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Database and guide for Lesotho wool and mohair production and quality

- Maqalika, Papali Elizabeth

Authors: Maqalika, Papali Elizabeth
Date: 2020
Subjects: Mohair -- Dissertations -- Lesotho , Wool -- Dissertations -- Lesotho Textile fabrics -- Lesotho Textile industry -- Lesotho
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , DPhil
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/49148 , vital:41605
Description: Lesotho produces significant quantities of Merino apparel wool and mohair, both of a quality that allows them to compete on the global market and to make a significant contribution to the economy of the country. Nevertheless, very little production and quality data and trends of these fibres have been documented. This is a serious disadvantage in terms of international trading and benchmarking as well as attempts to improve the production and quality of Lesotho wool and mohair. In the light of the aforementioned, the available production and quality data of the past 10 years have been captured and analysed for trends and also benchmarking, where considered applicable. The main focus is on fibre diameter (fineness), staple length, and yield since they largely determine fibre quality, application and price. Some quality related tests were undertaken to fill certain important gaps in the available data. In addition, prickle and medullation were evaluated on representative wool and mohair samples, respectively, because they represent important quality measures for apparel wool and mohair, respectively. It was found that Lesotho wool and mohair are of a fairly good and internationally competitive quality, with the wool having an average fibre diameter (MFD) of ≈20μm, an average staple length of about 64mm, an average VM level of about 4%, an average yield of about 57%, and the annual production being about 4 million kilograms greasy. The average staple length of the mohair was about 140mm, average MFD about 29μm and the average medullation, which unless otherwise specified, refers to the objectionable medullated fibres (kemp type) including the flat medullated fibre, relatively high at about 5.7%. The latter is certainly an area of concern which needs attention and improvement. It was found that the prickle level (Comfort Factor), of some of the wools tested was of such a level as to make the wool suitable for wearing against the skin. With respect to mohair, there is considerable scope to substantially reduce the level of objectionable medullated (kemp style) fibre level through the appropriate breeding interventions. Production of both wool and mohair has increased slightly over the ten years covered by this study. It also became apparent that Lesotho wool and mohair quality and production are greatly influenced by the farming practices and climatic conditions. Greater adoption of the merino sheep breed, sheds/barns and sheep coats are suggested as ways to reduce mortality rate (due to extremely cold temperatures), improve quality and increase yield and production. Some farming practices such as the lack of barns, supplementary feeding and veterinary care present constraints in terms of production of both wool and mohair. The districts in the Highlands region had the highest production of mostly wool, this being ascribed to better pastures, climatic and other conditions conducive to wool and mohair production. Both wool and mohair are considered to have potential for improved quality and production, which could be affected by appropriate interventions by the Small Agricultural and Development Project (SADP) and others through National Wool and Mohair Growers Association (NWMGA). Nevertheless, since the wool and mohair growers (farmers) do not form part of these and other interventions, they do not readily adopt the various strategies and decisions and do not receive the associated benefits immediately. It is therefore advised that local farmers, relevant educators and researchers be represented in policy and other decision making forums. In this way, educational campaigns will be demand driven with greater chance of adoption and success.
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Date Issued: 2020

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Linking onshore and offshore crustal features, integrating seismic and borehole data in the Gamtoos basin

- Makuzeni, Manyano

Authors: Makuzeni, Manyano
Date: 2020
Subjects: Submarine geology , Geology Geophysics
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/49137 , vital:41604
Description: The margin of the Southern Africa continent harbours the history about the fragmentation and separation of Gondwana in its basins. The integration of onshore and offshore geology is of primordial importance to understand the complete geological history and evolution of the southern African border. The study focuses on the Gamtoos Basin, where the sediment deposits on the onshore portion are generally unfossiliferous and therefore difficult to correlate with the offshore portion of the basin. In an attempt to do this, several datasets were integrated such as old 2-D seismic reflection data and borehole wells. This data, acquired by SOEKER in the 1970s was purchased from the Petroleum Agency of South Africa (PASA). Some data reprocessing involved digitization and conversion of the old seismic data from TIF format to SEG-Y format. Conventional seismic stratigraphic method (Mitchum, JR, et al., 1977) was used to identify seismic discontinuities and remarkable stratigraphic surfaces and units based on reflection configurations and facies characteristics, and ages of these surfaces were provided by well data. Seismic interpretation was first done on printed seismogram papers, and then integrated into the ‘Kingdom Suite’ software to ensure coherency at all crossing lines. Isochron and Isopach maps (using QGIS, Mirone and tools such as GMT) were created. The first results, allow us to estimate for the first time a precise age calibration of onshore deposit. Furthermore, the delimitation in 5 second-order seismic sequences along the Gamtoos Basin suggest a link between different basin filling dynamics and kinematic phases related to the opening of the Indian and Atlantic Oceans along the southern Africa margins. The study shows that the Gamtoos Basin is an essential area linking the geological histories of both East and Western parts of the Southern Africa continent.
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Date Issued: 2020

