The design of a performing Arts Centre at Makana’s Kop, in Makhanda
- Authors: Zitumane, Siphosethu Asanda
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Centers for the performing arts -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Art centers -- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Designs and plans
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/${Handle} , vital:59921
- Description: Nearly three decades into democracy, the South African landscape is still embed - ded with the ideologies and systems of apartheid. Separateness has come to de - fine its cartography, drawing clear lines between races. To bridge the racial divide and reconstruct the national identity, the South African government adopted the Rainbow Nation as its brand. This branding did little to address the systemic racism ingrained into its society and landscape. This treatise identifies the limits of the rainbow nation, through an investigation of the intersections between memory, identity, and place. It identifies the imbalance in the expression of certain narratives as barrier in the progression of South Africa’s nation building initiative. Attempting to find a resolution, it offers the design of a performing arts center on Makana’s Kop, Makhanda as a starting point. This archi - tectural endeavor aims to express the oppressed narratives and memories of the Makhandan community. Through exploring how these issues play out in Makhanda, Makana’s Kop is iden - tified as an appropriate site for the architectural manifestation of this treatise. The significance of the site, and its relationship with other monumental structures in this city make it a suitable place for the design of a building of this nature. The inves - tigation is led to examine the architectural and theoretical principles that will ad - opted to aid in making this a successful architectural resolution to the issues iden - tified; which are firstly the need for an architecture to symbolize democracy and the new South African Identity and secondly the need for a container for culture and art for the Makana’s Kop community. The treatise, and thus the the endeavor, is concluded with a presentation and analysis of the final architectural product and the design and technical strategies that were implemented. , Thesis (MArch (Professional) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology ,School of Architecture 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Zitumane, Siphosethu Asanda
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Centers for the performing arts -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Art centers -- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Designs and plans
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/${Handle} , vital:59921
- Description: Nearly three decades into democracy, the South African landscape is still embed - ded with the ideologies and systems of apartheid. Separateness has come to de - fine its cartography, drawing clear lines between races. To bridge the racial divide and reconstruct the national identity, the South African government adopted the Rainbow Nation as its brand. This branding did little to address the systemic racism ingrained into its society and landscape. This treatise identifies the limits of the rainbow nation, through an investigation of the intersections between memory, identity, and place. It identifies the imbalance in the expression of certain narratives as barrier in the progression of South Africa’s nation building initiative. Attempting to find a resolution, it offers the design of a performing arts center on Makana’s Kop, Makhanda as a starting point. This archi - tectural endeavor aims to express the oppressed narratives and memories of the Makhandan community. Through exploring how these issues play out in Makhanda, Makana’s Kop is iden - tified as an appropriate site for the architectural manifestation of this treatise. The significance of the site, and its relationship with other monumental structures in this city make it a suitable place for the design of a building of this nature. The inves - tigation is led to examine the architectural and theoretical principles that will ad - opted to aid in making this a successful architectural resolution to the issues iden - tified; which are firstly the need for an architecture to symbolize democracy and the new South African Identity and secondly the need for a container for culture and art for the Makana’s Kop community. The treatise, and thus the the endeavor, is concluded with a presentation and analysis of the final architectural product and the design and technical strategies that were implemented. , Thesis (MArch (Professional) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology ,School of Architecture 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The design of a regional Archives in Swellendam, South Africa
- Authors: Steyn, Anli
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Archival materials -- Conservation and restoration -- Construction , Community centers -- South Africa -- Swellendam -- Designs and plans
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58595 , vital:59944
- Description: The treatise and proposed project deal with the creation of spaces rooted in the culture of a place, its identity, memory and meaning in the form of a contemporary regional archive and museum space for the context of Swellendam’s historical ribbon. The treatise seeks to find a strategy for a contemporary, yet regional specific, intervention in a traditional context and attempts to fulfil the creation of a place of culture, identity, meaning and memory. The methodology used for this architectural treatise is qualitative. In order to establish an appropriate building type, Swellendam's history and contextual data were analysed, at the same time, selected literature and ideas were introduced to establish the project's value set. Methods and principles are extracted and reinterpreted by the design project. Among the various works of literatures/theories reviewed in this treatise is that of Jonathan Noble, Maurice Halbwach, and Kenneth Frampton, among others. This respective literature sets the basis of the project’s value set on place and identity, memory and meaning, and tectonics and materials. The town’s rich history, morphology and nature of physical context are selected as an appropriate site. Furthermore, the treatise explores museums and archives as building types. This is done through the comparison of precedents under the light of certain issues. From this, the building type’s activities and spatial, programmatical requirements are gathered. Amid this various information collected are a set of relevant principles. Therefore, a set of principles (approach to memory, meaning and identity; heritage and conservation; extracting from the existing/vernacular/context; and approach to light) is explored and precedents are used to represent and learn from principles. This design project goes through a series of iterations to fulfil the specific architectural concerns and to create architecture specific for the context (relation to place, culture, history and site). The final design attempts to be a sensitive intervention, neutral in form, that resembles a heterogenous culture and hybridity. It aims to represent the culture of its place while being a public museum and archive facility. , Thesis (MArch) (Professional) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Steyn, Anli
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Archival materials -- Conservation and restoration -- Construction , Community centers -- South Africa -- Swellendam -- Designs and plans
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58595 , vital:59944
- Description: The treatise and proposed project deal with the creation of spaces rooted in the culture of a place, its identity, memory and meaning in the form of a contemporary regional archive and museum space for the context of Swellendam’s historical ribbon. The treatise seeks to find a strategy for a contemporary, yet regional specific, intervention in a traditional context and attempts to fulfil the creation of a place of culture, identity, meaning and memory. The methodology used for this architectural treatise is qualitative. In order to establish an appropriate building type, Swellendam's history and contextual data were analysed, at the same time, selected literature and ideas were introduced to establish the project's value set. Methods and principles are extracted and reinterpreted by the design project. Among the various works of literatures/theories reviewed in this treatise is that of Jonathan Noble, Maurice Halbwach, and Kenneth Frampton, among others. This respective literature sets the basis of the project’s value set on place and identity, memory and meaning, and tectonics and materials. The town’s rich history, morphology and nature of physical context are selected as an appropriate site. Furthermore, the treatise explores museums and archives as building types. This is done through the comparison of precedents under the light of certain issues. From this, the building type’s activities and spatial, programmatical requirements are gathered. Amid this various information collected are a set of relevant principles. Therefore, a set of principles (approach to memory, meaning and identity; heritage and conservation; extracting from the existing/vernacular/context; and approach to light) is explored and precedents are used to represent and learn from principles. This design project goes through a series of iterations to fulfil the specific architectural concerns and to create architecture specific for the context (relation to place, culture, history and site). The final design attempts to be a sensitive intervention, neutral in form, that resembles a heterogenous culture and hybridity. It aims to represent the culture of its place while being a public museum and archive facility. , Thesis (MArch) (Professional) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The design of a social incubator in Lombok, Utrecht, the Netherlands - a regeneration of 'terrain vague' space
- Authors: Holm, Alma
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Terrain vague—Netherlands – designs and plans , Landscape architecture --Netherlands
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58705 , vital:60021
- Description: ‘Terrain vague’, a collective term coined by Spanish architect Ignasi Sola-Morales, denotes the unused, forgotten spaces located in between categorised spaces and artefacts. It is an omnipresent typology found within productive structures of urban environments, yet ‘mentally exterior to them’ , in other words detached from the energies that surround them. Physically, these spaces are identified as traffic circles, parking lots, open plots, spaces underneath highways, or forgotten buildings. These spaces have a strangeness to them, the detachedness from the conventions of their surrounds gives them a sense of mobility, freedom, and liberty. This creates a perfect environment for the exploration of new ideas. Therefore, this unrealised potential makes these spaces best understood as a relationship between the absence of use, and the sense of expectancy. Mobile interconnectedness has created a transition in the way we work and live together. According to Raumlabor (2018), these new socio-cultural and economic challenges demand new types of solutions which cannot be solved by top-down monofunctional implementations (Raumlabor, 2018). According to design studio Knoll (2020) “the home has become less home, and the office type has vanished. Instead, the work space has changed into a playground where connections are made and interaction is fostered”. This socio-cultural transition creates a shift in the appropriation of space, therefore creating a demand for new types of solutions (Knoll, 2020). This treatise investigates a process of renegotiation of leftover space on Westplein in Utrecht in the Netherlands. The site is an example of ‘terrain vague’ centrally located in the city. The municipality of Utrecht has initiated a temporary intervention on Westplein run by local societies and residents of the neighbourhood Lombok. The aim of this intervention is to generate input from locals through the act of placemaking before the reconstruction of the area into a public park. Furthermore, this intervention also aims to stimulate interaction and connection between local residents as a means to negate the potential for another gentrification process. Therefore, this project is a continuation of temporary activities run by the societies Stichting Perron West, Lucrative Dumpsterdives and Pluktuin. These activities include providing flexible workspace for local residents, collaborative public art workshops, events, concerts, gardening and other activities that connect local artists with residents. This project proposes an ‘architecture a communal and continuous process’ which reflect the needs of the current users, but is capable of being adapted to the technical ability of everyone in order to fulfil the needs of the future users without the creation of waste during its transformation. The proposed typologies, namely citylab and social incubator, aim to create a platform for connection, to stimulate small scale social entrepreneurship that contributes to the creation of a better local urban environment. , Thesis (MArch) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Holm, Alma
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Terrain vague—Netherlands – designs and plans , Landscape architecture --Netherlands
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58705 , vital:60021
