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Addressing geographical bias: A review of Robinia pseudoacacia (black locust) in the Southern Hemisphere

  • Authors: Martin, Grant D
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: To be catalogued
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/423937 , vital:72107 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2019.08.01"
  • Description: Robinia pseudoacacia (black locust) is a medium-sized deciduous tree, native to the Southeastern United States. Due to a number of beneficial attributes, it has been widely planted and become naturalised in several countries. It has one of the largest distributions in Europe of any introduced plant and has increased its distribution into a number of Southern Hemisphere countries. In its introduced range, the species exhibits a number of invasive tendencies, which result in negative environmental and economic impacts. This review presents information on aspects of the plant's biology and ecology with emphasis on its status in the Southern Hemisphere. Topics covered include taxonomy, morphological attributes, distributions, habitats, relationships with other species, growth and development, reproduction, hybridisation, population dynamics, uses, toxicity and the invasive status of the plant in Southern Hemisphere countries This manuscript also provides insights into management options including biological control, which has never been intentionally implemented against this species.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019

Adoption and risk of mobile financial services: a case of some selected municipalities in Eastern Cape Province

  • Authors: Aderibigbe, Ifeoluwa A.I
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Mobile commerce Finance
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom (Economics)
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/13281 , vital:39630
  • Description: The study investigated risk and adoption of mobile financial services among some users in selected municipalities within the Eastern Cape Province, using the theory of reason action, technology acceptance model and the theory of expected utility and risk aversion to explain the variables. Moreover, the explanatory research design and quantitative data collection approach formed the methodology adopted in the study. In addition, a validated semistructured interview questionnaire was used as a research instrument in the study. The multistage, stratify, purposive and convenience sampling techniques were applied to select 6 research sites and 386 research participants for the study. Three research objectives were stated and tested using descriptive, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to profile the risk and logit regression statistics. The results of statistical analysis show different level of cross tabulation between MFS and education level, all the 6 different locations, individual age range, job type, and average income of individual. Analysis revealed that age and income level of individuals have the highest relationship with the use of MFS. The statistical analysis used was the logistic regression. Pool of effort of all the stake holders in financial services sector should focus on including the low income earners and the technology should be simple enough for the use of the older generation.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Adult circumcision practices of traditional surgeons and nurses in relation to the initiates’ health outcomes/morbidity in the Eastern Cape

  • Authors: Dalasa, Siyamthemba
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Circumcision -- Social aspects
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/17029 , vital:40834
  • Description: BACKGROUND Despite the adverse outcomes associated with traditional male circumcision, the practice remains prevalent, especially in the Eastern Cape, South, Africa. This study seeks to assess the practices of traditional surgeons and nurses in relation to the prevention and control of infections and their understanding of human physiological mechanisms during circumcision processes. METHOD This study has adopted a qualitative design, which involved conducting 115 semistructured interviews among traditional surgeons, traditional nurses and traditionally circumcised men, and one focus group discussion among traditional nurses. The data generated were transcribed and subjected to thematic content analysis. RESULTS The analysis revealed that both traditional surgeons and nurses demonstrated both poor aseptic techniques and a lack of knowledge of how the human body functions. Their lack of knowledge of basic human physiology meant that they trivialised sepsis in the penile wound. In addition, the seclusion lodges for circumcision and initiates living were unclean and uninhabitable. CONCLUSION The poor aseptic techniques of traditional surgeons and nurses, as well as the uncleanliness of their environment during traditional male circumcision procedures, could expose initiates to infections and morbidity. Environmental health officers should regularly supervise traditional surgeons and nurses in order to prevent the adverse health outcomes associated with the traditional male circumcision practice.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Advances in entomotoxicology: Weaknesses and strengths

  • Authors: Campobasso, Carlo P , Bugelli, Valentina , Carfora, Anna , Borriello, Renata , Villet, Martin H
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: To be catalogued
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , book chapter
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/442717 , vital:74027 , ISBN 9781351163767 , https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781351163767-13/advances-entomotoxicology-carlo-campobasso-valentina-bugelli-anna-carfora-renata-borriello-martin-villet
  • Description: Forensic entomotoxicology deals mainly with the analysis of the tissues of insects to identify toxicants present in their food sources. Insects feeding on human tissues can ingest all of the xenobiotic substances taken by living individuals, such as common prescription and illicit drugs. Ecotoxicology is a well-established scientific discipline from which environmental forensic entomotoxicology is derived as a relatively new branch. Entomotoxicology also addresses the effects of drugs and toxins on arthropod development, survival, morphology, and their implications for estimating postmortem intervals. The primary focus of a forensic toxicologist is the detection of toxicants from human tissue samples to help in determining the cause of death. Like nutrients, toxicants encountered by an insect may be assimilated, digested, absorbed, and either sequestered, metabolized, or excreted. Entomological samples are currently of limited quantitative value in forensic toxicology.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Advancing finance revenue through sustainable electricity distribution – eMalahleni Municipality

