iturges the social work profession 
to become aggressive and more adventurous if it is to be taken seriously and indeed 
as it hopes to sufficiently address the problems in a meaningful way. Social work 
training therefore must be made more appropriate if it is to sufficiently equip 
practitioners with the relevant skills and knowledge that will enable diem to 
meaningfully tackle these and other social challenges. 
Introduction 
Social Work is an art with scientific and value foundations. It focuses basically on 
meeting human needs and aspirations.Its knowledge base is eclectic in that it draws 
on many areas of theory, knowledge and settings and indeed methodologies. The 
knowledge base of social work is determined by the problems it seeks to solve. 
• "Public Lecture' delivered «t Teachen Hall, Accra, Gh«n«, July 2 1991. 
• Deputy Principal, School of Social Woik,Kopje,Haiare, Zimbabwe.
20 RodreckMupedziswa 
Social work seeks to enhance the social functioning of individuals singly and 
in groups by activities focused on their social relationships in the interaction 
between people and their environment As Pincus and Minahan (1973) have noted, 
social work is concerned with the interaction between people and their social 
environment which affects their ability to accomplish life tasks, alleviate distress 
and realise aspirations and values. 
Identification of the problem allows for the mobilisation of resources which 
enable individuals to cope with situations of difficulty, whether they are social, 
emotional or physical environment Social work as a helping profession pays 
particular attention to the disadvantaged in society including the handicapped, the 
aged and the marginalised in general. In short, social work's job assignment is to 
mediate the process through which the individual and society reach out for each 
other through a mutual need for self-fulfilment (Schwartz, 1979). 
Roots of Social Work 
Social work was developed and nurtured in Western countries, in particular Britain 
and the United States of America. In the context of Africa, social work is a 
relatively young profession which was imported from the Western world in the 
1950s and 1960s. The first recognised form of social work was casework, 
originating as it did in charitable situations such as hospitals. The casework 
method developed from alms-giving and necessarily it involved needs assessment. 
The theory base developed in the early part of this century. Other methods of social 
work, for example Group Work, were developed later. The profession was 
introduced in order to deal with problems emanating from the processes of 
urbanisation and industrialisation. 
In Africa, individuals who wished to train as social workers in the 1950s and 
early 1960s had little option but to go abroad, mostly to the West. They were thus 
trained using curricula thathadaWesternorientation. Withtime,anumberof local 
social work training institutions were founded and these included School of Social 
Work, Ghana (opened in 1946) the Jan Hofmeyer College in South Africa (which 
later closed) and the Oppenheimer College of Social Science in Zambia, which was 
later absorbed into the University of Zambia. Later, similar institutions were 
opened elsewhere and these included the School of Social Work in Harare, 
Zimbabwe, which was founded in 1964. These institutions were staffed with 
trainers who themselves had been trained in the West and this resulted in 
inappropriate orientation of the programmes offered. 
Right from its inception, social work practice in Africa inherited a Western bias
Africa at Cross Roads 21 
for obvious reasons. In the many years that followed, it continued to allow itself 
to be influenced by its Western base basically because of the legacy of colonialism. 
Theories tended to be adopted wholesale from Western theorists and practitioners, 
reflecting Western academic analysis and the culture of individualism. The main 
focus was to provide remedial services in respect of marginalised groups in urban 
areas and also to arrest the problem of urban deviance, particularly juvenile 
delinquency. This problem was exacerbated by the fact that many social work 
practitioners continued to get training from Western countries, which made 
breaking from Western orientation a formidable task. However, in the last decade 
or so, it has become increasingly recognised that in any given country, social work 
theory and practice must reflect local socio-economic and cultural needs. There 
have been concerted efforts to make social work less remedial and more 
developmental and hence more appropriate to the needs of the African continent. 
The point must be made that in Africa and elsewhere, the social problems that 
social workers deal with are basically off-shoots of the problem of poverty which 
can only be effectively dealt with at a macro level. 
The setting up of such organisations as AS WEA (Association of Social Work 
Education in Africa) underlined these efforts aimed at making social work more 
relevanttotheneedsof Africa. This organisation (AS WEA) for one made attempts 
to effect changes in the face of tremendous odds and arguably it has had but lim ited 
impact Other organisations including (the African region of) the International 
Federation of Social Workers (IFS W) and also the International Council of Social 
Welfare (ICS W) took upon themselves the challenge to advance this noble pursuit 
Several local and foreign academics and practitioners have also come into the 
picture, advocating for change. Their argument is basically that Western theories 
and practice need to be critically examined and to be adapted in new ways to 
different situations. These scholars have included Ankrah (1987), Regab (1982) 
and Midgley (1981) - to name but a few. 
