Navigating the africentric ways of revitalising farming cooperatives to fortify the livelihoods and education of rural communities in South Africa

This qualitative case study explores the role of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) in promoting sustainable farming cooperation, focusing on the traditional davha practice in Matangari Village in Limpopo Province of South Africa. Historically, the davha system, deeply rooted in African communal values, emphasized collective effort, reciprocity, and mutual assistance among community members. This practice involved families coming together to assist one another with essential farming tasks such as ploughing, planting, weeding, and harvesting. The current qualitative case study examined how these cooperative efforts have contributed to the sustainability of agriculture in sustaining the livelihoods and education in Matangari, particularly in the face of environmental challenges such as drought and floods, together with apartheid era bottlenecks and setbacks. The research highlights the enduring impact of the Africentric approach to farming, even after the disruption caused by colonialism and apartheid policies, which restricted land access and undermined traditional practices. Through structured interviews with community members, the study revealed that the Davha system not only fostered agricultural productivity but also reinforced social cohesion, emphasizing the values of Ubuntu and communal well-being. The findings suggest that Indigenous knowledge Systems like Davha can offer valuable insights for modern farming cooperatives, providing sustainable solutions to contemporary agricultural and environmental challenges. This study advocates for the revitalisation of such traditional initiatives as a Decoloniality process, and to repeal the current agricultural policies negating the strengthening of rural communities, thereby promoting food security through collaborative and culturally grounded approaches.