  • Authors: Nkopo, Tabisa
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Finance, Public -- South Africa -- Mpumalanga , Sustainable development -- South Africa -- Finance Environmental policy -- Economic aspects -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MPhil
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/42858 , vital:36700
  • Description: In the past Emalahleni municipality operated its electricity distribution efficiently and effectively. However, along the years, the municipality’s operations changed and the situation changed from bad to a financially distressed municipality. The municipality has been experiencing challenges in sustaining its distribution power in the area of its jurisdiction in the past decade. As a result, more than half of the population in the area is affected by the ineffectiveness of the distribution of electricity which lowers their standard of living. As the city’s population is growing, it was envisaged that the power sector will experience a steady growth. The anticipation has been that due to the rate of growth and development in the city, most of Emalahleni municipality should have been electrified by now. However, challenges in the distribution of electricity have persisted and this has negatively affected the economy and living standard of the city. From a management perspective, this research looks at advancing finance revenue through sustainable electricity distribution. Specifically, it analyses the management challenges that affect the distribution of electricity in the city. It is well documented that Emalahleni municipality is currently facing an electricity crisis despite all the government efforts to provide adequate power to the citizens. The research will look at the sustainability of the municipality through the distribution of electricity in Emalahleni. The research will further look at how management manages and ensures better controls in the municipality to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of power delivery within the municipal boundaries. For the municipality to be sustainable through electricity distribution, it should reinvest more money in the electricity infrastructure, improve its governance to ensure high performance and continuous performance improvement amongst leadership and management. Furthermore the municipality requires qualified and skilled labour to enhance growth and efficient running of the municipality. In this research, qualitative research techniques were employed. The data was collected from questionnaires, reports, published books, journals, newspaper articles, and relevant government policies were well studied in order to produce a well-informed report.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Aeolian processes and landforms at Mesrug on sub-Antarctic Marion Island

  • Authors: Nguna, Abuyiselwe Athandile
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Eolian processes Sediments (Geology)
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/17095 , vital:40848
  • Description: Recent observations have recognised the increasing role of aeolian processes as a geomorphic agent on sub-Antarctic Marion Island. This study presents the first long-term data on aeolian processes and dynamics at Mesrug (46° 56’ 41”S; 37° 49’ 59”E) on subAntarctic Marion Island. An intensive and high-resolution (five-minute interval) environmental monitoring campaign was initiated using Pace Scientific XR5 data loggers while aeolian transported sediments were collected using Big Spring Number Eight (BSNE) sediment traps at four different heights above the ground. The aeolian features at Mesrug is identified as mega-ripples and is essentially an erosional feature, while annual sediment flux at 0.05 m height were calculated as 2.29 kg cm-2 y -1 . Spatial data based on a two-year survey showed that the entire surface of the study area have lowered by deflation while the ripples shifted slightly eastward (down-wind). Furthermore, the site lost 3.4 m3 of sediment between these two surveys with an average of 0.75 cm per 1 m2 across the site which has an area of 454 m2 . The study suggest that the relatively large particle size of surface sediments on Marion Island is a major contributor to the low annual aeolian sediment flux. From the AWS data it is clear that high wind speeds are frequent at Mesrug and the high wind speeds facilitating sediment movement. Sediment supply is the limiting factor of aeolian sediment transport, but even though the perennial wetness experienced on the island is not a major limiting factor to sediment flux, it may influence rate of movement. The predominant wind direction at the study site is from the south-west but maximum wind velocities are from the north-west. The data from the wind-aspirated BSNE sediment traps, indicate that sediment movement occurs closest to the surface and weight of sediment moved as well as size of particles decreases vertically in the air column. It seems that the upper limit of aeolian sediment transport at Mesrug is 0.8 m above the ground and saltation of particles is the dominant aeolian transport mechanism. Sediment movement occur in near gale to gale force winds and horizontal precipitation. This is mainly associated with strong north-westerly winds which are linked to a frontal system from a mid-latitudinal cyclone that has a strong meridional component or is a cut of low pressure. The data suggest that the climate change implication of a reduction in the westerly component of wind could reduce wind speeds and this could influence the magnitude and frequency of aeolian sediment transport on Marion Island in the future
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Affordability of housing in the gap market: a case of Walmer link in Port Elizabeth, South Africa