Over the years, social work education and practice in Africa has slowly heeded 
this call and is becoming more and more developmental in its approach. The 
emphasis is now on mobilising resources to assist people to help themselves singly 
and in groups instead of the remedial approach which emphasised such aspects as 
merely picking up those who are casualties of the system and providing them with 
handouts. In other words, social work in Africa is moving from being an instrument 
of social control to an instrument of social change. Today the catch word in social 
work education and practice in Africa, like elsewhere in the developing world, is 
slowly becoming "social development". In the light of this new thinking and 
orientation, the social work profession must of necessity set itself a fresh agenda,
22 Rodreck Mupedziswa 
which will address challenges that have traditionally been viewed as the domain 
of other professions. It is social work's job assignment- that of concern for human 
welfare - that gives it the mandate to address such problems. 
Overview of Major Challenges for the Social Work Profession 
The year 2000 appears to be regarded as a 'magic year' by many international 
organisations, if the number of accomplishments targeted for completion by then 
are anything to go by. These organisations include the World Health Organisation, 
which has made Health for all by the year 2000 its rallying cry. There have also 
been calls for housing for all by the year 2000 and literacy for all by the year 2000, 
among other 'slogans'. Social work as a profession must of necessity draw up its 
own agenda for what it hopes to accomplish by that magic year. The agenda must 
be drawn up on the basis of major challenges facing the continent, many of which 
are traditionally regarded as the domain of other professions. These include the 
problems of unemployment, refugees, AIDS, the ecology and indeed the effects of 
ES AP. It must be emphasised that this list is not exhaustive, but we will briefly 
examine some of these problems. 
a) Unemployment 
Rapid urbanisation, development and rural migration have been considered as 
among the main reasons behind unemployment in Africa. In many African 
countries today, unemployment has reached alarming proportions. Many school 
leavers can be seen walking the streets in search of work in spite of the fact that 
many are well educated in the formal sense. Yet the continent is still desperately 
short of technicians and other skilled personnel (Rogers 1989). 
Many countries in Africa are having to imploy expatriates in skilled jobs. This 
obviously suggests that the education offered is largely inappropriate for the needs 
of Africa. 
Faced with a severe economic decline and a hostile international economic 
environment, some African countries have in the last decade or so, resorted to a 
numberofeconomic recovery measures includingstructuraladjustmentprogrammes 
but with mixed fortunes. At the launching of the Organisation of African Unity 
(OAU) in the early 1960s, Africa pledged to become self reliant However, the 
economic programmes did not quite achieve the set targets. Consequently, other 
strategies had to be introduced later. One of these strategies came in the form of 
the Lagos Plan of Action which was launched in April 1980. The plan had 
emphasis on "collective self reliance". The strategy to give emphasis to this
Africa at Cross Roads 23 
sentiment was regional corporation and this culminated in the setting up of subregional 
associations such as the Preferential Trade Area (PTA). The PTA for one 
aimed to foster economic growth through the expansion of inter-regional trade and 
this would, inter alia, generate more employment. While organisations such as the 
PTA and S ADCC may rightly claim certain successes in their endeavours, the fact 
is that unemployment remains a major problem in Africa today. The situation is 
likely to deteriorate and might reach alarming proportions by the year 2000. 
In many African countries, unemployment levels have gone out of hand. 
Examples include Zambia with a 19% unemployment rate, Tanzania with 18%, 
Kenya with 16%, Somalia with 15%, Ethiopia with 11% and Malawi with 5% 
(ILO, 1989). In many of these countries, school leavers continue to swell the 
figures of the unemployed. For example, in Zimbabwe an estimated 110 000 
school leavers join the job market each year. Many of these unemployed 
unfortunately end up involving themselves in anti-social behaviour. For this and 
other reasonsmentionedearlier,unemployment becomes oneof the major concerns 
for social work. Unemployment must therefore be placed high on social work's 
agenda. 
b) Refugees 
In Africa there are an estimated six million refugees today. With less than 10% of 
the world's population, Africa has over one third of the world's 17 million 
refugees. The total refugee figures for Africa surpass those of Asia with its "boat 
people" of Vietnam and Kampuchea, the Afghan refugees, etc. To put it 
dramatically, about one out of 66 Africans is a refugee and at the world level, one 
out of every three refugees is an African (Mwase, 1988). In addition to these 
astronomical figures, there are many more people who are internally displaced. 