- Description: ‘Terrain vague’, a collective term coined by Spanish architect Ignasi Sola-Morales, denotes the unused, forgotten spaces located in between categorised spaces and artefacts. It is an omnipresent typology found within productive structures of urban environments, yet ‘mentally exterior to them’ , in other words detached from the energies that surround them. Physically, these spaces are identified as traffic circles, parking lots, open plots, spaces underneath highways, or forgotten buildings. These spaces have a strangeness to them, the detachedness from the conventions of their surrounds gives them a sense of mobility, freedom, and liberty. This creates a perfect environment for the exploration of new ideas. Therefore, this unrealised potential makes these spaces best understood as a relationship between the absence of use, and the sense of expectancy. Mobile interconnectedness has created a transition in the way we work and live together. According to Raumlabor (2018), these new socio-cultural and economic challenges demand new types of solutions which cannot be solved by top-down monofunctional implementations (Raumlabor, 2018). According to design studio Knoll (2020) “the home has become less home, and the office type has vanished. Instead, the work space has changed into a playground where connections are made and interaction is fostered”. This socio-cultural transition creates a shift in the appropriation of space, therefore creating a demand for new types of solutions (Knoll, 2020). This treatise investigates a process of renegotiation of leftover space on Westplein in Utrecht in the Netherlands. The site is an example of ‘terrain vague’ centrally located in the city. The municipality of Utrecht has initiated a temporary intervention on Westplein run by local societies and residents of the neighbourhood Lombok. The aim of this intervention is to generate input from locals through the act of placemaking before the reconstruction of the area into a public park. Furthermore, this intervention also aims to stimulate interaction and connection between local residents as a means to negate the potential for another gentrification process. Therefore, this project is a continuation of temporary activities run by the societies Stichting Perron West, Lucrative Dumpsterdives and Pluktuin. These activities include providing flexible workspace for local residents, collaborative public art workshops, events, concerts, gardening and other activities that connect local artists with residents. This project proposes an ‘architecture a communal and continuous process’ which reflect the needs of the current users, but is capable of being adapted to the technical ability of everyone in order to fulfil the needs of the future users without the creation of waste during its transformation. The proposed typologies, namely citylab and social incubator, aim to create a platform for connection, to stimulate small scale social entrepreneurship that contributes to the creation of a better local urban environment. , Thesis (MArch) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The design of a special needs school: for children affected by trauma associated with HIV and AIDS in Schauderville, Gqeberha
- Authors: Felton, Mae Sarah
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: School buildings -- Design and construction , AIDS (Disease) -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Children with disabilities -- Education -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58838 , vital:60171
- Description: HIV and AIDS has been a long-standing and growing pandemic worldwide, but particularly in the context of South Africa. As a result, a pattern of trauma noticeably follows individuals, families and communities, and especially impacts on learners and their experience within the education system. Conventional school environments and buildings often become unaccommodating, harsh and overly-stimulating for learners with traumatic backgrounds and stress. Special needs schools address different disorders and conditions separately, and accommodate a variety of unique demands through teaching interventions and, more importantly, through architecture. This treatise aimed to break away from institutional and conventional architecture by applying theories on child development and architecture, the psychology of space, sensory architecture and trauma-informed design. This treatise positioned itself in empathy and wellness, with concern for the psychological experience of environments for learners, demonstrated through special needs schools, which addressed trauma associated with HIV and AIDS. Hence, this building type was explored to deinstitutionalise educational environments, to identify and address these learners’s specific needs. In realising an architectural intervention with reactive and therapeutic intent, the type of trauma and the relative experiences which triggered it needed to be understood and used to inform and shape comprehensive buildings and environments. This treatise, and the conclusions drawn from it, intended to guide and inform a principle typology and model for future projects of the same nature. As the first of its type, the special needs school location was in Gqeberha and in close proximity to Livingstone Hospital, where the HIV and AIDS cases were the highest. It was situated within the residential zone and schooling district of Schauderville, on the existing site of Adolph Schauder Primary School. The opportunities and challenges in and around this site, along with design principles based on the adopted theories informed an architectural intervention which challenged conventional schooling and design applications in favour of a more empathetic and considerate relationship between learners and architecture. , Thesis (MArch) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Felton, Mae Sarah
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: School buildings -- Design and construction , AIDS (Disease) -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Children with disabilities -- Education -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58838 , vital:60171
- Description: HIV and AIDS has been a long-standing and growing pandemic worldwide, but particularly in the context of South Africa. As a result, a pattern of trauma noticeably follows individuals, families and communities, and especially impacts on learners and their experience within the education system. Conventional school environments and buildings often become unaccommodating, harsh and overly-stimulating for learners with traumatic backgrounds and stress. Special needs schools address different disorders and conditions separately, and accommodate a variety of unique demands through teaching interventions and, more importantly, through architecture. This treatise aimed to break away from institutional and conventional architecture by applying theories on child development and architecture, the psychology of space, sensory architecture and trauma-informed design. This treatise positioned itself in empathy and wellness, with concern for the psychological experience of environments for learners, demonstrated through special needs schools, which addressed trauma associated with HIV and AIDS. Hence, this building type was explored to deinstitutionalise educational environments, to identify and address these learners’s specific needs. In realising an architectural intervention with reactive and therapeutic intent, the type of trauma and the relative experiences which triggered it needed to be understood and used to inform and shape comprehensive buildings and environments. This treatise, and the conclusions drawn from it, intended to guide and inform a principle typology and model for future projects of the same nature. As the first of its type, the special needs school location was in Gqeberha and in close proximity to Livingstone Hospital, where the HIV and AIDS cases were the highest. It was situated within the residential zone and schooling district of Schauderville, on the existing site of Adolph Schauder Primary School. The opportunities and challenges in and around this site, along with design principles based on the adopted theories informed an architectural intervention which challenged conventional schooling and design applications in favour of a more empathetic and considerate relationship between learners and architecture. , Thesis (MArch) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The design of an automotive academy for Mercedes Benz in Gately, East London
- Authors: Dustan,Cameron
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Automobile factories -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Automobiles -- Design and construction
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58860 , vital:60221
- Description: The purpose of this project is to investigate the automotive industry in East London, specifically Mercedes-Benz, in order to propose extensions of the skills development academy and exhibition spaces as an integral part of a larger campus of education. The Mercedes-Benz factory precinct in East London is one of the four largest in the world and is the biggest in Africa, creating grounds for extension. In East London, there is plenty of unemployment and many are seeking jobs in the industrial areas which are mainly automotive. Due to most of the industry being owned by Mercedes-Benz, it is crucial to engage in high levels of education and to provide opportunities for growth within the industry and expansion of skills. Students at the academy will learn different skills in the automotive manufacturing trade and will be guaranteed jobs after their studies are completed. The skills academy will form part of an educational precinct which will establish a narrative for the timeline of Mercedes-Benz. The project will hopefully provide more job opportunities and skills training for the locals of East London as well as to contribute to the economy of the automotive industry. Much like cars, industry works as a machine; there are bits and pieces that need to puzzle together in order to create a working and living machine. The automotive skills academies are exactly that for the industry, a piece of the puzzle which ensures the working of the industry as a whole, now and in the future. Without these skills academies, the automotive industry would subsequently lose its fundamental skills and knowledge base. The core concern for this treatise is the expansion of the industry by creating extensions of the Mercedes-Benz skills academy and creating a space which is educational while being a user-friendly building focused on the wellness of workers and rates of productivity to ensure maximized output and the further growth of the industry. The project is based in East London and will hold a pivotal role in the automotive industry. The treatise looks to break away from the hard industrial aspects of the industry and pull away from the static architecture of Mercedes-Benz and the surrounding buildings, to create a vibrant and experiential building with the overarching emphasis on occupational wellness and innovation in the design. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Dustan,Cameron
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Automobile factories -- South Africa -- East London -- Designs and plans , Automobiles -- Design and construction
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58860 , vital:60221
- Description: The purpose of this project is to investigate the automotive industry in East London, specifically Mercedes-Benz, in order to propose extensions of the skills development academy and exhibition spaces as an integral part of a larger campus of education. The Mercedes-Benz factory precinct in East London is one of the four largest in the world and is the biggest in Africa, creating grounds for extension. In East London, there is plenty of unemployment and many are seeking jobs in the industrial areas which are mainly automotive. Due to most of the industry being owned by Mercedes-Benz, it is crucial to engage in high levels of education and to provide opportunities for growth within the industry and expansion of skills. Students at the academy will learn different skills in the automotive manufacturing trade and will be guaranteed jobs after their studies are completed. The skills academy will form part of an educational precinct which will establish a narrative for the timeline of Mercedes-Benz. The project will hopefully provide more job opportunities and skills training for the locals of East London as well as to contribute to the economy of the automotive industry. Much like cars, industry works as a machine; there are bits and pieces that need to puzzle together in order to create a working and living machine. The automotive skills academies are exactly that for the industry, a piece of the puzzle which ensures the working of the industry as a whole, now and in the future. Without these skills academies, the automotive industry would subsequently lose its fundamental skills and knowledge base. The core concern for this treatise is the expansion of the industry by creating extensions of the Mercedes-Benz skills academy and creating a space which is educational while being a user-friendly building focused on the wellness of workers and rates of productivity to ensure maximized output and the further growth of the industry. The project is based in East London and will hold a pivotal role in the automotive industry. The treatise looks to break away from the hard industrial aspects of the industry and pull away from the static architecture of Mercedes-Benz and the surrounding buildings, to create a vibrant and experiential building with the overarching emphasis on occupational wellness and innovation in the design. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The design of an infectious disease centre of excellence for the study of infectious diseases at Livingstone Hospital, Gqeberha
- L’ange, Christopher Jonathan
- Authors: L’ange, Christopher Jonathan
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Hospital buildings –South Africa – Port Elizabeth –design and plans , Hospitals buildings –Disinfection –Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58683 , vital:59985