  • Authors: Makeleni, Nokukhanya Precious
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Home ownership -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Housing -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Public housing -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Rental housing
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/42562 , vital:36668
  • Description: The new dispensation, after 1994, in South Africa has been criticised a lot for not being able to satisfactorily achieve its election promise of redistribution and poverty alleviation. While success has been noted in the provision of low cost housing and subsequently home ownership for lower income earners, housing demand continues to be a challenge in the delivery capacity of housing for most South Africans. The people most excluded from homeownership include the public sector employees and laborers who face common, but different constraints. These people are classified as middle-income earners, they are either earn too much to qualify for a housing subsidy (RDP house), or too less to afford a house in the prime market. These people are referred to as the “gap market” because they fall with the gap of high and lowincome earners. Adopting a qualitative research method, survey questionnaire were sent to selective respondents involved in the development of affordable housing in the gap market in Walmer Link, Port Elizabeth, Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan area. This research sought to assess the affordability of housing in gap market, by understanding the challenges faced by the housing market in addressing the needs of the gap market in Walmer Link. Obstacles that hinders closure in the gap housing delivery, such as affordability, over indebtedness, poor credit ratings and inadequate supply for affordable housing in the gap market were identified during the research. While these obstacles show little indication of abating, this research’s findings and recommendations suggest new pathways for formulating new housing policies that address the housing backlog in the gap market. This also suggests that government policies are critical in developing a healthy and inclusive housing market.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Africa’s readiness for electric vehicles towards 2025

  • Authors: Ghansar, Grant John
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Electric vehicles -- Economic aspects , Automobile industry and trade -- South Africa Economic development -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/42152 , vital:36630
  • Description: Disruption is an ongoing process. Nearly every industry has experienced some form of disruption, and these disruptions bring about a changing of the guard. At the turn of the twentieth century, the automobile of that era was considered to be a toy for the rich. Henry Ford, however, had a vision that changed this equation. He saw the automobile as a way to displace the horse and increase the ability to transport people over larger distances. Vehicles eventually became more affordable to the average person. The global automotive industry is currently ripe for disruption. An understanding and appreciation of Africa’s readiness for the future of electric vehicles will be off significant value to various stakeholders throughout Africa. This research will identify and describe current drivers that should be appreciated for the government, business communities, academic institutions, automotive manufacturer’s policy makers, and society at large to make intelligent decisions about Africa’s readiness for electric vehicles towards 2025 and beyond. This study was aimed at identifying possible futures of Africa’s readiness for electric vehicles towards 2025. Causal Layered Analysis (CLA) and the Six Pillars of Futures were utilised as the preferred methodologies to respond to the research objectives of this study. A detailed literature study was undertaken to evaluate the existing body of knowledge on the research topic. The literature study revealed that several factors need to be addressed, and that there is a robust requirement for a fundamental shift in the ways and methods of planning the future of the automotive industry in Africa and its readiness for the electric vehicle industry towards 2025. Most major Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM’s) have already committed to changing their products and fleets to alternative mobility in the near future. As vehicles move toward EVs and self-driving, the future becomes more uncertain; thus, the focus on urban transport and clean mobility is pertinent in Africa due to its anticipated rapid increase in urban share, resulting in a mobility revolution in the coming years. Electric vehicles are therefore imminent, and with Africa being a developing continent, it is imperative that the individual countries are proactive in embracing the new disruption, and in doing so, become the front runners for the future transportation method.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Afro-communitarianism, social architecture, and the moral education of children as strategies for social integration in South Africa

  • Authors: Ofana , Diana E
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Social integration
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , M.A
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/17674 , vital:41135
  • Description: South African society has long been bedeviled by racial segregation and oppression. Apartheid policies structured South Africa in a segregated and hierarchical manner to prevent inter-group contact and relations. Despite twenty-five years of a democratic dispensation and the many positive institutional and policy changes it has provided, South Africans are still struggling to build an integrated society of equals. This thesis uses Afro-communitarianism as a framework to analyse this challenge of continued racial segregation in post-Apartheid South Africa, and to provide tools to encourage integration. Afro-communitarianism holds that the essence of the human person is incomplete without the recognition of one’s nature as one amongst others. Afro-communitarianism emphasizes deep communal relationships between individuals and their community, it conceptualizes a person as only truly a person in relation to others. Drawing from this core idea, this thesis develops a conception of personhood as complementary. Complementary personhood argues that no human person is self-sufficient, and as such a mutual complementarity between and amongst them serves to positively enhance the quality of one’s social, moral, political, and existential realities. An Afro-communitarian understanding of integration is built upon this mutual complementarity, and as such focuses on the need for interaction, relationship, and communal space. The thesis develops this Afro-communitarian concept of social integration and uses it as a framework to identify the core relational problem underlying racial tensions in contemporary South Africa. I argue that my Afro-communitarian account of complementary personhood provides us with two mutually reinforcing strategies to respond to this core relational problem. First, I present 4 an account of Afro-communitarian social architecture which prioritizes communal engagement through the creation of communal spaces that promote humane relationships. Second, I argue for an Afro-communitarian understanding of moral education that is centred on instilling communal values and a complementary understanding of personhood. Together, these two strategies provide resources toward developing a new and innovative path toward an integrated South Africa.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Agriculture land abandonment and rural development in South Africa