For example in Mozambique alone, an estimated four million people are said to be 
internally displaced (The Herald: May 10 1991). The refugee problem in Africa 
is a result of both man made and natural upheavals. Armed conflict, insurgency, 
drought and famine have combined to produce a major human crisis on the 
continent 
East Africa alone has an estimated 230 000 refugees while the Sudan is host to 
nearly 324 000. West Africa has the smallest figure (18 000). The largest number 
of refugees in Africa are to be found in Southern Africa (1 200 000) and the horn 
of Africa (1 000 000) (Refugees 1988:59:5). Of particular concern is the 
observation that the number of uprooted people is actually growing faster in Africa 
than anywhere else in the world. Hopefully, with Namibia having recently attained 
independence (April, 1990), this growth might be slightly checked. Also 
negotiations for peace currently takingplace in Angola andMozambique are cause
24 RodreckMupedziswa 
for optimism in this regard. Part of the refugee problem (in Africa) has been a 
consequence of South Africa's policy of destabilisation and it is hoped that with 
the current 'winds of change' sweeping through the region, the refugee problem on 
the continent might be checked. It is rather disturbing that no sooner have efforts 
to end hostilities in one sub-region begun to bear fruit than fresh conflicts have 
emerged. Examples which immediately come to mind include conflicts in Liberia, 
Ethiopia and Somalia (Mupedziswa 1991b). 
Generally, the countries of Africa have adopted liberal policies on refugees and 
tried to treat them with a modicum of human dignity. However, the massive influx 
of refugees have placed enormous stress on limited resources. The majority of 
refugees live either in settlements or camps, while a considerable number is 
spontaneously settled. In some of the countries existing refugee settlements and 
camps have become seriously overcrowded. The refugees rely on international aid 
as well as the goodwill of the host countries for their survival. Often the conditions 
are appallingly poor. As a consequence of the foregoing, the refugee problem has 
become a matter of great concern for social workers. As a result, it must be placed 
high on the agenda for the social work profession. 
c) Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) 
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), about 10 million people are 
infected with the virus that causes AIDS. Of this figure, between 500 000 and three 
million are expected to develop full blown AIDS by the mid-1990s (WHO1988). 
In the case of Africa, it is currently believed that nearly six million adults are 
infected with the HIV virus. 
By March 1990, over 52 000 AIDS cases were reported by 52 countries on the 
continent. This figure represented 22% of the world total of 240 000 cases reported 
by 153 countries during the same period. The situation continues to worsen. The 
WHO director general, Dr Hiroshi Nakajima was recently quoted as saying that the 
AIDS pandemic has brought a grave and growing challenge to Africa, sparing no 
country on the continent Dr Nakajima, made the remarks while opening the fourth 
ordinary session of the conference of African Ministries of Health attended by 50 
health ministers from OAU member states (Financial Gazette: May 9 1991). 
Granted that AIDS affects the most productive and reproductive members of 
the society, the increasing impact of HI V virus on manpower particularly in Africa 
and its effect on the already strained health care facilities on the continent is indeed 
cause for concern. The WHO director general also noted that an estimated three 
out of five people in Africa still lack regular access to the most essential drugs and 
vaccines. Further, more African countries typically devoted a large percentage of
Africa at Cross Roads 25 
their health budget to supply of drugs in an attempt to combat some of the world's 
worst health problems {Financial Gazette :May 9 1991). 
It is also disturbing to note that there is medical evidence to suggest that more 
than 30% of AIDS cases in African countries have occurred in children (The 
Herald: May 11 1989). This has serious implications for national development. 
Also of equally great concern is the realisation that the AIDS awareness campaign 
has apparently had limited impact to date. The link between sexually transmitted 
disease and persons liable to contract AIDS has been well documented. Experts 
say unless AIDS is taken seriously, the disease could so decimate the population 
that by the year 2017, the population of Africa could be halved (WHO 1988). 
In one African country for instance, there have been reports that 17% of the 
adult population carry the AIDS virus. This means over one million people at risk 
with the possibility of that number developing full - blown AIDS. In a district of 
another African country there were over 2 000 Aids orphans. In an affected area 
of yet another African country, every family had a person with AIDS and some 
families more than one (Rogers 1989). These statistics show that AIDS is and will 
remain a serious problem in Africa for a long time to come, irrespective of whether 
or not a cure is found (Mupedziswa). 
The then director general of the WHO global programme on AIDS, Dr J. 
Mannstated in 1988, said that close to half of all patients in the medical wards of 
hospitals in such cities as Kinshasa (Zaire), Nairobi (Kenya) and Butare(Rwanda) 
are currently infected with HIV, so are between 10% to 25% of women of child 
bearing age. That will mean an increase in child mortality of at least 25% 
(Scientific American 1988:85). Thus, AIDS is likely to be the greatest challenge 
social work will face towards the year 2000. Social workers can no longer afford 
to pretend that AIDS is a medical problem; it is equally a social problem, and for 
that reasonit must be placed high on the agenda. 
d) Ecology 
Ecological issues are of great concern in Africa today. Climatic changes have been 
noted in many parts of Africa due to disturbances of the ecology in certain regions. 
Ecology concerns itself with quality of human life. Ecological problems include 
desertification, deforestation, siltation of dams, soil erosion, and pollution. 
Environmental degradation is a major problem in Africa today. Africa is being 
denuded of trees and left open to the vagaries of such ecological problems as soil 
erosion, deforestation and desertification. The continent's wild life is also 
threatened (Mupedziswa 1991c). 
