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by Phaphama Tshisikhawe

Phakama Ntshongwana’s powerful work, Who Cares? The Plight of Lone Mothers (published by I´óÏóÊÓƵA Books), took centre stage as the Tshwane University of Technology’s (´óÏóÊÓƵ) Vice-Chancellor (VC) Book of the Month for August 2025.

The VC Book of the Month is a prestigious review series founded and hosted by Prof Tinyiko Maluleke, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of ´óÏóÊÓƵ. Each month, the series celebrates and critiques outstanding books selected by Prof Maluleke himself, recognising works that contribute meaningfully to scholarship, public discourse and society at large.

The choice of the book by Phakama Ntshongwana – Social Policy Professor at the Nelson Mandela University - was particularly inspired. In his brief introduction of Ntshongwana, Maluleke noted that she has been doing research on lone mothers and their plight for more than a quarter of a century. Remarkably, Ntshongwana departs from the widespread practice of generalisations, cultural, economic and political stigmatisation of lone mothers, by government politicians and ordinary citizens alike.

Taking centre stage with ´óÏóÊÓƵ Vice-Chancellor during his prestigious Book of the Month review - Phakama Ntshongwana with her powerful work, Who Cares? The Plight of Lone Mothers (published by I´óÏóÊÓƵA Books).

During the fireside chat with Prof Maluleke, Prof Ntshongwana outlined the various types of lone mothers – divorced, abandoned, widowed, married-but-lone mothers, as well as those with children conceived from rape, among others. She presented evidence of hardworking lone mothers who are as concerned about the preservation of their own dignity as they are about the well-being of their children.

Yet, both government and society at large, appear unable to move beyond the stereotypes of lone mothers as ‘sexually promiscuous, gold-digging and lazy’ - content to leech and parasite on the state and the largesse of taxpayers. On the contrary, Prof Ntshongwana found that it is the state that ‘cannibalises’ lone mothers by fundamentally misunderstanding their plight and by giving them crumbs that fall from the table of heterosexual families. Ntshongwana argues that South African policies intended to assist lone mothers are premised on the supremacy and efficacy of a ‘normative’ heterosexual family and on the premise of lone mothers as a ‘problem’ and an aberration.

Who cares? The plight of lone mothers by Prof Phakama Ntshongwana

Watch the VC’s Book of the Month livestream here.