Challenges of Initiation

In post apartheid South Africa there has been an increase in the migration from rural towns and villages in Eastern Cape to urban Western Cape cities such as Cape Town (Central Intelligence Agency, 2010).  There are no official records that track the changes in the migrating population demographics, but there has been a visible increase in the agglomeration of people in informal settlements on the peripheries of major cities in the Western Cape.  For example, 84% of black adults were born outside Cape Town, the majority in Transkei, Ciskei and other areas of Eastern Cape (Yu & Nieftagodien, 2008).

Click to learn more about urbanization in Cape Town[PDF, 140KB]

Challenges of the initiation ritual in an urban environment include:

Health challenges of initiation include:

The government responded to growing health concerns and a high mortality rate; however, abantu leaders and authorities have had opposing points of view on many aspects concerning initiation.

Read more about the conflicts between traditional leaders and authorities