In Africa desertification is fast becoming a serious problem. A map published
26 Rodreck Mupedziswa 
jointly by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) and UNESCO showed 
that deserts were advancing, eating into the Horn of Africa and much of the southwest 
of the continent In the Sahel, the southern edge of the Sahara the desert is 
said to have moved south by 100 km between 1958 and 1975 ( Harrison, 1982). In 
the same region, drought has added to degradation which in turn has led to the 
inexorable southward creep of the desert. 
Africa's forests are shrinking at an alarming rate. Wherever this occurs it can 
accelerate the decay of the soil, reducing its capacity to feed and employ people. 
Deforestation can reduce rainfall and lead to drought. More of the rain that does 
fall runs into rivers and streams, taking the top soil with it. This leads to siltation 
downstream, the dilapidation of irrigation systems and increase in floods (Harrison, 
1982). Deforestation has also had the effect of speeding up the process of 
desertification in Africa. Soil erosion is another serious problem which is being 
caused by the decline of vegetation cover. 
As population continues to grow in Africa, cultivation is pushed into areas that 
are entirely unsuitable for agriculture and there the process of soil erosion 
progresses even more rapidly. The continent of Africa is fast losing precious 
agricultural land at probably twice or thrice the rate that new land is being broken 
for fanning. Soil is being exhausted, eroded or blown away at a very fast rate 
(Harrisoin, 1982). Everywhere in Africa, as population has grown, farmers are 
returning to the same patch of ground too frequently; consequently yields fall and 
the soil is exhausted, irrevocably. To this add the generally unfavourable land/man 
ratio and you have a recipe for a major catastrophe. 
As Africa becomes more urbanised, it is experiencing pollution problems. In 
some countries, the laws are lax and industrial firms have taken advantage of that. 
Pollution is also occuring on the roads and in rivers. Many rivers are getting 
polluted because of waste dumped by companies. Pollution in some situations is 
a consequence of weeds, particularly the water hyacinth, which is causing havoc 
to such key rivers as the Nile in Egypt and Manyame near Harare in Zimbabwe. 
Furthermore, electricity generating dams have sometimes caused erosion of the 
surrounding region due to decimation of trees. Currently, there is also world-wide 
concern about the destruction of the ozone layer and the greenhouse effect, both 
developments which will no doubt have a negative effect on the environment in 
Africa. 
Environmental protection is a priority of very few countries in Africa. In many 
parts of Africa, the fuel shortage is so acute that even crop residues and stubble are 
now uprooted and burned as fuel wood. In some cases, rehabilitation programmes 
are needed to preserve the soil life. The United Nations Environment Programme
Africa at Cross Roads 2 7 
has been involved in concerted efforts to curb damage done to the environment 
world-wide. However, in many instances, in Africa and elsewhere, there has been 
only minimal co-operation from the afected countries. The problems have not 
been helped by the presence of many multinational corporations, which locate 
their production plants in Africa where the regulations are weakest. Some of these 
corporations are spewing toxic waste into the atmosphere or into the seas or 
dumping poisonous wastes in Africa and other Third World regions. 
As already stated, ecology concerns itself with quality of human life. For that 
reason it ought to be a concern for social workers. It should therefore be placed 
high on the agenda for social work in Africa. 
e) Structural Adjustment Programmes, (SAPs) 
Many countries in Africa, and indeed elsewhere, faced with stagnating economies, 
have adopted economic recovery measures generally referred to as structural 
adjustmentprogrammes (SAPs), with thehopeof revamping their ailingeconomies. 
The programmes have been supported mainly by international finance institutions, 
particularly the IMF and the World Bank. The period of growth of stuctural reform 
in Africa was mainly 1982 to 1987 (Gibbon 1990), during which time many 
varieties of SAPs were implemented by different African countries. 
The overall aim of structural adjustment is to revamp an ailing economy 
through recovery and stabilisation measures. These measures are designed to 
improve resource allocation, increase efficiency, expand growth potential and 
enhance resilience to shocks (World Bank 1990). In the context of Africa, 
structural adjustment programmes have had mixed fortunes, with only a few 
having been dubbed success stories. For the majority of the SAPs, success as 
measured by the achievement of programme objectives has remained an illusive 
goal. SAPs in Africa have not been successful in improving the general living 
standards of the population. In fact, if the truth be told, SAPs have frequently 
led to widening disparities in living standards among the people. 