- Description: The COVID-19 virus showed the world how under-prepared it was to cope with a pandemic. It also raised an awareness in the world that a highly communicable disease can begin anywhere, and without proper monitoring and reporting can spread to become a global pandemic. The South African Health Department has been under significant stress and on the brink of collapse during the successive waves of the pandemic due to the lack of healthcare workers, medical doctors, infectious disease specialists and epidemiologists as well inadequate medical and clinical infrastructure. The infectious disease specialty in South Africa is also in crisis, prompting the Infectious Disease Society of South Africa to plead with the Health Department and universities to fund projects that support learning and research into infectious diseases, virology, and epidemiology. This project proposes the design of an Infectious Disease Centre of Excellence for the Study of Infectious Diseases at Livingstone Hospital, Gqeberha which focuses on the research, teaching and learning, and healing of infectious diseases in a ho listic building design incorporating biosafety research laboratories, an infectious disease ward and a centre of excellence. The methodology used was to research existing precedent studies that are focused on the research, teaching and learning, and healing of infectious diseases as well as researching a theoretical framework based on holism and systemic architec ture. This theoretical framework, coupled with a careful analysis of the relation ship of each highly specialised space with the other space components leads to the design of an Infectious Disease Centre of Excellence for the Study of Infectious Diseases which responds to the urgent need expressed above as well as providing a design which promotes the well-being of all users. The facility also enhances the Livingstone Hospital precinct. Key Words: Infectious Diseases, Laboratory, Ward, Centre of Excellence, Bio-Safe ty, Holism, Systemic. , Thesis (MArch) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: L’ange, Christopher Jonathan
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Hospital buildings –South Africa – Port Elizabeth –design and plans , Hospitals buildings –Disinfection –Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58683 , vital:59985
- Description: The COVID-19 virus showed the world how under-prepared it was to cope with a pandemic. It also raised an awareness in the world that a highly communicable disease can begin anywhere, and without proper monitoring and reporting can spread to become a global pandemic. The South African Health Department has been under significant stress and on the brink of collapse during the successive waves of the pandemic due to the lack of healthcare workers, medical doctors, infectious disease specialists and epidemiologists as well inadequate medical and clinical infrastructure. The infectious disease specialty in South Africa is also in crisis, prompting the Infectious Disease Society of South Africa to plead with the Health Department and universities to fund projects that support learning and research into infectious diseases, virology, and epidemiology. This project proposes the design of an Infectious Disease Centre of Excellence for the Study of Infectious Diseases at Livingstone Hospital, Gqeberha which focuses on the research, teaching and learning, and healing of infectious diseases in a ho listic building design incorporating biosafety research laboratories, an infectious disease ward and a centre of excellence. The methodology used was to research existing precedent studies that are focused on the research, teaching and learning, and healing of infectious diseases as well as researching a theoretical framework based on holism and systemic architec ture. This theoretical framework, coupled with a careful analysis of the relation ship of each highly specialised space with the other space components leads to the design of an Infectious Disease Centre of Excellence for the Study of Infectious Diseases which responds to the urgent need expressed above as well as providing a design which promotes the well-being of all users. The facility also enhances the Livingstone Hospital precinct. Key Words: Infectious Diseases, Laboratory, Ward, Centre of Excellence, Bio-Safe ty, Holism, Systemic. , Thesis (MArch) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology, School of Architecture, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The effect of silicon on palladium migration in pyrolytic carbon and graphite
- Authors: Downey, Justin Michael
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/53665 , vital:45684
- Description: The pebble-bed reactor (PBR) is a graphite-moderated, gas-cooled high temperature nuclear reactor design and it is one of six nuclear reactor concepts included in the Generation IV initiative. Pebble-bed reactors use spherical fuel elements (called pebbles) which consist of pyrolytic graphite (which acts as the moderator) and contain thousands of micro-fuel particles called tristructural isotropic (TRISO) particles. These TRISO fuel particles consist of a fissile material (such as U235 in oxide or carbide form) surrounded by a carbon buffer layer, a pyrolytic carbon (PyC) layer, a silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic layer for structural integrity and metallic fission product containment, and an outer PyC layer. The PBR is claimed to be a passively safe design. The commercial development of the first pebble bed reactor was that of the German AVR reactor (German: Arbeitsgemeinschaft Versuchsreaktor) developed during the 1960s. The AVR design was later updated and marketed by a company called HTR. In 1999 the South African electricity company ESKOM obtained the right to access the HTR engineering database that included details of the Siemens/Interatom HTR-Module design. ESKOM worked with HTR on a new design and dubbed it the pebble bed modular reactor (PBMR). The PBMR Co. Ltd. was formed in 1999 and mandated to license and build PBMR reactors. One of the safety considerations which emerged from research is that of metal fission product release from the TRISO fuel particles. Ag110m is a radioactive metallic fission product found to have been released from intact TRISO particles. The release of this Ag isotope is of particular concern because it is highly gamma active and has a half-life of approximately 250 days, resulting in unsafe environments for maintenance workers of PBRs. During the past four decades, many different mechanisms for Ag transport in SiC and release from TRISO particles have been proposed. A promising more recent mechanism suggests that the metallic fission product palladium (Pd) plays a significant role in the transport and release of Ag from intact TRISO particles. In this mechanism Ag transport in irradiated TRISO particle fuel takes place in the presence of the fission product Pd. The Pd reacts with the SiC layer and penetrates the SiC layer along grain boundaries to form a silicide layer which provides a rapid diffusion path for Ag in the SiC. The presence of thin silicide layers in irradiated TRISO particles was subsequently confirmed. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, School of Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics and Statistics, 2021
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Downey, Justin Michael
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/53665 , vital:45684
- Description: The pebble-bed reactor (PBR) is a graphite-moderated, gas-cooled high temperature nuclear reactor design and it is one of six nuclear reactor concepts included in the Generation IV initiative. Pebble-bed reactors use spherical fuel elements (called pebbles) which consist of pyrolytic graphite (which acts as the moderator) and contain thousands of micro-fuel particles called tristructural isotropic (TRISO) particles. These TRISO fuel particles consist of a fissile material (such as U235 in oxide or carbide form) surrounded by a carbon buffer layer, a pyrolytic carbon (PyC) layer, a silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic layer for structural integrity and metallic fission product containment, and an outer PyC layer. The PBR is claimed to be a passively safe design. The commercial development of the first pebble bed reactor was that of the German AVR reactor (German: Arbeitsgemeinschaft Versuchsreaktor) developed during the 1960s. The AVR design was later updated and marketed by a company called HTR. In 1999 the South African electricity company ESKOM obtained the right to access the HTR engineering database that included details of the Siemens/Interatom HTR-Module design. ESKOM worked with HTR on a new design and dubbed it the pebble bed modular reactor (PBMR). The PBMR Co. Ltd. was formed in 1999 and mandated to license and build PBMR reactors. One of the safety considerations which emerged from research is that of metal fission product release from the TRISO fuel particles. Ag110m is a radioactive metallic fission product found to have been released from intact TRISO particles. The release of this Ag isotope is of particular concern because it is highly gamma active and has a half-life of approximately 250 days, resulting in unsafe environments for maintenance workers of PBRs. During the past four decades, many different mechanisms for Ag transport in SiC and release from TRISO particles have been proposed. A promising more recent mechanism suggests that the metallic fission product palladium (Pd) plays a significant role in the transport and release of Ag from intact TRISO particles. In this mechanism Ag transport in irradiated TRISO particle fuel takes place in the presence of the fission product Pd. The Pd reacts with the SiC layer and penetrates the SiC layer along grain boundaries to form a silicide layer which provides a rapid diffusion path for Ag in the SiC. The presence of thin silicide layers in irradiated TRISO particles was subsequently confirmed. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, School of Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics and Statistics, 2021
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The effect of technological innovation on employment: the case of manufacturing sector in South Africa
- Authors: Matjiwa, Keaobaka Onicca
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Manufacturing industries -- Technological innovations -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54058 , vital:46209
- Description: The role of technological innovation in the growth of an economy and the production of goods and services motivated this research. Technology is expected to boost production and relieve workers of the stress of doing repetitive tasks. It can also have a long-term impact on economic activity by increasing manufacturing efficiency and lowering production costs, which can be translated into lower prices for the goods and services demanded. The main objective of the study is to examine the relationship between technological innovation and employment, using a case study of the manufacturing sector in South Africa, making use of the Tobit regression model estimation technique. Annual secondary time series data spanning the period of 1970 to 2019 was employed. Earlier studies conducted in South Africa measured the relationship between employment in the manufacturing sector and technological innovation using different methodologies, including estimating procedures, model specifications and time frames. In this study the Tobit model estimation technique is utilised. The Tobit model results showed that there is a negative and significant relationship between variables used as proxies for technological innovation and employment in the manufacturing sector. That means an increase in technological innovation by 1 point will decrease employment in the manufacturing sector in South Africa by 0.52 points. Furthermore, the results reveals that there is relationship among control variables under the study. Based on the findings, the study therefore recommends that the government and policy makers formulate and adjust economic development policies that will produce the needed economic growth to secure employment in the midst of technological advancements in the manufacturing sector, through SETAs, TVETs and other Higher education institutions by interacting with the industry to develop curriculum and offer qualifications that enhance skills complementary to technological use, such as robotics, servicing of technology, software engineering, big data analytics and so forth. , Thesis (MCom) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Matjiwa, Keaobaka Onicca
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Manufacturing industries -- Technological innovations -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54058 , vital:46209
- Description: The role of technological innovation in the growth of an economy and the production of goods and services motivated this research. Technology is expected to boost production and relieve workers of the stress of doing repetitive tasks. It can also have a long-term impact on economic activity by increasing manufacturing efficiency and lowering production costs, which can be translated into lower prices for the goods and services demanded. The main objective of the study is to examine the relationship between technological innovation and employment, using a case study of the manufacturing sector in South Africa, making use of the Tobit regression model estimation technique. Annual secondary time series data spanning the period of 1970 to 2019 was employed. Earlier studies conducted in South Africa measured the relationship between employment in the manufacturing sector and technological innovation using different methodologies, including estimating procedures, model specifications and time frames. In this study the Tobit model estimation technique is utilised. The Tobit model results showed that there is a negative and significant relationship between variables used as proxies for technological innovation and employment in the manufacturing sector. That means an increase in technological innovation by 1 point will decrease employment in the manufacturing sector in South Africa by 0.52 points. Furthermore, the results reveals that there is relationship among control variables under the study. Based on the findings, the study therefore recommends that the government and policy makers formulate and adjust economic development policies that will produce the needed economic growth to secure employment in the midst of technological advancements in the manufacturing sector, through SETAs, TVETs and other Higher education institutions by interacting with the industry to develop curriculum and offer qualifications that enhance skills complementary to technological use, such as robotics, servicing of technology, software engineering, big data analytics and so forth. , Thesis (MCom) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The effectiveness of the Land Redistribution programme on women’s quality of life: A case of Buffalo City Municipality, Eastern Cape: a case of buffalo City Municipality, Eastern Cape