  • Authors: Mgushelo, Aphiwe
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Abandoned farms , Rural development -- South Africa Finance, Public -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MPhil
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/41128 , vital:36362
  • Description: Vast amounts of agriculture lands have been abandoned over the last decades, worldwide – phenomenally in rural areas (Filho et al., 2016). In South Africa, Agriculture Land Abandonment (ALA) is apparent even to the human eye, but little or nothing is known about it, especially regarding its causes and implications for rural socio-economic development. Agriculture Land Abandonment is critical and highly topical given the ongoing debate on the land issue in South Africa (Friedman, 2018; Maromo, 2018). Moreover, the National Development Plan (NDP) identifies agriculture as the main economic activity in rural areas, with the potential to create nearly 1 million new jobs and as a primary means to achieve rural development by 2030 (National Planning Commission (NPC), 2011). To this end, the land must be cultivated to provide work and to banish poverty. This research focuses on Julukuqu, a rural village in the former Transkei homeland, within the O.R. Tambo District in the Eastern Cape province. This research intends to indent and propose a solution for rural development by understanding the causes and consequences of Agriculture Land Abandonment and identifying measures to address this issue. By analysing satellite imagery of the study area over a 15-year period, we are able to establish the extent of Agriculture Land Abandonment. Individual interviews and a focus group discussion were conducted and analysed to provide an understanding of the official positions and grassroots lived experiences. Altogether, the data that was collected yielded 17 usable interviews, which were subjected to thematic analyses. The findings of this research are that: the croplands of Julukuqu were once totally cultivated, but they are now almost (all) totally abandoned with only one person still cultivating their now reduced cropland. The causes of ALA in Julukuqu are socio-economic, environmental and political in nature. Due to schooling, children are no longer herding the livestock and it is free-ranging and grazing within the people’s croplands – in season and out of season. Coupled with an irrigation system, because of drought, fencing has thus become a principal determinant of cultivation of the croplands. The abandonment of the croplands has left the households insecure and depending mainly on social grants for income and food, including the very maize they once produced and sold a surplus. Hunger has become a rural denominator – striking both the people and their livestock, and crime has risen with unemployment. Moreover, child schooling and youth reluctance, threaten the succession and sustainability of agriculture as a rural livelihood and business. Despite the abandonment of the croplands, agriculture is still seen as a key to poverty alleviation and socio-economic development in Julukuqu. Given the experienced consequences of ALA, there exists a strong desire and will among the people of Julukuqu to cultivate their abandoned croplands once again. Fundamentally, for the people to meet their common socio-economic needs and challenges, they need to address ALA in Julukuqu through the development of an agricultural co-operative, which needs financial and non-financial support to develop and succeed.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Agriculture land abandonment and rural development in South Africa

  • Authors: Mgushelo, Aphiwe
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Abandoned farms , Rural development -- South Africa Agriculture and state -- South Africa South Africa -- Rural conditions
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MPhil
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/44257 , vital:37143
  • Description: Vast amounts of agriculture lands have been abandoned over the last decades, worldwide – phenomenally in rural areas (Filho et al., 2016). In South Africa, Agriculture Land Abandonment (ALA) is apparent even to the human eye, but little or nothing is known about it, especially regarding its causes and implications for rural socio-economic development. Agriculture Land Abandonment is critical and highly topical given the ongoing debate on the land issue in South Africa (Friedman, 2018; Maromo, 2018). Moreover, the National Development Plan (NDP) identifies agriculture as the main economic activity in rural areas, with the potential to create nearly 1 million new jobs and as a primary means to achieve rural development by 2030 (National Planning Commission (NPC), 2011). To this end, the land must be cultivated to provide work and to banish poverty. This research focuses on Julukuqu, a rural village in the former Transkei homeland, within the O.R. Tambo District in the Eastern Cape province. This research intends to indent and propose a solution for rural development by understanding the causes and consequences of Agriculture Land Abandonment and identifying measures to address this issue. By analysing satellite imagery of the study area over a 15-year period, we are able to establish the extent of Agriculture Land Abandonment. Individual interviews and a focus group discussion were conducted and analysed to provide an understanding of the official positions and grassroots lived experiences. Altogether, the data that was collected yielded 17 usable interviews, which were subjected to thematic analyses. The findings of this research are that: the croplands of Julukuqu were once totally cultivated, but they are now almost (all) totally abandoned with only one person still cultivating their now reduced cropland. The causes of ALA in Julukuqu are socio-economic, environmental and political in nature. Due to schooling, children are no longer herding the livestock and it is free-ranging and grazing within the people’s croplands – in season and out of season. Coupled with an irrigation system, because of drought, fencing has thus become a principal determinant of cultivation of the croplands. The abandonment of the croplands has left the households insecure and depending mainly on social grants for income and food, including the very maize they once produced and sold a surplus. Hunger has become a rural denominator – striking both the people and their livestock, and crime has risen with unemployment. Moreover, child schooling and youth reluctance, threaten the succession and sustainability of agriculture as a rural livelihood and business. Despite the abandonment of the croplands, agriculture is still seen as a key to poverty alleviation and socio-economic development in Julukuqu. Given the experienced consequences of ALA, there exists a strong desire and will among the people of Julukuqu to cultivate their abandoned croplands once again. Fundamentally, for the people to meet their common socio-economic needs and challenges, they need to address ALA in Julukuqu through the development of an agricultural co-operative, which needs financial and non-financial support to develop and succeed.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019

