Non-Governmental Organisations as Stakeholders in the Implementation of Community-Based Research by Universities

Abstract

Numerous research studies are conducted in communities surrounding universities. This paper illustrates the value of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in South Africa as stakeholders in an intermediary platform that can contribute to community development, based on research done by university researchers in these communities. The Quintuple Helix Model was used as a theoretical premise, viewing the importance of collaborative partnerships to contribute to sustainable development. The orientation enhanced in this paper is that research findings obtained from communities, in combination with the shared speciality areas and expertise of stakeholders such as NGOs, would serve as dynamic catalysts to bring stakeholders and researchers together in an innovative intermediary platform context that can facilitate development. A triangulation mixed-method design was used where a focus group discussion was held with 19 participants from NGOs, augmented by an open-ended questionnaire. The results indicated that NGOs can be viewed as strategic partners in community development and indicated how they could contribute in facilitating the implementation of research recommendations done by university researchers. NGOs are responsive to the needs and welfare of the people of South Africa supporting participatory democracy.