- Authors: Qayiso, Okuhle
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Land reform -- South Africa -- Buffalo City , Women's rights -- South Africa -- Buffalo City
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54277 , vital:46392
- Description: The land question is a highly contentious issue in post-apartheid South Africa. Land is considered as a valuable resource for sustaining the livelihoods of people yet it remains one of the most sought after and contested resource in Africa owing to her colonial past. Black South Africans were also immensely subjected to land dispossession during the colonization by the Dutch and later the British and forced land removals during the apartheid era. Although this historical context from a lens of “race" is important to note here given how it shaped the South African geography of land ownership, there is nonetheless another dimension; that of gender. The main assertion driving this study is that due to a number of contextual factors (such as women's cultural status, economic inequality and poverty), land ownership between women and men is highly unequal whereby the former owns less and is mostly marginalized from land rights. This study thus looks at the extent to which land redistribution improves the quality of life for women in Buffalo City. The land redistribution program is part of the land reform policy which is a post-apartheid design and implemented for the purpose of redressing historical land dispossession and create redistributive land equality and tenure. This study employed a qualitative approach to ‘explore’ the experiences of women who are the beneficiaries of the land redistribution program as well as the perspectives of key informants who are the officials of the Rural Development and Reform Department. The thesis used an exploratory research design which was suitable for the understanding and unpacking of women's experiences with the land redistribution program. A major finding of this study is that the women who benefited from the land redistribution program have successfully progressed from small scale subsistence farming to large scale commercial farming, significantly improving their livelihoods. Nonetheless, the lack of financial capital is a critical challenge as the land redistribution program gives access to farms that need maintenance and renewal with financial grants that are barely enough for starting up. This study therefore argues that access to land should be accompanied by access to financial resources and capacity building to empower beneficiaries to use the land and other resources effectively and efficiently. It is recommended herein that the department should give beneficiaries full ownership of the land allocated to them as opposed to the thirty- year leasehold. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Qayiso, Okuhle
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Land reform -- South Africa -- Buffalo City , Women's rights -- South Africa -- Buffalo City
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54277 , vital:46392
- Description: The land question is a highly contentious issue in post-apartheid South Africa. Land is considered as a valuable resource for sustaining the livelihoods of people yet it remains one of the most sought after and contested resource in Africa owing to her colonial past. Black South Africans were also immensely subjected to land dispossession during the colonization by the Dutch and later the British and forced land removals during the apartheid era. Although this historical context from a lens of “race" is important to note here given how it shaped the South African geography of land ownership, there is nonetheless another dimension; that of gender. The main assertion driving this study is that due to a number of contextual factors (such as women's cultural status, economic inequality and poverty), land ownership between women and men is highly unequal whereby the former owns less and is mostly marginalized from land rights. This study thus looks at the extent to which land redistribution improves the quality of life for women in Buffalo City. The land redistribution program is part of the land reform policy which is a post-apartheid design and implemented for the purpose of redressing historical land dispossession and create redistributive land equality and tenure. This study employed a qualitative approach to ‘explore’ the experiences of women who are the beneficiaries of the land redistribution program as well as the perspectives of key informants who are the officials of the Rural Development and Reform Department. The thesis used an exploratory research design which was suitable for the understanding and unpacking of women's experiences with the land redistribution program. A major finding of this study is that the women who benefited from the land redistribution program have successfully progressed from small scale subsistence farming to large scale commercial farming, significantly improving their livelihoods. Nonetheless, the lack of financial capital is a critical challenge as the land redistribution program gives access to farms that need maintenance and renewal with financial grants that are barely enough for starting up. This study therefore argues that access to land should be accompanied by access to financial resources and capacity building to empower beneficiaries to use the land and other resources effectively and efficiently. It is recommended herein that the department should give beneficiaries full ownership of the land allocated to them as opposed to the thirty- year leasehold. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The evaluation of the Joint Action Project (JAP) waste intervention in Gqeberha township
- Authors: Nqunqa, Likhona Nonopha
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Economic development projects -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- Evaluation
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54266 , vital:46387
- Description: Successful development projects are not only grounded in proper planning and implementation but also in evaluation. Numerous development projects are implemented successfully but lack evaluation. This study evaluates the Joint Action Project (JAP) waste intervention that took place in Gqeberha Township in February 2020. The intervention was designed and implemented by a group of student volunteers from Nelson Mandela University (NMU), Port Elizabeth (PE) College and Wismar University. This was a collaborative project between Development Studies, Human Settlements Development, Electrical Engineering, Communication and Design as well as Architecture students who worked together to construct a workspace for a male informal waste picker residing in Gqeberha township. The study adopted a qualitative research approach and data was collected through interviews and field observation. Although the findings of this study revealed that there were some challenges encountered by the beneficiary and the JAP team during the project implementation, the benefits of the intervention exceeded these challenges. These benefits include the improvement of the beneficiary’s livelihood and waste picking business, improvement of health and improvement of the environment surrounding the intervention site , Thesis (MADS) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Nqunqa, Likhona Nonopha
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Economic development projects -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- Evaluation
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54266 , vital:46387
- Description: Successful development projects are not only grounded in proper planning and implementation but also in evaluation. Numerous development projects are implemented successfully but lack evaluation. This study evaluates the Joint Action Project (JAP) waste intervention that took place in Gqeberha Township in February 2020. The intervention was designed and implemented by a group of student volunteers from Nelson Mandela University (NMU), Port Elizabeth (PE) College and Wismar University. This was a collaborative project between Development Studies, Human Settlements Development, Electrical Engineering, Communication and Design as well as Architecture students who worked together to construct a workspace for a male informal waste picker residing in Gqeberha township. The study adopted a qualitative research approach and data was collected through interviews and field observation. Although the findings of this study revealed that there were some challenges encountered by the beneficiary and the JAP team during the project implementation, the benefits of the intervention exceeded these challenges. These benefits include the improvement of the beneficiary’s livelihood and waste picking business, improvement of health and improvement of the environment surrounding the intervention site , Thesis (MADS) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The impact of COVID-19 on depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress levels in doctors and nurses at a South African health facility
- Authors: Finger-Motsepe, Kelebogile
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: COVID-19 (Disease) , Mental health
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/27920 , vital:70880
- Description: Introduction: The emergence of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (Covid-19) has wrought profound and enduring transformations in global health, economic dynamics, and social interactions. However, the comprehensive quantification of the psychological repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic remains elusive and is poised to compound the preexisting burden of mental health disorders within the general populace. Elevated transmission rates, rapid disease progression within vulnerable demographics, and the absence of definitive curative or preventive measures have collectively contributed to a heightened worldwide state of stress and anxiety. Extensive research has demonstrated that the apprehension and stress associated with Covid-19 are markedly pronounced among healthcare professionals, commonly referred to as front-line workers, in comparison to the general population. The Covid-19-related psychological distress is anticipated to act as a catalyst, exacerbating mental health conditions within high-risk groups. Aims and Objectives: This study endeavours to ascertain the prevalence and severity of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among medical doctors and nurses employed at a regional hospital in South Africa. Methodology: A cross-sectional investigation was conducted to evaluate the presence of anxiety, depression, and stress symptoms among medical doctors and nurses working at a Regional Hospital situated in the Free State Province of South Africa. A purposive sample of 200 participants, comprising all willing doctors and nurses employed at the study site, was enrolled in the study. Findings: The participants exhibited an average age of 42 years and an average tenure of approximately 72 months at the hospital. The majority of participants were of African descent, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:2.3. Female healthcare workers reported significantly higher instances of PTSD than their male counterparts. In the aggregate, 71.4percent of doctors reported symptoms indicative of depression, 73.2percent reported anxiety-related symptoms, and 19.6percent reported PTSD-related symptoms. Among nurses, 72percent displayed clinically significant symptoms of depression, 81percent exhibited anxiety-related symptoms, and 27.7percent manifested symptoms suggestive of PTSD. A moderately robust positive correlation was discerned between PTSD and Anxiety (p = .000; r = .466) as well as PTSD and Depression (p = .000; r = .315). Additionally, a strong positive correlation was identified between Anxiety and Depression (p = .000; r = .631). A statistically significant disparity (p = .030) in anxiety levels was observed among workers in different risk-prone areas. Nurses reported substantially higher levels of anxiety (p = .039; M = 10.63, sd = 4.03) compared to doctors (M = 9.01, sd = 3.80) and administrators (M = 10.50, sd = 4.32). Moreover, both nurses (M = 27.06, sd = 13.61) and administrators (M = 33.33, sd = 14.44) exhibited significantly higher instances of PTSD (p = .003) than doctors (M = 19.96, sd = 15.03). Conclusions: The healthcare workers under scrutiny reported elevated levels of anxiety and depression attributable to the Covid-19 pandemic, although the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptoms was comparatively lower within the hospital setting. Furthermore, this study illuminates that depressive, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms were more prevalent among nurses than doctors. Additionally, healthcare professionals operating in high-risk Covid-19 environments, such as the Covid-19 ward, demonstrated heightened levels of anxiety when juxtaposed with their counterparts stationed in low-risk Covid-19 areas within the healthcare facility. , Thesis (MPH) -- Faculty of Health Sciences, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Finger-Motsepe, Kelebogile
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: COVID-19 (Disease) , Mental health
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/27920 , vital:70880
