Our Values and Beliefs

- Paulo Freire’s ideas of community participation
- Black consciousness thinking about self-confidence and self-reliance
- A communal view of personhood as part of African philosophy which is defined through relationships and the ethical values of Ubuntu and respect
- Systems theory and systemic thinking
- Sustainable community development ideas
- Non-violent conflict transformation and peace building approaches
- Trauma theories and community psychology

The below shows how these schools of thought and experiences have influenced in the Sinani model.

At Sinani, we value:
- Respect
- Participation and inclusivity
- Fostering relationships based on trust
- Listening and responding to one another with empathy
- Peace and non-violent communication
We believe in :
People Centered Development: Oxfam’s definition of people centered development best aligns with Sinani’s practice. They describe how ‘Strengthening people’s capacity to determine their own values and priorities, and to organise themselves to act on these, is the basis of development. Development is about women and men becoming empowered to bring about positive changes in their lives; about personal growth together with public action; about both the process and the outcome of challenging poverty, oppression, and discrimination; and about the realisation of human potential through social and economic justice. Above all, it is about the process of transforming lives, and transforming societies
Practices included in this approach place focus on personal development as a precursor to the development of the collective through self-reflection, critical thinking and dialogue. This is reflected well in a summary of Sinani’s approach in a recent external evaluation by terre des hommes Switzerland which describes our work as having:
- A core of SFA (solution focused)/PSS (psychosocial support) method interventions which consists of in-depth self and situation analysis, problem-solving and personal action planning with the (four) primary target groups
- A range of related interventions which extends information and CBO practice. These promote community cohesion - activities centred on social issue themes, such as substance abuse, health and HIV awareness, relationship issues such as respect, anti-abuse
Social capital: Linked to our people centred developmental approach is the resulting contribution to social capital. The World Bank defines social capital as ‘the internal social and cultural coherence of society, the norms and values that govern interactions among people and the institutions in which they are embedded. Social capital is the glue that holds societies together and without which there can be no economic growth or human wellbeing