Agriculture vocational education programme and the promotion of job creation skills in the Free State technical vocational education and training college

  • Authors: Thwala, William Mandla
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Vocational education Technical education
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD (Education)
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/16698 , vital:40762
  • Description: The aim of the study was to investigate agriculture educational programme and the promotion of job creation skills in the OFS FET College. The interpretivism paradigm and design approach were adopted in this qualitative research. The sample consisted of three final year students, three facilitators and one coordinator. The non-probability and purposive sampling techniques was used for the qualitative research. The qualitative data was descriptive, and thematically analysed. The study found that there is a big demand for agricultural professional in South Africa but very few are choosing this career. The quality of education in agricultural sector is not where it should be. The demand for skilled people in the sector is growing, while the number of students enrolling in agriculture-related training continues to decrease. Africa’s agricultural education is failing to produce a new wave of farmers. The study found that FET colleges did not train and provide enough skills to students to enhance development in agriculture sectors and therefore make students non-productive at labour market. The study also found that the FET colleges had left a trail of low skills, partially educated and jobless youth behind. The study also found that the curriculum tended to be outmoded, irrelevant to adequately address the challenges facing modern agriculture .The curriculum still focused on farm production rather than encompassing all segments of agricultural value chains, entrepreneurship, and agriculture business processing market. Agriculture forms the basic food security of every country .It contributes a large proportion of gross domestic product in many developing countries and is the source of income and subsistence for many of the poorest and most vulnerable individuals and households.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Aiding the education agenda? the role of non-governmental organisations in learner performance and retention in Joza, Grahamstown, South Africa

  • Authors: Nomsenge, Sinazo Onela
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Non-governmental organizations , Non-governmental organizations -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Black people -- Education -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Education -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Joza Youth Hub (Makhanda) , Upstart Youth Development Project (Makhanda) , Village Scribe Association (Makhanda) , Ikamba Youth (Makhanda) , Access Music Project(Makhanda)
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/76468 , vital:30568
  • Description: This thesis describes the network of complexities that characterise the world and work of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). It examines the ways in which organisations navigate different internal, sectoral and contextual intricacies while operating under the command of their chosen developmental mandates. This description is drawn from a sociological analysis of the internal workings of education NGOs, their external affiliations as well as the negotiations which underpin their operations and survival. Collectively, the careful illustration of these underpinnings outlines both the role that NGOs play in the performance and retention of learners in the Grahamstown-east township of Joza and also their position in the town’s basic education sector. Private and non-governmental interveners have, particularly from the closing decades of the 20th century, been conceptually and operationally deployed as panaceas of the socio-economic scarcities which continue to pervade much of the ‘developing’ world. Their involvement in the socio-economic missions of populations living in the Global South has grown both laterally and in the depth of how development is understood and defined, carried out and also measured. NGOs, as widely acclaimed institutional arms of global development imperatives, therefore assume prominent positions in framing policy and implementation models, prescribing performance benchmarks and pronouncing non-compliance. Likewise, education NGOs have obtained normative prescription status in global education policy and practice largely on the back of the Education for All (EFA) objectives, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the neo-liberal logics which have championed state retreat in favour of private sector ascendance in globalised development. This, in conjunction with the persistent struggles of educational transformation in the Global South, has given NGOs little trouble in legitimising their prominent presence in education and other sectors of socio-economic relief in these parts of the world. Little illusion remains however, in many commentary circles, of the role of NGOs in advancing development ideals, the honesty of their altruistic intents, their ideological leanings as well as their efficacy in carrying out their mandates. As such, the logics which have been used to dethrone developing state structures in order to expand the space for private intervention along with the prevailing and deepening markers of educational underperformance, have been central features of the criticisms levelled against NGOs. This thesis intervenes in these ongoing reflections by describing the role of NGOs in educational outcomes, particularly learner performance and retention in Joza. This analysis demonstrates the organisational, sector-level and broader community forces which influence not only the form which non-state interventions take on and the daily preoccupations of their carriers but broadly, the position they occupy in the town’s overall educational profile. By way of locating NGOs within Grahamstown’s educational landscape, this thesis first demonstrates, the conflicted nature of NGO operations from an international, sectoral, national, local and organisational level. The discussion then illustrates how the preoccupations of NGOs are scattered between the different communities which they occupy within these levels. Their reliance on these players demands that organisations be tactical in guarding both their survival and, at times, the conflicting allegiances which grant them different forms of legitimacy. Internal struggles which characterise this imbalance of forces results in a trade-off which often favours organisational preservation mechanisms over systemic educational overhaul. As such, while non-state interveners can be lauded for extending educational support to those who would otherwise not have such, the gains of NGO intervention are often absorbed by internal urgencies for organisational legitimacy and preservation. This, in a context which possesses a unique set of socio-economic and educational deficits that require, at the very least, radical and unbridled mediation, means that pre-existing inequalities in educational inputs and outcomes along with the resultant inequities in youth socio-economic prospects, can find refuge in the very sector whose support and intervention is sought out and justified for such. This thesis lays out the nuances of these tensions and contradictions and offers this case as a point of reference for further considerations of the persistent markers of underperformance which characterise developing communities that enjoy high concentrations of non-state educational intervention.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Allosteric site modulators: a case study for falcipains as malarial drug targets