- Description: Introduction: The emergence of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (Covid-19) has wrought profound and enduring transformations in global health, economic dynamics, and social interactions. However, the comprehensive quantification of the psychological repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic remains elusive and is poised to compound the preexisting burden of mental health disorders within the general populace. Elevated transmission rates, rapid disease progression within vulnerable demographics, and the absence of definitive curative or preventive measures have collectively contributed to a heightened worldwide state of stress and anxiety. Extensive research has demonstrated that the apprehension and stress associated with Covid-19 are markedly pronounced among healthcare professionals, commonly referred to as front-line workers, in comparison to the general population. The Covid-19-related psychological distress is anticipated to act as a catalyst, exacerbating mental health conditions within high-risk groups. Aims and Objectives: This study endeavours to ascertain the prevalence and severity of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among medical doctors and nurses employed at a regional hospital in South Africa. Methodology: A cross-sectional investigation was conducted to evaluate the presence of anxiety, depression, and stress symptoms among medical doctors and nurses working at a Regional Hospital situated in the Free State Province of South Africa. A purposive sample of 200 participants, comprising all willing doctors and nurses employed at the study site, was enrolled in the study. Findings: The participants exhibited an average age of 42 years and an average tenure of approximately 72 months at the hospital. The majority of participants were of African descent, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:2.3. Female healthcare workers reported significantly higher instances of PTSD than their male counterparts. In the aggregate, 71.4percent of doctors reported symptoms indicative of depression, 73.2percent reported anxiety-related symptoms, and 19.6percent reported PTSD-related symptoms. Among nurses, 72percent displayed clinically significant symptoms of depression, 81percent exhibited anxiety-related symptoms, and 27.7percent manifested symptoms suggestive of PTSD. A moderately robust positive correlation was discerned between PTSD and Anxiety (p = .000; r = .466) as well as PTSD and Depression (p = .000; r = .315). Additionally, a strong positive correlation was identified between Anxiety and Depression (p = .000; r = .631). A statistically significant disparity (p = .030) in anxiety levels was observed among workers in different risk-prone areas. Nurses reported substantially higher levels of anxiety (p = .039; M = 10.63, sd = 4.03) compared to doctors (M = 9.01, sd = 3.80) and administrators (M = 10.50, sd = 4.32). Moreover, both nurses (M = 27.06, sd = 13.61) and administrators (M = 33.33, sd = 14.44) exhibited significantly higher instances of PTSD (p = .003) than doctors (M = 19.96, sd = 15.03). Conclusions: The healthcare workers under scrutiny reported elevated levels of anxiety and depression attributable to the Covid-19 pandemic, although the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptoms was comparatively lower within the hospital setting. Furthermore, this study illuminates that depressive, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms were more prevalent among nurses than doctors. Additionally, healthcare professionals operating in high-risk Covid-19 environments, such as the Covid-19 ward, demonstrated heightened levels of anxiety when juxtaposed with their counterparts stationed in low-risk Covid-19 areas within the healthcare facility. , Thesis (MPH) -- Faculty of Health Sciences, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The impact of exchange rates on trade balances in SADC countries
- Authors: Nyahokwe, Olivia
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Foreign exchange rates -- Africa, Southern
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54980 , vital:48575
- Description: This study aims to determine the impact of exchange rates on trade balances in SADC countries. Further, the study also aims to determine the existence of the J-curve phenomena in SADC countries. To achieve the objectives of the study, a panel GMM model and quantile regressions were used as a method of data analysis on data covering the period of 1993 to 2018. Panel GMM model and quantile regression were used to determine the relationships between the real exchange rate (XR), world income (WGDP), as well as gross domestic product (GDP), and trade balance (TB) of SADC countries. The SADC countries used in this study are South Africa, Mauritius, Lesotho, Angola, Malawi, Mozambique, DRC, Madagascar, Namibia, and Botswana. To provide a conceptual framework for the study, a comprehensive theoretical and empirical literature review was undertaken. Within the framework of the theoretical literature review, Magee’s (1973) J-curve phenomena were tested for its relevance and application within SADC countries. Given the main highlights of the empirical literature review, this J-curve phenomenon as well as the impact of trade balances in SADC countries, has not been addressed optimally. The main focus of previous studies in this area within SADC countries has fallen short of explaining the nature and causality of J-curve phenomena. It is in this respect that this study contributes to the regional and international trade discourse. The main findings from the quantile regression analysis in this study suggest that no evidence of "J-curve" in the case of Angola, Namibia, Mozambique, Malawi, and Madagascar. South Africa shows a delayed J curve. Lesotho an inverted J-curve, whilst DRC and Botswana show a sharp V-shape. Contrary to the "J-curve" phenomenon, as explained by the classical textbooks, the findings of the study suggest that the depreciation of Namibia, Mozambique, Angola, Malawi, and Madagascar’s exchange rates produce no J-curve phenomenon, indicating that there is no room for improving these countries’ trade balances through a currency devaluation process. Yet for countries such as South Africa, DRC, Botswana, and Mauritius the findings suggest that the depreciation of these countries’ exchange rates improves the trade balances. Concerning GMM results, the exchange rate and gross domestic product in SADC countries had a positive relationship with the trade balances in SADC countries. Further, the exchange rates also show evidence of a positive relationship with trade balances. On the contrary, the world income (represented as world GDP) has a negative relationship with trade balances in SADC countries. This implies that, as SADC currencies strengthen, the trade balance worsens. This finding presents a serious open macroeconomic challenge in SADC countries, in that the trade balances worsen irrespective of the strengths of the currencies; hence the trade balances in SADC countries have remained negative for prolonged periods. Furthermore, the world economic growth does not necessarily improve the SADC countries' trade balances either, as shown by a negative relation between world income and trade balances in SADC countries. This finding concerning world GDP, suggests that SADC countries lack export diversification and are trapped in primary product exports which, at times, are subjected to low prices. Given the above findings, it is clear that SADC countries will continue to suffer from negative trade balances, which in turn will continue to stifle their growth. To address the continued and persistent trade balances in SADC countries, policymakers should focus on an integrated open macroeconomic strategy. Such a strategy should pay special attention to improving technical skills, research, and development, quality of exports, export diversification, infrastructure; maintain the use of flexible exchange rate regimes, raise the level of productivity; substitute imports of capital equipment and support domestic industries. Furthermore, it is recommended that SADC countries focus on attracting and retaining foreign direct investments. This macroeconomic strategy should not be approached in isolation but as an integrated policy framework. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Nyahokwe, Olivia
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Foreign exchange rates -- Africa, Southern
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54980 , vital:48575
- Description: This study aims to determine the impact of exchange rates on trade balances in SADC countries. Further, the study also aims to determine the existence of the J-curve phenomena in SADC countries. To achieve the objectives of the study, a panel GMM model and quantile regressions were used as a method of data analysis on data covering the period of 1993 to 2018. Panel GMM model and quantile regression were used to determine the relationships between the real exchange rate (XR), world income (WGDP), as well as gross domestic product (GDP), and trade balance (TB) of SADC countries. The SADC countries used in this study are South Africa, Mauritius, Lesotho, Angola, Malawi, Mozambique, DRC, Madagascar, Namibia, and Botswana. To provide a conceptual framework for the study, a comprehensive theoretical and empirical literature review was undertaken. Within the framework of the theoretical literature review, Magee’s (1973) J-curve phenomena were tested for its relevance and application within SADC countries. Given the main highlights of the empirical literature review, this J-curve phenomenon as well as the impact of trade balances in SADC countries, has not been addressed optimally. The main focus of previous studies in this area within SADC countries has fallen short of explaining the nature and causality of J-curve phenomena. It is in this respect that this study contributes to the regional and international trade discourse. The main findings from the quantile regression analysis in this study suggest that no evidence of "J-curve" in the case of Angola, Namibia, Mozambique, Malawi, and Madagascar. South Africa shows a delayed J curve. Lesotho an inverted J-curve, whilst DRC and Botswana show a sharp V-shape. Contrary to the "J-curve" phenomenon, as explained by the classical textbooks, the findings of the study suggest that the depreciation of Namibia, Mozambique, Angola, Malawi, and Madagascar’s exchange rates produce no J-curve phenomenon, indicating that there is no room for improving these countries’ trade balances through a currency devaluation process. Yet for countries such as South Africa, DRC, Botswana, and Mauritius the findings suggest that the depreciation of these countries’ exchange rates improves the trade balances. Concerning GMM results, the exchange rate and gross domestic product in SADC countries had a positive relationship with the trade balances in SADC countries. Further, the exchange rates also show evidence of a positive relationship with trade balances. On the contrary, the world income (represented as world GDP) has a negative relationship with trade balances in SADC countries. This implies that, as SADC currencies strengthen, the trade balance worsens. This finding presents a serious open macroeconomic challenge in SADC countries, in that the trade balances worsen irrespective of the strengths of the currencies; hence the trade balances in SADC countries have remained negative for prolonged periods. Furthermore, the world economic growth does not necessarily improve the SADC countries' trade balances either, as shown by a negative relation between world income and trade balances in SADC countries. This finding concerning world GDP, suggests that SADC countries lack export diversification and are trapped in primary product exports which, at times, are subjected to low prices. Given the above findings, it is clear that SADC countries will continue to suffer from negative trade balances, which in turn will continue to stifle their growth. To address the continued and persistent trade balances in SADC countries, policymakers should focus on an integrated open macroeconomic strategy. Such a strategy should pay special attention to improving technical skills, research, and development, quality of exports, export diversification, infrastructure; maintain the use of flexible exchange rate regimes, raise the level of productivity; substitute imports of capital equipment and support domestic industries. Furthermore, it is recommended that SADC countries focus on attracting and retaining foreign direct investments. This macroeconomic strategy should not be approached in isolation but as an integrated policy framework. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The Impact of in-store promotions on consumer buying behaviour
- Authors: Van Niekerk, Ruan
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Consumer behavior , Sales promotion
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54377 , vital:46486
- Description: The purpose of this treatise is to identify the impact of in-store promotions on consumer buying behavior. Through utilizing real-world data, the study used a qualitative analysis by gathering input from people who are activity involved with in-store promotions. In-store promotions have been suspected to directly impact consumer buying behavior; however, there is no real proof of this. Furthermore, the theory suggests that in-store promotions should impact consumer buying behavior, but there could be a difference between what theory states against what is actually happening. Therefore, this study will be taking opinions and views from those working with in-store promotions and put it to the test against the theory. The aim is to determine whether in-store promotions is a viable source of marketing and if it can ultimately affect the consumers buying behavior. The treatise will also help the reader to understand the theory behind consumer behavior and what it entails. Interviews were conducted with store managers across South Africa to get more accurate data. By interviewing store managers from various regions, geographical skewness of data was prevented from occurring. This study further assists marketing professionals to have a more accurate understanding of what to expect when conducting in-store promotions. Marketing professionals will also be able to better predict the outcome such activities on the final purchasing decision of consumers. , Thesis (MAB) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Van Niekerk, Ruan
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Consumer behavior , Sales promotion