A few examples of this will be appropriate. Zambia provides interesting 
lessons withregard to the impactof SAP. AccordingtoNcubeetal(1987),Zambia 
has had no less than seven adjustmentprogrammes between 1975 and 1986. The 
programmes in Zambia have been aborted basically because of government's 
failure to meet basic financial targets,and the majority of the population has 
suffered tremendously. Mozambique, on the other hand, embarked on a fullyfledged 
structural adjustment programme in 1983. Despite its limited success in 
narrow economic terms, the SAP has had inflationary effects and led to severe 
deterioration of conditions amongst the majority of the people. Tanzania adopted
28 Rodreck Mupedziswa 
a World Bank sponsored Economic Reform Plan (ERP) in 1986. Analysts (eg 
Gibbon 1990), note that the results bear a resemblance to the Mozambican 
experience. Mounting domestic inflation and the continuing weakening of 
financial performance have resulted in deteriorating living standards. Nigeria 
introduced what was termed a "home grown" SAP supposedly with little or no 
outside interference from international financial institutions. However, it too has 
not fared any better as far as the social costs of adjustment are concerned. Provision 
of basic needs and social services fell below pre-adjustment levels, leading to 
increasing marginalisation of the poor. Even in Ghana where the SAP has been 
dubbed a "success story" both with regard to level of implementation and macroeconomic 
out-turn, falling real incomes, etc, have resulted in increasing 
marginalisation of the poor. 
Generally, cut backs in social spending have had a negative effect on low 
income earners in most African countries where SAP has been launched. For 
example, cost recovery in key services such as education and health has only served 
to aggravate an already difficult situation. The removal of consumer subsidies has 
had a negative effect on low income earners as it has increased the cost of basic food 
items and other household commodities, leading to a heavier burden on the 
marginalised. Many countries undergoing adjustment have learnt that vulnerable 
groups stand to lose by the implementation of structural adjustment strategies, at 
least in the short term. Consequently, most of these countries have adopted a Social 
Dimensions of Adjustment (SDA) strategy. Critics have however pointed out that 
in Africa, the measures introduced are often piecemeal and not integrated into any 
comprehensive development strategy, with the objective of cushioning the poor 
against the impact of SAP. Thus, the bottom line is that with or without SDA 
programmes^tructuraladjustmentpolicieshaveledtodeterioratinglivingstandards, 
particularly among the marginalised in society in the short and even medium term. 
SAP, like all of the other issues raised earlier in this paper, also concerns itself with 
quality of human life. As living standards among the majority of the populations 
of many African countries deteriorate, social workers will be called upon to 
intervene. It is for this reason that the issue of economic structural adjustment 
programmes should also be placed high on the agenda for social work in Africa. 
An Agenda for Social Work: towards the Year 2000 
The problems highlighted in this paper are bad enough today but if they go 
unchecked they are likely togeteven worse in the nextdecadeorso. Hall(1990:l 1)
Africa at Cross Roads 29 
has argued that "social work must learn to deal with the major social problems 
experienced in developing countries...". The problems raised in this paper are 
major challenges for the social work profession. There is need for the social work 
profession to adopt what Ankrah (1987) has termed a "futuristic orientation", that 
is to anticipate what human needs are likely to be and what conditions will ensure 
that these are met, if social work hopes to get on top of the situation. The profession 
just must become more aggressive, and more adventurous, if it is to be taken 
seriously and indeed if it is to become more relevant 
The challenges identified above will have to be dealt with at two levels: the 
education (ie training) level and the practice level. Social workers will need to 
make projections into the future, regarding the magnitude of these challenges and 
develop likely strategies to contain them. At the education level, social work 
training institutions will need to take a long look at such elements of training as 
the curriculum to ensure these address the listed problems. Social work educators 
have argued that social work education in the Developing World (including Africa) 
based as it is on part models drawn from the industrialised West, or even more 
recent third world experiences can hardly serve the present, much less the future. 
Part of the solution to this problem, it is argued, must lie in training social work 
students to invent, borrow or modify inappropriate 'social technologies' as 
happened in such fields as education and medicine (Jones 1987). For social work 
practitioners, therefore, many of the issues discussed in this paper will have to be 
dealt with during their training, which implies incorporating these different topics 
into existing curricula. This of course should be done gradually; it cannot be 
rushed. As Kasambira (1987) has noted, leaps and take-offs are feats which are 
normal only for panthers, accrobats and aeroplanes. The process therefore must 
start now if it is to benefit the anticipated millions of clients who will need 
professional help by the year 2000. 
With regard to unemployment, the curriculum, besides looking into such 
aspects as its nature and causes, should also focus on strategies for alleviating 
it. A few social work institutions in Africa might be covering these issues in their 
curricula already. However, emphasis needs to be placed on the issue of alternative 
employment creation strategies. Social work trainees need to be equipped with 
relevant skills on employment generation, which they can impart at the community 
level, for the benefit of particularly frustrated and disgruntled youth who may be 
unemployed for any number of reasons. 
