Hybridising governance for resilience in a time of crisis: learning from community-based organisations in Cape Town and Cali

Through the lens of food security this paper explores how community-based organisations (CBOs) in low-income neighbourhoods in Cape Town (South Africa) and Cali (Colombia) responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. In understanding how they engaged with and operationalised governance in times of crisis, we are able to critically engage with hybrid governance practices in these contexts and explore their potential to support equitable resilience. The findings are based on 12 months of qualitative research in both cities, including interviews and focus groups with community leaders and weekly digital diaries with local residents. We show how CBOs were able to supplement the state, build partnerships through boundary spanning and act as mediators and brokers by leveraging their trust-based networks to support distributive, procedural and recognitional resilience in their neighbourhoods. We argue that in contexts of vulnerability and rapidly changing conditions, hybridising governance is a more appropriate way to understand these processes, which may result in contested rather than integrated outcomes. Moreover, we find that while CBOs are highly effective first responders in times of crisis, without effective state partnership in other words, hybridity that includes the state, their potential for longer-term systemic, equitable resilience remains limited.

Article Summary

When COVID-19 lockdowns left millions of urban residents struggling to access basic necessities like food, who filled the gap between overwhelming need and inadequate government response? This comparative study reveals how community-based organizations (CBOs) in low-income neighborhoods became essential first responders during the pandemic, not just delivering emergency aid but actively participating in urban governance through what the authors call “hybridising governance” dynamic, contested processes where multiple actors (state, civil society, private sector) negotiate how to meet urgent community needs. The research focused on two CBOs: Sakhisizwe Youth Development Program in Cape Town’s informal settlement of Imizamo Yethu, and Asociación Mejorando Vidas (Asomevid) in Cali’s marginalized Aguablanca district. Both faced similar challenges spatial segregation, racialized poverty, inadequate state support yet their responses revealed how local context shapes governance during crisis.

Over 12 months, the researchers conducted interviews and focus groups with community leaders and weekly digital diaries with residents in both cities, documenting how CBOs mobilized to address food insecurity. The findings show that CBOs succeeded by leveraging three key practices. First, they navigated “institutional multiplicity” working alongside (and sometimes in competition with) multiple state and non-state actors rather than waiting for coordinated government response. Second, they engaged in “boundary spanning,” bridging socio-economic divides to connect wealthy donors with vulnerable residents, mobilizing resources through trusted networks built over years. Third, they practiced “mediated citizenship,” with respected local leaders brokering relationships between external stakeholders and community members, resolving conflicts over distribution, and ensuring that aid reached the most vulnerable without requiring formal documentation that might exclude undocumented migrants or stigmatized populations. In Cape Town, Sakhisizwe distributed approximately 90 tons of vegetables weekly during lockdown by partnering with NGO Love in a Bowl and coordinating 45 street committees. In Cali, Asomevid established “Tables of Hope” throughout the neighborhood, enabling residents to both take what they needed and contribute what they could, serving around 1,400 households.

However, the study also reveals critical limitations. While CBOs demonstrated remarkable capacity to support “equitable resilience”addressing distributive justice (fair allocation of resources), procedural justice (transparent decision-making), and recognitional justice (dignity for all regardless of legal status or identity) their impact remained localized and temporary. Without effective state partnership and systemic change, CBOs could address the immediate effects of crisis but not the structural causes of poverty and vulnerability. The research argues that “hybridising governance” better captures these dynamic, contested processes than “hybrid governance,” which implies integration that often doesn’t occur. Ultimately, while CBOs are highly effective first responders whose trust-based, locally embedded knowledge makes them indispensable during crisis, achieving longer-term equitable resilience requires the state to work collaboratively with them rather than leaving them to fill gaps alone.

 

Key Points

• Community-based organizations in Cape Town and Cali became essential first responders during COVID-19, addressing food insecurity through “hybridising governance” dynamic processes involving institutional multiplicity, boundary spanning, and mediated citizenship
• CBOs leveraged years of trust-building and deep local knowledge to ensure equitable distribution, reaching vulnerable populations (including undocumented migrants) overlooked by formal government responses that relied on rigid criteria or insensitive delivery methods
• The organizations supported three dimensions of equitable resilience: distributive justice (fair resource allocation based on need), procedural justice (transparent decision-making), and recognitional justice (dignity for all residents regardless of legal status or identity)
• Contextual differences shaped governance dynamics in Cape Town, CBOs navigated competition among civil society actors with minimal state presence, while in Cali, CBOs actively contested and sometimes superseded problematic state interventions
• While CBOs are highly effective at crisis response, their potential for longer-term systemic change and equitable resilience remains limited without meaningful state partnership, adequate resources, and collaborative governance frameworks that recognize their expertise

This study offers crucial insights for urban policymakers, development practitioners, humanitarian organizations, and community leaders seeking to understand how to build more effective, equitable governance systems that recognize and support the vital role of grassroots organizations in both crisis response and everyday resilience-building.