INSTITUTIONALIZED CHILD CARE IN URBAN SOUTH AFRICA

oles would be treated so collectivistically that it would be impossible to maintain some
sort of accountability to ensure those funds actually went towards the wellbeing of
children. Because of the ubiquitous poverty and desperation among the population of
South Africa, there was also an extreme risk of the system being manipulated as an
income generating activity. With limited working social workers and government
resources, the South African state would have a difficult time monitoring the system. I
asked Pastor Mike about total adoption, and he mentioned that while it was rare, it was
something he would prefer to foster care. “We’ve had one family we got in contact with
through a wealthier church in the area take in five siblings. I was glad they were all still
able to stay together, and they seem to have adjusted well to their new life.”
One further way in which family lines were rendered more flexible for children at
the center was the way in which a pseudo-family developed. Care mothers would often
develop nurturing relationships with the younger children and would be relied on for
immediate support. Children who had lived at the center for an extended amount of time
would develop sibling-like bonds with some of the other children, and this was
observable every time a former resident at the center would return for a visit. Even many
of the staff members developed close attachments with the children, adding an extra
element of complexity to family ties.
Before continuing to the next chapter, which covers the challenges seen at the
center throughout middle childhood for many of its residents, it will be helpful to once
again recall the different challenges that children often bring with them into the center.
Most of these challenges are psychological, often the result of an early childhood in
townships with frequently changing family structures and resource insecurity. Many of
103