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54377 , vital:46486
- Description: The purpose of this treatise is to identify the impact of in-store promotions on consumer buying behavior. Through utilizing real-world data, the study used a qualitative analysis by gathering input from people who are activity involved with in-store promotions. In-store promotions have been suspected to directly impact consumer buying behavior; however, there is no real proof of this. Furthermore, the theory suggests that in-store promotions should impact consumer buying behavior, but there could be a difference between what theory states against what is actually happening. Therefore, this study will be taking opinions and views from those working with in-store promotions and put it to the test against the theory. The aim is to determine whether in-store promotions is a viable source of marketing and if it can ultimately affect the consumers buying behavior. The treatise will also help the reader to understand the theory behind consumer behavior and what it entails. Interviews were conducted with store managers across South Africa to get more accurate data. By interviewing store managers from various regions, geographical skewness of data was prevented from occurring. This study further assists marketing professionals to have a more accurate understanding of what to expect when conducting in-store promotions. Marketing professionals will also be able to better predict the outcome such activities on the final purchasing decision of consumers. , Thesis (MAB) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The impact of institutional cultures on student’s wellbeing among postgraduate students: the case of Nelson Mandela University in South Africa
- Authors: Lebelo, Mpho Tiny
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/55402 , vital:51990
- Description: Increasingly, students across the world in various tertiary institutions are faced with many challenges ranging from financial difficulties, accommodation, academic exclusion and many other challenges. Subsequently, the students’ academic performance suffers due to these challenges. This thesis therefore aims to focus on the perspectives of the post-graduate students at the Nelson Mandela University regarding the notion of wellbeing. This thesis attempts to uses a sociological indigenous perspective of wellbeing of “impilo” in describing well-being. Therefore, the thesis uses wellness as a conceptual framework to understand the challenges faced by postgraduate students at Nelson Mandela University. The thesis was conducted in Port Elizabeth, at Nelson Mandela University campus of Summerstrand focusing on post-graduate students in faculty of humanities. A qualitative research design and qualitative digital ethnographic research methodology was chosen as suitable for answering the research question. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis included identifying consistent themes around notions of well-being and experiences of changing university culture in the responses. The thesis main findings reveal the impact of how the changing university institutional culture impacts post-graduate student’s wellbeing.The research found that students are affected by institutional cultures and this is narrated through their experience of university life and their reflections on #MustFall movements. The participants have detailed how the cultures in the university have a greater impact on the well-being on student because the university is more than just a place of learning but their home. The participants also detailed new colloquial ways of describing well-being using the term “inerves” and “umgowo” are general ways of describing their well-being. The dissertation has contributed to the limited body of knowledge in the context of post-graduate students experience and conception of well-being in the South African higher education. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Governmental and Social Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Lebelo, Mpho Tiny
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/55402 , vital:51990
- Description: Increasingly, students across the world in various tertiary institutions are faced with many challenges ranging from financial difficulties, accommodation, academic exclusion and many other challenges. Subsequently, the students’ academic performance suffers due to these challenges. This thesis therefore aims to focus on the perspectives of the post-graduate students at the Nelson Mandela University regarding the notion of wellbeing. This thesis attempts to uses a sociological indigenous perspective of wellbeing of “impilo” in describing well-being. Therefore, the thesis uses wellness as a conceptual framework to understand the challenges faced by postgraduate students at Nelson Mandela University. The thesis was conducted in Port Elizabeth, at Nelson Mandela University campus of Summerstrand focusing on post-graduate students in faculty of humanities. A qualitative research design and qualitative digital ethnographic research methodology was chosen as suitable for answering the research question. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis included identifying consistent themes around notions of well-being and experiences of changing university culture in the responses. The thesis main findings reveal the impact of how the changing university institutional culture impacts post-graduate student’s wellbeing.The research found that students are affected by institutional cultures and this is narrated through their experience of university life and their reflections on #MustFall movements. The participants have detailed how the cultures in the university have a greater impact on the well-being on student because the university is more than just a place of learning but their home. The participants also detailed new colloquial ways of describing well-being using the term “inerves” and “umgowo” are general ways of describing their well-being. The dissertation has contributed to the limited body of knowledge in the context of post-graduate students experience and conception of well-being in the South African higher education. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Governmental and Social Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The impact of institutional cultures on student’s wellbeing among postgraduate students: the case of Nelson Mandela University in South Africa
- Authors: Lebelo, Mpho
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54450 , vital:46549
- Description: Increasingly, students across the world in various tertiary institutions are faced with many challenges ranging from financial difficulties, accommodation, academic exclusion and many other challenges. Subsequently, the students’ academic performance suffers due to these challenges. This thesis therefore aims to focus on the perspectives of the post-graduate students at the Nelson Mandela University regarding the notion of wellbeing. This thesis attempts to uses a sociological indigenous perspective of wellbeing of “impilo” in describing well-being. Therefore, the thesis uses wellness as a conceptual framework to understand the challenges faced by postgraduate students at Nelson Mandela University. The thesis was conducted in Port Elizabeth, at Nelson Mandela University campus of Summerstrand focusing on post-graduate students in faculty of humanities. A qualitative research design and qualitative digital ethnographic research methodology was chosen as suitable for answering the research question. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis included identifying consistent themes around notions of well-being and experiences of changing university culture in the responses. The thesis main findings reveal the impact of how the changing university institutional culture impacts post-graduate student’s wellbeing. The research found that students are affected by institutional cultures and this is narrated through their experience of university life and their reflections on #MustFall movements. The participants have detailed how the cultures in the university have a greater impact on the well-being on student because the university is more than just a place of learning but their home. The participants also detailed new colloquial ways of describing well-being using the term “inerves” and “umgowo” are general ways of describing their well-being. The dissertation has contributed to the limited body of knowledge in the context of post-graduate students experience and conception of well-being in the South African higher education. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Governmental and Social Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Lebelo, Mpho
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54450 , vital:46549
- Description: Increasingly, students across the world in various tertiary institutions are faced with many challenges ranging from financial difficulties, accommodation, academic exclusion and many other challenges. Subsequently, the students’ academic performance suffers due to these challenges. This thesis therefore aims to focus on the perspectives of the post-graduate students at the Nelson Mandela University regarding the notion of wellbeing. This thesis attempts to uses a sociological indigenous perspective of wellbeing of “impilo” in describing well-being. Therefore, the thesis uses wellness as a conceptual framework to understand the challenges faced by postgraduate students at Nelson Mandela University. The thesis was conducted in Port Elizabeth, at Nelson Mandela University campus of Summerstrand focusing on post-graduate students in faculty of humanities. A qualitative research design and qualitative digital ethnographic research methodology was chosen as suitable for answering the research question. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis included identifying consistent themes around notions of well-being and experiences of changing university culture in the responses. The thesis main findings reveal the impact of how the changing university institutional culture impacts post-graduate student’s wellbeing. The research found that students are affected by institutional cultures and this is narrated through their experience of university life and their reflections on #MustFall movements. The participants have detailed how the cultures in the university have a greater impact on the well-being on student because the university is more than just a place of learning but their home. The participants also detailed new colloquial ways of describing well-being using the term “inerves” and “umgowo” are general ways of describing their well-being. The dissertation has contributed to the limited body of knowledge in the context of post-graduate students experience and conception of well-being in the South African higher education. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Governmental and Social Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The impact of Labour-business relations in South Africa: factors that affect Labour business relations in the manufacturing industry
- Authors: Madlingozi, Azola
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Industrial relations -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54014 , vital:46178
- Description: Industries play a significant role in a country’s economic growth stability and development. In analysing an industry, one could liken it to a big oil machine that requires all its parts to work in unison to achieve a single goal. In most cases, the biggest issue that causes conflicts or for the industry not to run smoothly is the relationship between labour and business. Some of these conflicts could be caused by the historic background of a country, lack of trust between both parties, the income difference between management and labour, and last, the lack of proper communication between both parties. This study aims to assess the role of the Labour Relation Act (LRA) of the South African manufacturing industry to educate and improve the future business sphere on how to engage labour in decision-making strategies and investigate relevant management strategies that could be employed to affect the labour-business relation positively in South Africa (SA). The importance of this study is crucial to the SA economy since SA is still a developing country. Good labour-business relations imply good industry productions, which, therefore, will promote investor confidence in SA for sustainable growth in the SA economy. , Thesis (MBA) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Madlingozi, Azola
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Industrial relations -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54014 , vital:46178
- Description: Industries play a significant role in a country’s economic growth stability and development. In analysing an industry, one could liken it to a big oil machine that requires all its parts to work in unison to achieve a single goal. In most cases, the biggest issue that causes conflicts or for the industry not to run smoothly is the relationship between labour and business. Some of these conflicts could be caused by the historic background of a country, lack of trust between both parties, the income difference between management and labour, and last, the lack of proper communication between both parties. This study aims to assess the role of the Labour Relation Act (LRA) of the South African manufacturing industry to educate and improve the future business sphere on how to engage labour in decision-making strategies and investigate relevant management strategies that could be employed to affect the labour-business relation positively in South Africa (SA). The importance of this study is crucial to the SA economy since SA is still a developing country. Good labour-business relations imply good industry productions, which, therefore, will promote investor confidence in SA for sustainable growth in the SA economy. , Thesis (MBA) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The impact of public-private partnerships on Zambia's economic growth and economic development
- Authors: Banda, Zondwayo
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Public-private sector cooperation -- Economic aspects -- Zambia , Capital investments -- Zambia