  • Authors: Musyoka, Thommas , Tastan Bishop, Özlem
  • Date: 2019
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/162699 , vital:40974 , https://doi.org/10.21955/gatesopenres.1116459.1
  • Description: Fighting against malaria is a never-ending battle. Plasmodium parasites continuously develop resistance to the drugs used against them including the artemisinin-based combination therapies as observed recently in Southeast Asia. The main concern now is whether the resistant parasite strains spread to Africa, where most malaria cases are located. To prevent this, we need to think outside the box. To date, there is no allosteric drug for malaria. Hence, allosteric drug targeting sites and modulators might be a new hope for malarial treatment. In Plasmodium falciparum two cysteine proteases, falcipain-2 (FP-2) and falcipain-3 (FP-3), have been identified as the main hemoglobinases, and are considered as attractive drug targets.
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  • Date Issued: 2019

Altruistic love culture and workers well-being: a study in workplace spirituality

  • Authors: Simms, Michelle
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Employee assistance programs -- South Africa , Religion in the workplace Altruism Interpersonal relations and culture -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/43468 , vital:36892
  • Description: Business leaders and company analysts identify the fact that the marketplace necessitates flexibility and mobility to triumph over the competitive difficulties which businesses usually encounter. More recently approaches have focused on the role that people perform in bringing about competitive advantage and in particular strategies on how to increase Employee Well-being. Given the need for Employee Well-being in order to achieve desired work-related results, management has become progressively more enthusiastic about methods to improve the well-being of their employees. This research study seeks to make a contribution to this topic by investigating how Employee Well-being can be increased by inculcating an Altruistic Love culture amongst employees. To achieve this objective an Employee Well-Being Model was presented. Spiritual Leadership in the workplace was discussed as the theoretical framework with Altruistic Love as a feature in the intrinsic model of motivation explained further. Six values were defined and according to the theoretical framework were important in order to achieve Employee Well-being. These values were Appreciation, Kindness, Integrity, Compassion, Humility and Forgiveness. The Employee Well-Being Model served as a basis for the compilation of the survey questionnaire to investigate the role of Altruistic Love values in achieving Employee Well-being. The questionnaire was administered in two stages. The first was a printed survey distributed to all workers at a FMCG company called Springbok Discount Meat Centre. The second part was an electronic survey sent out by email, where a link to the online survey could be accessed. The empirical results revealed that Appreciation, Kindness, Integrity and Humility were significantly positively related to Employee Well-being. Compassion was significantly negatively related to Employee Well-being. It can consequently be postulated that there will be a significant improvement of Employee Well-Being in the workplace if Altruistic Love values, defined in the study as Appreciation, Kindness, Integrity and Humility are practised more often by employees including management.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019

Amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus) growth and nutritional contents as affected by nitrogen and potassium fertiliser and plant density