On the topic of refugees, again if it is not already included it is vital that this be 
included in the curricula of social work training institutions in Africa. This is 
important, given the large numbers of refugees on the continent Trainee social
30 Rodreck Mupedziswa 
workers must gain an appreciation of the causes of refugee movements on the 
continent, the implications, and again it is vital to address the question of strategies 
both to minimise the influx as well as to alleviate the suffering of those who flee 
their countries. Students must also get well acquainted with the different pieces of 
legislation, conventions and protocols relevant for work with refugees. Training 
institutions would do well to develop documentation centres on refugee matters in 
the confines of their libraries. Activities to commemorate Africa Refugee Day at 
institution level may also go a long way towards increasing awareness of the plight 
of refugees on the continent. 
Given the magnitude of the AIDS menace, and the social implications, it would 
be safe to assume that most social work training institutions in Africa already have 
a slot for AIDS education on their curriculum. What will probably vary is the 
nature and degree of coverage of this vital topic. It is important that social work 
students are given all the basic facts about AIDS: what it is, what the symptoms 
are, how it is caused, how to avoid it, how to conduct an awareness campaign, etc. 
Besides basic information, social work trainees need to acquire professional skills 
in counselling, provision of support services to both patients and family members, 
with a lot of emphasis being given to home based care issues. Home based care will 
ultimately prove the most important form of caring for AIDS given the magnitude 
of the problem, and the speed with which it is spreading. Social work trainees also 
need to gain an appreciation of the impact of the AIDS pandemic on socio - 
economic development, particularly given theproblem of the anticipated depletion 
of manpower. 
The question of whether or not to include the ecology as a topic in the social 
work training curriculum is a controversial one. There are many educators who 
believe that is going rather too far, that social workers cannot be expected to be 
experts in every field. While this concern is appreciated, it must be pointed out that 
since ecological matters ultimately affect the quality of human life, and also given 
the magnitude of the problem at hand, it would be advisable to at least allow social 
work trainees to gain an appreciation of theproblem. Theemphasisof the coverage 
would be on such aspects as magnitude of the problem, the place of legislation and 
indeed possible strategies for even combating the problem. The idea is not to turn 
social work practitioners into small ecologists, but rather, to enable them to 
conduct awareness campaigns, to intervene with the authorities, or get involved in 
social action, when need be. 
It is pertinent that the topic of structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) is 
introduced in social work training institutions, if it has not been introduced by now. 
Social workers need to be well versed with this topic. The curriculum must of
Africa at Cross Roads 31 
necessity cover issues such as the aims and objectives, how S APs are funded and 
who funds them, conditionalities,and above all how SAPs have fared particularly 
in Africa. As regards to how SAPs have fared, emphasis must be on conducting 
case studies to enable the students to appreciate impact, particularly on the 
marginalised in society. It was pointed out elsewhere that social work, as a helping 
profession, pays particular attention to the disadvantaged in society. 
The curriculum would therefore be expected to have a bias in favour of the 
casualties of structural adjustment. It will be important to explore possible 
strategies for income generation for these vulnerable groups. 
Besides the different issues identified under each area, it must be emphasised 
that social work training institutions should continue to offer courses in social 
research methods. This skill is a pre-requisite for practice. Research needs to be 
carried out to inform policy in all the five areas addressed in this article. At the 
training level, it is important that students are offered an opportunity to carry out 
projects, preferably in any of these five areas, but also in other pertinent ares such 
as homelessness, etc. In other words, the Research course must include a practical 
component, to ensure that students are fully prepared for the hectic world of social 
work practice. The fieldwork component too should focus on these issues to ensure 
that the products from social work training institutions in Africa are well equipped 
to deal with the "casualties" of not only these five major challenges but others as 
well. In short, efforts must be made to ensure that curricula at social work training 
institutions in Africa are modified to take cognizance of the major challenges that 
face the continent as we move towards the year 2000. 
At the practice level, it is important that social workers are preparedboth 
academically and mentally for the mammoth task of tackling these challenges in 
a practical way. There is need for commitment on their part. As stated elsewhere, 
it is ironic that social work as a profession will find itself hard pressed to tackle 
challenges which traditionally are regarded as the domain of other professions: 
unemployment is traditionally the domain of economists and politicians; refugees 
that of politicians, AIDS is believed to be the domain of the medical profession 
while the ecology is seen as an issue best addressed by environmentalists and 
geographers, and SAPs are seen basically as a concern also for economists and 
politicians. 
There is need for social work professionals to play an advocacy role, to lobby 
the authorities so that the latter are sensitised to the likely magnitude of the 
unemployment situation. They must get the authorities to appreciate that there is 
need to lake fresh approaches to address this problem and that present policies offer 
very little hope.
32 Rodreck Mupedziswa 
Social workers must also sensitise governments to alternative employment 
creation strategies. To this end, there is need for social workers to carry out 
research. Research as noted elsehwere plays the important role of informing 
policy. In particular, there would be need to research on the informal sector. 