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/53711 , vital:45717
- Description: The current globalisation is pressuring both developed and developing nations to fast-track change and development with the intention of improving the living standards of the people. With limited financial resources and razor-thin budgets, national governments now turn to private sector to collaborate in financing infrastructure that is critical for economic and social growth. Despite the increase in public-private partnership (PPP) investments in Zambia, there have not been any formal assessments of the PPPs to evaluate their impact on Zambia’s economic growth and economic development. This research evaluates the impact of PPPs on Zambia’s economic growth (proxied by gross domestic product [GDP]) and economic development (proxied by unemployment, household consumption and Gini coefficient). The research adopts the auto-regressive distributed lag (ARDL) model as the time series approach to investigating the relationship between PPPs and gross domestic product (GDP) as well as the economic development. The ARDL model was also used for evaluating the impact of PPPs on Zambia’s GDP and economic development for the 18 years from 2000 to 2017. Thirty-two self-administered questionnaires (SAQs) were received and seven interviews were conducted with key research informants. The key research informants for both the SAQs and interviews were purposively selected to provide insights into the impact of PPPs on Zambia’s GDP and economic development. The ARDL model results have established that there is a stable and long-run relationship between PPPs and Zambia’s economic growth. Similarly, insights obtained from SAQs and interviews show that PPPs are not only important in Zambia but are related to economic growth. Therefore, Zambia should continue harnessing and promoting viable PPPs to enhance its economic growth. This also entails that private sector should continue providing financial resources and expertise to spur Zambia’s economic activities. Through the use of F-statistics, the ARDL model results reveal that PPPs are cointegrated with household consumption, unemployment and the Gini coefficient. As such the ARDL model results confirm the existence of a stable and long-run relationship between PPPs and economic development. The insights obtained from SAQs and interviews highlight that PPPs in Zambia are important. Furthermore, the insights from the key informants suggest that there is a relationship between PPPs and economic development. Hence, Zambia’s continued harnessing of PPP investments is pivotal in its quest to improve the living standards of ordinary people. Using long-run coefficients, the ARDL model results demonstrate that PPPs impact Zambia’s GDP positively. PPPs have spurred economic activities through the creation of businesses. Similarly, the insights from key informants demonstrate that PPPs relate positively to GDP. The overall results suggest that PPPs impact GDP positively. As PPPs impact GDP positively, the government of the Republic of Zambia should continue harnessing the PPP investments as a pro-poor model that bolsters economic activities and fosters economic growth. The harnessing of PPP investments means that the Zambian government, through its Finance Ministry, should scale up investments in PPPs and widen the scope of sectors for PPP investments so as to achieve inclusive and faster economic growth. The ARDL model results show that PPPs affect economic development positively through increases in household consumption and reductions in unemployment rates. However, the data on the Gini coefficient reveal that PPPs have a negative impact on economic development, as PPPs contributed to the rise in the Gini coefficient for the period under review. The key informants’ insights reveal that PPPs affect economic development positively by increasing household consumption and reducing the unemployment rate and the Gini coefficient. The mixed results on the Gini coefficient data representing income inequalities could be attributed to low-quality jobs and poor employment conditions created through PPP projects. Overall, the study’s results show that PPPs have a positive impact on economic development, as they have created businesses and employment thereby contributing to the increase in household consumption. Consequently, the Zambian government should continue engaging the private sector in PPP projects. The government should also scale up PPP investments and widen their scope to include other sectors of the economy as PPP present a viable option for the continued spurring of economic activities, the creation of employment and improvements in household consumption. The research results suggest that PPPs play an important role in improving economic growth and economic development thereby supporting the original intention of the PPP strategy for both developed and developing countries. The research strongly recommends the scaling up of investments in PPPs to contribute to the reduction or eradication of poverty in Zambia – and in other developing countries in Africa. The scaling up of PPP investments has implications that require attention from policy makers. There is a need for the development and dissemination of PPP policy guidelines to improve the design, development and implementation of PPPs in Zambia. The scaling up of investments in PPPs also requires changes to be made to the current PPP Act to widen the scope of PPP investments so as to include additional economic sectors to increase GDP, improve household consumption, create new jobs and reduce the Gini coefficient in Zambia. As PPP processes are complex, increased investments in PPPs will require further training of the PPP department’s staff, the contracting authorities and the private sector to improve their regulatory and technical capacity in the design, development and implementation of PPP projects. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Banda, Zondwayo
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Public-private sector cooperation -- Economic aspects -- Zambia , Capital investments -- Zambia
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/53711 , vital:45717
- Description: The current globalisation is pressuring both developed and developing nations to fast-track change and development with the intention of improving the living standards of the people. With limited financial resources and razor-thin budgets, national governments now turn to private sector to collaborate in financing infrastructure that is critical for economic and social growth. Despite the increase in public-private partnership (PPP) investments in Zambia, there have not been any formal assessments of the PPPs to evaluate their impact on Zambia’s economic growth and economic development. This research evaluates the impact of PPPs on Zambia’s economic growth (proxied by gross domestic product [GDP]) and economic development (proxied by unemployment, household consumption and Gini coefficient). The research adopts the auto-regressive distributed lag (ARDL) model as the time series approach to investigating the relationship between PPPs and gross domestic product (GDP) as well as the economic development. The ARDL model was also used for evaluating the impact of PPPs on Zambia’s GDP and economic development for the 18 years from 2000 to 2017. Thirty-two self-administered questionnaires (SAQs) were received and seven interviews were conducted with key research informants. The key research informants for both the SAQs and interviews were purposively selected to provide insights into the impact of PPPs on Zambia’s GDP and economic development. The ARDL model results have established that there is a stable and long-run relationship between PPPs and Zambia’s economic growth. Similarly, insights obtained from SAQs and interviews show that PPPs are not only important in Zambia but are related to economic growth. Therefore, Zambia should continue harnessing and promoting viable PPPs to enhance its economic growth. This also entails that private sector should continue providing financial resources and expertise to spur Zambia’s economic activities. Through the use of F-statistics, the ARDL model results reveal that PPPs are cointegrated with household consumption, unemployment and the Gini coefficient. As such the ARDL model results confirm the existence of a stable and long-run relationship between PPPs and economic development. The insights obtained from SAQs and interviews highlight that PPPs in Zambia are important. Furthermore, the insights from the key informants suggest that there is a relationship between PPPs and economic development. Hence, Zambia’s continued harnessing of PPP investments is pivotal in its quest to improve the living standards of ordinary people. Using long-run coefficients, the ARDL model results demonstrate that PPPs impact Zambia’s GDP positively. PPPs have spurred economic activities through the creation of businesses. Similarly, the insights from key informants demonstrate that PPPs relate positively to GDP. The overall results suggest that PPPs impact GDP positively. As PPPs impact GDP positively, the government of the Republic of Zambia should continue harnessing the PPP investments as a pro-poor model that bolsters economic activities and fosters economic growth. The harnessing of PPP investments means that the Zambian government, through its Finance Ministry, should scale up investments in PPPs and widen the scope of sectors for PPP investments so as to achieve inclusive and faster economic growth. The ARDL model results show that PPPs affect economic development positively through increases in household consumption and reductions in unemployment rates. However, the data on the Gini coefficient reveal that PPPs have a negative impact on economic development, as PPPs contributed to the rise in the Gini coefficient for the period under review. The key informants’ insights reveal that PPPs affect economic development positively by increasing household consumption and reducing the unemployment rate and the Gini coefficient. The mixed results on the Gini coefficient data representing income inequalities could be attributed to low-quality jobs and poor employment conditions created through PPP projects. Overall, the study’s results show that PPPs have a positive impact on economic development, as they have created businesses and employment thereby contributing to the increase in household consumption. Consequently, the Zambian government should continue engaging the private sector in PPP projects. The government should also scale up PPP investments and widen their scope to include other sectors of the economy as PPP present a viable option for the continued spurring of economic activities, the creation of employment and improvements in household consumption. The research results suggest that PPPs play an important role in improving economic growth and economic development thereby supporting the original intention of the PPP strategy for both developed and developing countries. The research strongly recommends the scaling up of investments in PPPs to contribute to the reduction or eradication of poverty in Zambia – and in other developing countries in Africa. The scaling up of PPP investments has implications that require attention from policy makers. There is a need for the development and dissemination of PPP policy guidelines to improve the design, development and implementation of PPPs in Zambia. The scaling up of investments in PPPs also requires changes to be made to the current PPP Act to widen the scope of PPP investments so as to include additional economic sectors to increase GDP, improve household consumption, create new jobs and reduce the Gini coefficient in Zambia. As PPP processes are complex, increased investments in PPPs will require further training of the PPP department’s staff, the contracting authorities and the private sector to improve their regulatory and technical capacity in the design, development and implementation of PPP projects. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The impact of transformed landscapes on the resource selection and occupancy of specialized browsing species in a lowland fynbos and renosterveld ecosystem
- Swanepoel, Hermanus Izak Johannes
- Authors: Swanepoel, Hermanus Izak Johannes
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54132 , vital:46308
- Description: Human activities have dramatically transformed the natural environment over the last century. In most cases these activities have resulted in the destruction and fragmentation of habitats. However, in some areas the transformation of landscapes through agriculture have created novel habitats which could benefit some species. The effect of these transformed landscapes on the resource selection and occupancy of antelope species in different vegetation types such as fynbos and renosterveld are still understudied. In order to investigate this,we conducted a study in the Overberg region of the Western Cape, South Africa. We studied theoccupancy and habitat useof five specialist browsing species (Tragelaphus scriptus sylvaticus(bushbuck), Rhaphicerus melanotis(cape grysbok), Sylvicapra grimmia(common duiker), Palea Capreolus(grey rhebok) and Rhaphicerus campestris(steenbok)) within a transformed landscape. We collected speciesdetection/ non-detectionand presence/ absence data using camera traps and road strip counts.Usinga single season, single species occupancy framework as a surrogate for habitat usewedeterminedhow transformed landscapes affected their occupancy. Using aniche factor analysis and resource selection functions wedetermine how transformed landscapes affected the resource selectionof these species. Our results from the resource selection analysis indicated that steenbok, grey rhebok, andcommon duiker included crops such as wheat and planted pastures in their resource selection while also including natural vegetation. Cape grysbok and bushbuck selected predominantly for natural vegetation areas such as critical biodiversity areas and ecological support areas while also including some crops in their resource selection. Our results from the occupancy analysis indicatedthat steenbok, grey rhebok and common duiker had a higher occupancy in the transformed landscape than in the natural landscape. Bushbuck and Cape grysbok showed little to no difference in their occupancy between land use types. The insight provided by our results will allow practitioners to maximise the potentialof these mosaic landscape in the Overberg for mammal conservation.The study also provides a baseline from which further research and monitoring programs can be developed to further understand the dynamics of this landscape. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, School of Natural Resource Management, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Swanepoel, Hermanus Izak Johannes