  • Authors: Mamvura, Luckmore
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Weeds -- Control -- Management
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/17249 , vital:40869
  • Description: The research was conducted to determine the response of amaranth growth and development to different rates of nitrogen and potassium fertilizer, the effect of plant density on herbage yield and weed management, effect of leaf age and stems on nutritional value of amaranths. The research was conducted at the University of Fort Hare Research Farm and University of Fort Hare glasshouse. For the fertilizer trial, a 4 x 3 factorial experiment: nitrogen at four levels (50kg/ha; 100kg/ha; 150kg/ha; 200kg/ha) and potassium at three levels (50kg/ha; 75kg/ha; 100kg/ha) was applied. Phosphorus was applied at 50kg/ha. The experiment was laid as randomised complete block design (RCBD) with 4 blocks (replication). The results showed that application of nitrogen and potassium treatments significantly (P < 0.05) increased plant height, stem girth and number of leaves per plant which in turn increased the crop economic leaf vegetative yield. The results also showed that at high rates of nitrogen and potassium, high vegetative yields were achieved in most cases. There was no interaction (P < 0.05) between nitrogen and potassium. Second experiment, the twelve treatments used in fertilizer trial were imposed under four different amaranth plant densities (1 200 000, 1400 000, 1600 000 and 1800 000 pph) at field level to find out growth and development performance of amaranth. In addition, at the same time investigating the effectiveness of plant density on weeds management using split plot design. The different planting densities were allocated to the main plots laid-out in RCBD. The results showed that there was no significant difference (P < 0.05) on the number of weeds under four plant densities. The results showed that different plant densities did not prevent weeds germination but the amaranths tolerate the negative effects of weeds. The nutritional analysis results showed that amaranth synthesised close to above recommended nutritional level despite different treatments applied. The third experiment: stems, lower and upper leaves were harvested separately and their nutritional composition was analysed. The results showed that the nutritional composition of stems, lower leaves and upper leaves were significantly different (P < 0.05) in most cases. Lower leaves dominated nutritional content for: crude protein crude fibre, carbohydrates, and calcium. The stems recorded least nutritional content on crude protein, crude fat, carbohydrates, calcium, potassium and sodium
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019

An access control model for a South African National Electronic Health Record System

  • Authors: Tsegaye, Tamir Asrat
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Medical records -- Data processing , Medical records -- Data processing -- Safety measures , Medical records -- Data processing -- South Africa , Medical records -- Data processing -- Access control , Medical informatics , Medical records -- Management -- South Africa , Health services administration -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MCom
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/97046 , vital:31390
  • Description: Countries such as South Africa have attempted to leverage eHealth by digitising patients’ medical records with the ultimate goal of improving the delivery of healthcare. This involves the use of the Electronic Health Record (EHR) which is a longitudinal electronic record of a patient’s information. The EHR is comprised of all of the encounters that have been made at different health facilities. In the national context, the EHR is also known as a national EHR which enables the sharing of patient information between points of care. Despite this, the realisation of a national EHR system puts patients' EHRs at risk. This is because patients’ information, which was once only available at local health facilities in the form of paper-based records, can be accessed anywhere within the country as a national EHR. This results in security and privacy issues since patients’ EHRs are shared with an increasing number of parties who are geographically distributed. This study proposes an access control model that will address the security and privacy issues by providing the right level of secure access to authorised clinicians. The proposed model is based on a combination of Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) and Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC). The study found that RBAC is the most common access control model that is used within the healthcare domain where users’ job functions are based on roles. While RBAC is not able to handle dynamic events such as emergencies, the proposed model’s use of ABAC addresses this limitation. The development of the proposed model followed the design science research paradigm and was informed by the results of the content analysis plus an expert review. The content analysis sample was retrieved by conducting a systematic literature review and the analysis of this sample resulted in 6743 tags. The proposed model was evaluated using an evaluation framework via an expert review.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019

An Agile systems development approach for enhancing e-Government user adoption

  • Authors: Lehasa, Odifentse Mapula-e
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Agile software development , Internet in public administration -- Developing countries
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MCom
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/94158 , vital:31010
  • Description: The expansion of technological developments in all areas of society has seen governments taking advantage of new technologies to enhance public service delivery, disseminate information and promote participation by the public in government decision-making. This phenomenon is known as electronic government, or e-Government. However despite the socio-economic benefits inherent in the implementation of e-Government systems, an overwhelming number of government projects – particularly in developing countries – struggle to successfully implement e-Government systems. e-Government project failure is more pronounced in developing countries, with more than half of these projects either partially or completely failing. The failure of e-Government projects undermines government investments, as well as the potential socio-economic benefits that could be realised by the citizens. Arguably, while the failure or success of an e-Government project is attributed to a myriad of factors, low user adoption is one of the key factors that contribute to e-Government project failure. Therefore this thesis seeks to investigate the phenomenon of low e-Government user adoption and determine whether the use of an Agile system development approach can positively influence e-Government user satisfaction as well as buy-in and adoption. A Mixed-Methods, multi-case study approach was used through the perspective of Post-Positivism. The researcher examined four (4) South African e-Government projects – using an online questionnaire and in-depth interviews with members of the system development team – to determine whether the use of an Agile approach has merit in enhancing e-Government user adoption. The use of a Mixed-Methods approach allowed for data triangulation so as to verify the findings; while the use of multiple case studies enabled for cross-case analysis. The findings indicate that the use of Agile practices, as listed in the proposed Agile-informed User Engagement Guidelines, can ensure that the e-Government system developed meets user needs; and, that users are satisfied with, and make use of the e-Government system. However since most large e-Government projects make use of a traditional Waterfall development approach, it is recommended that the Agile practices (proposed guidelines) be incorporated into the structured Waterfall approach – to create a hybrid, or blended system development approach. In conclusion, the use of the proposed Agile-informed User Engagement Guidelines can enhance e-Government user adoption; and, subsequently, contribute towards nurturing the success of e-Government projects.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019