Government support is very vital if efforts to strengthen the activities in this sector 
are to bear fruit. There is no doubting the fact that the informal sector has potential 
in terms of employment creation. (Mupedziswa 1990c, 1990a) Allal and Chuta 
(1982) have argued that the informal sector provides substantial employment 
opportunities for the marginalised. This argument has been corroborated by 
various other scholars including Sethuraman (1981) who has also noted that the 
informal sector has played a major role in absorbing labour. Social workers should 
be seen to be taking a lead in the promotion of the informal sector mainly because 
of their concern for improved living standards for the marginalised in society. 
Other strategies they may wish to consider include promoting rural development, 
including areas suchas agriculture, ruralindustries (in particular cottage industries), 
etc.
Social workers also need to be involved where the education policy is 
concerned to ensure inter alia, that the education curriculum is appropriate and 
sensitive to the realities and needs of their nation. Related to this is the whole area 
of career guidance. Many young people in Africa, because of the inappropriate 
education systems which encourage white collar employment, tend to shun 
manual work and they never consider self help projects as a way of employment. 
Consequently when they finish school, they hunt for jobs in the formal sector, 
which is oversubscribed. It is the duty of social workers to counsel these young 
people so that they seriously consider engaging in income generating projects and 
other forms of self help activities. 
Unemployment is just as much a social as it is an economic problem. 
Everywhere in Africa today, it is on the increase. Part of the problem is that it has 
been left to politicians and economists. It is time social workers joined forces with 
these other professional groups with a view to finding alternative ways of 
minimising unemployment If left unattended, the unemployment problem is 
likely to breed other related social problems including criminal activities such as 
theft and prostitution. The aim in joining forces with other concerned groups, is 
to attempt to nip the problem in the bud. 
The issueofrefugees has traditionally beenregardedasaproblem basically for 
politicians. Although social workers have been involved, their role has been 
simply that providing of service. They have been involved mainly in providing 
relief to the refugees in camps and settlements. Operating strictly at the service
Africa at Cross Roads 33 
provision level is really tantamount to dealing with symptoms of a problem and not 
confronting the problem itself. This peripheral role must be done away with and 
efforts made to deal with the substantive issues. 
The causes of mass country flights in Africa are mainly structural, in particular 
coups and counter coups, civil war, repression and other forms of oppression. 
Social workers must appreciate this fact and do every thing in their power to address 
the real problems. There is need to address the structural issues if the refugee 
problem is to be contained. Many scholars (eg Ankrah 1987) today talk of the need 
for social workers to develop political linkages, ie to get involved at the political 
level. Again it is pertinent that research be carried out, particularly on the causes 
of mass flight in Africa. Armed with empirical information and evidence, social 
workers will then be in a position to speak authoritatively on these matters. They 
may then be able to influence policy. This is a mammoth task but one that must 
of necessity be addressed. 
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is probably the greatest 
challenge facing Africa as we move towards the year 2000. When the problem was 
first recognised in the early 1980s, AIDS was generally thought of as a medical 
problem. In time, medical practitioners began to realise that it was erroneous and 
rather too simplistic to view this condition as simply medical. This point was 
nowhere better articulated than at the International Conference on AIDS held in 
Montreal in June 1989. The theme of this conference was "AIDS the Scientific and 
Social Challenge" and if there had existed a loose partnership between the medical 
and social science professions before this conference, then the relationship was 
cemented at this conference. The role of social science in particular social 
work,was recognised and appreciated (Mupedziswa 1989a; 1989b). 
As already alluded to, Africa is one of the continents hardest hit by the scourge 
of AIDS. Thestarkrealityof courseisthat AIDS is such a serious problem in Africa 
that even if further spread of the virus is successfully stopped, there will still be 
millions of deaths from the disease from today's pool of infected adults and 
millions of orphaned children (Financial Gazette: May 9 1991). Social work 
practitioners on the continentthereforeneed to rally together with other professionals 
and look for ways in which they can fight the further spread of this disease, as well 
as work out strategies to deal with those affected and their families. A lot of people 
are still only just carrying the HIV virus. A time is fast approaching when these 
people will begin to die in their hundreds each day. Contingency plans to deal with 
such an eventuality must be put into place. There is thus need to begin to develop 
AIDS programmes while there is still time, to anticipate and plan for coping with 
the repercussions of the pandemic, which would leave no sector of the economy
34 Rodreck Mupedziswa 
untouched. Social waters are better placed to take a lead in this regard, because 
of their knowledge base (Mupedziswa 1990a; 1990b). 
Ecological issues have also never been regarded as the domain of social 
workers in Africa in the past Problems of desertification, deforestation, soil 
erosion, siltation and pollution affect in a negative sense, the lives of millions of 
people in Africa and for that reason they constitute a major social problem. These 
issues havebeen leftin the hands of environmentalists and geographers for too long 
and it is time social scientists got involved. 