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54132 , vital:46308
- Description: Human activities have dramatically transformed the natural environment over the last century. In most cases these activities have resulted in the destruction and fragmentation of habitats. However, in some areas the transformation of landscapes through agriculture have created novel habitats which could benefit some species. The effect of these transformed landscapes on the resource selection and occupancy of antelope species in different vegetation types such as fynbos and renosterveld are still understudied. In order to investigate this,we conducted a study in the Overberg region of the Western Cape, South Africa. We studied theoccupancy and habitat useof five specialist browsing species (Tragelaphus scriptus sylvaticus(bushbuck), Rhaphicerus melanotis(cape grysbok), Sylvicapra grimmia(common duiker), Palea Capreolus(grey rhebok) and Rhaphicerus campestris(steenbok)) within a transformed landscape. We collected speciesdetection/ non-detectionand presence/ absence data using camera traps and road strip counts.Usinga single season, single species occupancy framework as a surrogate for habitat usewedeterminedhow transformed landscapes affected their occupancy. Using aniche factor analysis and resource selection functions wedetermine how transformed landscapes affected the resource selectionof these species. Our results from the resource selection analysis indicated that steenbok, grey rhebok, andcommon duiker included crops such as wheat and planted pastures in their resource selection while also including natural vegetation. Cape grysbok and bushbuck selected predominantly for natural vegetation areas such as critical biodiversity areas and ecological support areas while also including some crops in their resource selection. Our results from the occupancy analysis indicatedthat steenbok, grey rhebok and common duiker had a higher occupancy in the transformed landscape than in the natural landscape. Bushbuck and Cape grysbok showed little to no difference in their occupancy between land use types. The insight provided by our results will allow practitioners to maximise the potentialof these mosaic landscape in the Overberg for mammal conservation.The study also provides a baseline from which further research and monitoring programs can be developed to further understand the dynamics of this landscape. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, School of Natural Resource Management, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The importance of public officials’ knowledge and understanding of the constitutional principles of public administration
- Authors: Zameko, Zamuxolo
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54596 , vital:46732
- Description: Public officials in South Africa have been accused of lacking accountability, transparency, corruption, inefficiencies, unethical practices and a general unmotivated approach to service delivery. Section 195 of the 1996 constitution emphasises the need for public officials to be efficient, effective and not to be partial in their execution of duty. On that basis the research sought to investigate whether the public officials can improve on their performance if they are exposed to and are knowledgeable of the constitution. The study utilized a qualitative research method and a document analysis in which documents which served as sources of information were selected based on their relevance to the subject area of Public Administration. The documents selected were legal instruments used to enforce the operations of public officials including the Constitution of South Africa (1996), Batho Pele, White Paper on the Transformation of the Public Service, 1995; Promotion of Access to Information (Act no 2 of 2000 and Promotion of Equality & Prevention of Unfair Discrimination (Ac no 4 of 2000) Findings of the research indicate that key skills of the public officials like effective communication, change management, conflict resolution, decision-making, negotiation and accountability can be enhanced if they are knowledgeable of their constitutional mandate. The Public Service board should among others emphasize on constitutional principles training of all its employees upon recruitment such that they are aware of the public expectations. Continuous on the job training should also be offered to public officials so that their operations are always adjusted to the prevailing environmental and technological conditions. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Governmental and Social Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Zameko, Zamuxolo
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54596 , vital:46732
- Description: Public officials in South Africa have been accused of lacking accountability, transparency, corruption, inefficiencies, unethical practices and a general unmotivated approach to service delivery. Section 195 of the 1996 constitution emphasises the need for public officials to be efficient, effective and not to be partial in their execution of duty. On that basis the research sought to investigate whether the public officials can improve on their performance if they are exposed to and are knowledgeable of the constitution. The study utilized a qualitative research method and a document analysis in which documents which served as sources of information were selected based on their relevance to the subject area of Public Administration. The documents selected were legal instruments used to enforce the operations of public officials including the Constitution of South Africa (1996), Batho Pele, White Paper on the Transformation of the Public Service, 1995; Promotion of Access to Information (Act no 2 of 2000 and Promotion of Equality & Prevention of Unfair Discrimination (Ac no 4 of 2000) Findings of the research indicate that key skills of the public officials like effective communication, change management, conflict resolution, decision-making, negotiation and accountability can be enhanced if they are knowledgeable of their constitutional mandate. The Public Service board should among others emphasize on constitutional principles training of all its employees upon recruitment such that they are aware of the public expectations. Continuous on the job training should also be offered to public officials so that their operations are always adjusted to the prevailing environmental and technological conditions. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Governmental and Social Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
The influence of COVID-19 on online shopping behaviour in South Africa
- Authors: Shati, Joseph
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Teleshopping -- South Africa , Consumer behavior --South Africa , COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020- -- South Africa -- Influence
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54330 , vital:46429
- Description: The traditional brick-and-mortar stores have had to endure competition in the recent past from the arrival of various shopping channels, particularly the online shopping. Despite the competition enhanced by a proliferation of technology, brick-and-mortar is still the preferred shopping channel. This is largely due to the shopping behaviour, which is generally stable and slow to change unless it is distorted by a catastrophic event. The advent of the corona virus pandemic has seen nations imposing restrictions on gatherings and encouraging moving to online platforms for both social and business interactions as a way to curb transmission of the deadly virus. This major life event has the potential to distort traditional shopping behaviour. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate whether the pandemic has had an influence on online shopping in South Africa. The research aims to examine the different shopping channels and factors that lure customers to those channels paying particular attention to online shopping during the pandemic. Communication, technology, product variety, payment method, delivery, shopping behaviour, COVID-19 and demographics were identified during a literature review as independent factors that influence online shopping. A positivism paradigm, which informed the selection of a quantitative method, was adopted for this research in order to achieve the study’s research objectives. An online questionnaire was designed to collect data and was distributed by the university’s first-year MBA students. The collected data were analysed with the assistance of the university’s statistician. The ethics approval for the study was obtained from the Nelson Mandela University’s Ethics Committee, reference number H21-BES-BS-003. The study draws from the Technology Acceptance Model, Theory of Planned Behaviour and Diffusion of Innovation theories to gain a better understanding on the acceptance of technologies’ influence on online shopping. The study identified that the biographic variables, namely age, income, education, gender and employment status have an influence on online shopping. The relationship between the different independent factors and online shopping was tested using the Exploratory Factor Analysis, Pearson correlations and Chi2 Tests. The factors Payment method, Shopping behaviour, Current impact of COVID-19, Acceptance of technologies and Product variety were found to have a significant influence on online shopping.Based on the research findings, the study formulated recommendations for online businesses in South Africa. The research findings will allow businesses to promptly implement strategies that meet the consumers’ needs and gain competitive advantage. Based on the findings, businesses are urged to improve security on payment methods, leverage technology to offer improved customer experience and primarily market to the 18-39 years employed cohort. These recommendations will assist businesses to retain these online shopping customers post the pandemic. , Thesis (MBA) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-12
- Authors: Shati, Joseph
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Teleshopping -- South Africa , Consumer behavior --South Africa , COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020- -- South Africa -- Influence
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54330 , vital:46429
- Description: The traditional brick-and-mortar stores have had to endure competition in the recent past from the arrival of various shopping channels, particularly the online shopping. Despite the competition enhanced by a proliferation of technology, brick-and-mortar is still the preferred shopping channel. This is largely due to the shopping behaviour, which is generally stable and slow to change unless it is distorted by a catastrophic event. The advent of the corona virus pandemic has seen nations imposing restrictions on gatherings and encouraging moving to online platforms for both social and business interactions as a way to curb transmission of the deadly virus. This major life event has the potential to distort traditional shopping behaviour. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate whether the pandemic has had an influence on online shopping in South Africa. The research aims to examine the different shopping channels and factors that lure customers to those channels paying particular attention to online shopping during the pandemic. Communication, technology, product variety, payment method, delivery, shopping behaviour, COVID-19 and demographics were identified during a literature review as independent factors that influence online shopping. A positivism paradigm, which informed the selection of a quantitative method, was adopted for this research in order to achieve the study’s research objectives. An online questionnaire was designed to collect data and was distributed by the university’s first-year MBA students. The collected data were analysed with the assistance of the university’s statistician. The ethics approval for the study was obtained from the Nelson Mandela University’s Ethics Committee, reference number H21-BES-BS-003. The study draws from the Technology Acceptance Model, Theory of Planned Behaviour and Diffusion of Innovation theories to gain a better understanding on the acceptance of technologies’ influence on online shopping. The study identified that the biographic variables, namely age, income, education, gender and employment status have an influence on online shopping. The relationship between the different independent factors and online shopping was tested using the Exploratory Factor Analysis, Pearson correlations and Chi2 Tests. The factors Payment method, Shopping behaviour, Current impact of COVID-19, Acceptance of technologies and Product variety were found to have a significant influence on online shopping.Based on the research findings, the study formulated recommendations for online businesses in South Africa. The research findings will allow businesses to promptly implement strategies that meet the consumers’ needs and gain competitive advantage. Based on the findings, businesses are urged to improve security on payment methods, leverage technology to offer improved customer experience and primarily market to the 18-39 years employed cohort. These recommendations will assist businesses to retain these online shopping customers post the pandemic. , Thesis (MBA) -- Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, 2021
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- Date Issued: 2021-12