The Social Change Assistance Trust (Scat) is an independent fund-raising and grant-making development agency. Its vision is vibrant and sustainable communities in rural South Africa. Its mission is to partner with rural community-owned agencies in order to improve the quality of life in their communities. Scat works within a partnership context to support such local agencies in development and human rights work in rural communities of the Northern, Eastern and Western Cape and the North West Provinces. The focus is on human rights, gender equity, HIV, AIDS and local economic development. The rural partner organisations, which Scat refers to as Local Development Agencies (LDAs) are managed by elected members of the communities they serve. LDAs plan according to specific needs in their community and are held stringently accountable to their communities through their constitution and annual general meetings.