An analysis of barriers to employee adoption of workplace health and safety standards at Eskom, Makhanda (Grahamstown)

  • Authors: Makholwane, Nobubele
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Eskom (Firm) -- Employees -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Eskom (Firm) -- Management -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Industrial hygiene -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Employee motivation -- South Africa -- Makhanda
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MBA
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/93898 , vital:30968
  • Description: Workplace fatalities and injuries are a concern around the world, with over 2 million deaths because of workplace related activities. This makes safety culture in the workplace crucial to the sustainability of individuals, businesses and the society in general. Safety culture includes everything in the workplace, and is understood as common sense awareness and practice relating to safety. Central to developing a safety culture in an organization, is a good understanding of what safety problems existed in the past; what safety problems exist in the present, and what caused them, as well as what could be done to deal with those causes. The goal of this thesis, therefore, was to understand what barriers potentially exist for Eskom employees in Makhanda (Grahamstown) to understanding and adopting the company’s safety policies and measures. A secondary aim was to explore different strategies for addressing these barriers. In order to get to the goal, it was important to; first, understand which aspects of Eskom’s health and safety standards do employees have difficulty adopting. Second, it was important to investigate the specific barriers to employees’ non-adoption of health and safety standards, by understanding their perceptions of safety issues in the workplace. Third, based on the findings, the study aimed to propose recommendations for improving the adoption of safety policies and measures by employees of Eskom. The key findings of the study include the fact that car accidents are the company’s and employees major concern, but the employees also have many other concerns that they see as needing the company’s attention (e.g. dealing with attacks on employees by customers; focusing on incentives rather than harsh enforcement for violators of safety policies). However, it is also clear that most employees do see safety as their responsibility as well. The two key areas of recommendations are, first, that leadership of Eskom adopt alternative leadership styles that focus more on ethical leadership, rather than transactional leadership that focus on profit margins more than it does on people. Second, it is recommended that Eskom provide incentives for compliance with safety policies; more training and education about safety; encouragement for Eskom to not put so much pressure on employees, who can lead fatigue; rather they should employ more people to do the jobs that the high pressure. To conclude, this research argues that neither do employees not employers think death and injuries are good for anybody. This is why this researcher is hopeful that this will get better, not worse, in terms of having a firm safety culture at Eskom as a workplace environment.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019

An Analysis of Career Discourses in Life Orientation Textbooks of Eastern Cape Schools

  • Authors: Du Toit , Julie
  • Date: 2019
  • Subjects: Life skills Vocational guidance
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MSoc. Sci (Psychology)
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/17580 , vital:41101
  • Description: Life Orientation (LO) was introduced in schools by the new ANC government post 1994. Its introduction provided a platform to re-introduce career guidance to learners in schools with the aim of assisting them in making well-versed choices regarding their prospective careers and the subject selections pertaining to them (Department of Basic Education, 2011). Although no previous studies in the LO arena have focused on career discourses, previous literature on career discourses, in general, suggests that the models and theories still employed today have been heavily influenced by Western individualistic values. This has been found to create a disconnect between the South African subjects and the context they exist in, rendering these discourses unable to provide substantive assistance in the career decision making process. This study seeks to determine whether the career discourses located in the selected texts speak to the subjectivity and agency of the learner to make informed decisions. The current study examined the career discourses present in the LO textbooks utilised in Eastern Cape schools. The study sampled LO textbooks from Grades 10-12, as this group of learners are preparing to make critical further studying and career decisions and require guidance in their decision making process. A social constructionist lens was applied to the study by means of a Foucauldian Discourse Analysis, making use of Willig’s (2013) six step process as a reference. Dominant discourses of the objective self, neoliberal self and the transitioning adolescent were uncovered in the texts, which suggests that, rather than challenge the dominant discourses that have prevailed in career theory and practice, the LO careers curriculum further reinforces them.
  • Full Text:
  • Date Issued: 2019
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