Social workers must get involved in ecological issues both at the policy and 
implementation levels.They must take it upon themselves to educate society 
regarding the serious dangers of destroying the environmentThe consequences of 
environmental degradation such as irregular rainfall patterns and destruction of the 
ozone layer are a major cause for concern. Social workers must be at the front of 
efforts to reverse this dangerous trend. 
Structural adjustment programmes are also just as much a concern for social 
workers as they are for economists and perhaps politicians. Everywhere in Africa 
where SAPs have been introduced, there have been lots of casualties. Standards 
of living have often gone down and with thousands of workers being retrenched, 
again social problems, including delinquency, prostitution, etc. have escalated. 
Poverty has become a major problem where SAP has been introduced. Social 
workers must sensitise governments on the need to incoroporate into SAPs 
comprehensive SDA programmes aimed at cushioning the poor from the negative 
impact of SAPs. Social work's job assignment is to pick up casualties of the 
programme and assist them. Ways have to be found to assist those who are victims 
ofcostrecovery in basic social services such as health and education. It is also the 
role of social workers to ensure that the SDA fund targets the most vulnerable 
groups in society. 
They should also fightfor adequate funds to be madeavailable in this fund. This 
will not be easy since SAPs generally have a bias in favour of the economic aspect 
of development, with little or no concern for the social dimension. Social workers 
must ensure that the SDA fund is used sensibly, with focus on often invisible, 
marginalised groups. This means using the fund to promote activities like small 
scale enterprises and other productive ventures. 
Conclusion 
This paper ht identified a number of important challenges for the social work 
profession and has proposed that these be placed high on the agenda for social
Africa at Cross Roads 35 
workpractitioners as the year 2000 draws near. It must be reiterated that this list 
is not exhaustive, rather, it is selective. The various problems identified are all 
partly exacerbated by the erosion of traditional support systems, rapid urbanisation 
and wide spread poverty on the African continent. All these problems do affect 
people in other regions of the world but as various academics have observed, "it 
never rains but it pours"in the case of Africa. Many problems, though they might 
affect other regions, seem to assume an added impact when they hit Africa. One 
author addressing the problem of weather variations in Africa, for instance, noted, 
"...never moderate, always extreme. Too much rain or too little. Too much heat, 
etc" (P. Harrison 1982:21). Africa has indeed been tested beyond her endurance 
both by human and natural forces. 
The reason for calling on the social work profession to take on these challenges 
is basically because these problems affect the quality of human life. Schwartz 
(1984) has argued, every profession has a particular function to perform in society; 
it has received a certain job assignment for which it is held accountable. The social 
work profession has been given responsibility for the welfare of individuals and the 
five challenges highlighted in this paper affect social functioning of millions of 
people in Africa. Hall (1990) reviewing the role of social work in tackling 
problems faced in Africa, has argued that "Africa needs a paradigm for social work 
practice that prepares the way for a committed broad - based, change oriented 
profession able to deal with some of the severe social problems faced in the 
continent". Such a paradigm of social work practice is of course one that will be 
prepared to depart from the conventional modes and areas of practice to new more 
appropriate ones. It should be capable of setting up a fresh agenda for action in line 
with current trends. The profession must become more aggressive, and more 
adventurous if it is to be taken seriously, and indeed, if it is to become more 
relevant 
The issues raised in this paper must obviously of necessity be addressed at the 
education (i.e. training) and practice levels of social work. Research will be 
necessary and essential at both levels to inform policy and practice. It is pertinent 
to make projections of the likely impact of each of these problems. At the education 
level, there is need to lay particular emphasis on curriculum development. Social 
work education curricula in Africa must in future address all the five challenges 
highlighted in this paper exhaustively. 
At the practice level, there is clearly need for a radical approach and this implies 
going beyond mere involvement in formulation of future policy to actually 
challenging the existing status quo. There is need for countries to have strong 
national associations of social workers. Ankrah (1987) for one has suggested
Rodreck Mupedziswa 
J|probably an effective way to achieve this is through the forging of political 
2%ges. She says social work practitioners must seek to gain support from the 
3fical leadership to endorse urgently needed social change.Social workers can 
J&ter achieve this if there is harmony between social work education and practice. 
" harmony could be realised if the respective regional associations (ASWEA 
«JkFSW Africa region) were to forge stronger links and work together. Joint 
Jfeshops, conferences and seminars by these two key organisations might 
^ltitute steps in the right direction. Furthermore, closer co-operation between 
^JjShl work training institutions in such areasas staff/studentexchange, collaborative 
?%uch and exchange of teaching materials would go a long way towards 
%ving this goal. Training institutions must also organise regular refresher 
•tees for social workers in the field to ensure that they are kept up to date with 
Staging trends in the fieldToday Africa stands at the cross roads. It stands at the 
^%c of decimation. The challenges highlighted in this paper must of necessity be 
^ as a matter of urgency if Africa is to be spared from a devastating 
Ntetrophe even before the year 2000. 
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