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The ecology of Impala (Aepyceros melampus) in a dystrophic system: a case study from Welgevonden Game Reserve, Limpopo Province, South Africa

- Pieterse, Marilize

Authors: Pieterse, Marilize
Date: 2019
Subjects: Impala -- Habitat -- South Africa -- Limpopo province , Impala -- Feeding and feeds -- South Africa -- Limpopo province Ecology -- South Africa -- Limpopo province
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/43240 , vital:36768
Description: Impala (Aepyceros melampus) have been extensively researched and are known to flourish in Savanna ecosystems. They are a very adaptable species switching easily between grazing and browsing hence their classification as mixed feeders. However, little published research has been done on impala and their adaptability to sour nutrient-poor savannas. On Welgevonden Game Reserve (WGR), situated in the dystrophic Waterberg Mountain Range, impala have poor body condition and negative growth rates. Research shows that impala are on the threshold of being sexually dimorphic which can lead to a difference in the habitat selection and preference, diet composition and diet quality of adult male and female animals. This study served as a baseline study to understand the adaptability and ecology of impala in the Waterberg. The key research question was: How do male and female impala adapt to the area in terms of habitat selection and preference, and diet composition and quality, across the seasons of a year in the sour nutrient-poor Waterberg Mountain Range? This was the first study on impala in the area that looked at all the above-mentioned factors. A combination of observational studies, for habitat selection and preference, and faecal analysis, for diet composition and diet quality (faecal Nitrogen (Nf) and Phosphorous (Pf)), were used. It should be noted that WGR received below average rainfall and above average maximum temperatures over the past seven years. Impala on WGR are limited by the availability of suitable habitat and the quantity and quality of forage. They therefore suffer from nutrient deficiency. Spatial and ecological segregation between male and female animals occurred due to differences in sexual status and the constraints associated with this. Overall, very little variation in habitat use occurred between Wet and Dry seasons, emphasizing limited suitable impala habitat. Impala on WGR showed a distinct preference and avoidance of different habitat types. Both male and female preferred Short Grassland throughout the year. This is the smallest habitat type on the reserve and is dominated by Cynodon dactylon, which mostly occurs in the low-lying areas of the reserve. Both male and female impala avoided Hill Slope and Long Grassland throughout the year. These habitat types are characterized by steep slopes, medium to extensive rock cover, long sparse grass and dense tree cover. The Long Grassland habitat type consist mainly of old lands in different stages of regeneration dominated by dense unpalatable grasses. Both male and female impala were highly selective towards the most nutrient rich areas, which predominantly included the Short Grassland habitat type. The factors important to impala habitat selection are short to medium grass height (6-25 cm), ecotones in low lying areas between Short Grassland and woodland, proximity to water (0.96-1.5 km), moderate to no slopes, a burn interval of less than 3 years, the dominant occurrence of Cynodon dactylon, and the presence of Dichrostachys cinerea, Grewia flavescens, Dombeya rotundifolia and Indigofera melanodenia. The impala population on WGR appears to be limited by a lack of quality forage. The diet composition of impala on WGR followed a seasonal pattern, with a higher grass to browse content during the Wet seasons, and a higher browse to grass content during the Dry seasons. Furthermore, impala on WGR have a higher browse content in their diet than in other areas of South Africa. The higher content of browse in the impala’s diet on WGR is probably due to the impala optimizing their diet quality due to a lack of quality grasses, such as Cynodon dactylon, available to them on the reserve. Females consumed higher amounts of browse than males during lactation in order to optimize their diet quality. In general, impala experienced nutrient deficiencies during the Dry seasons as indicated by Nf and Pf values which were below the accepted threshold values for impala. This appears to have affected their body condition, reproductive success and survival. The below threshold values of Nf and Pf indicate that their numbers exceeded the ecological capacity of the reserve at the time of the study. This dystrophic savanna is marginal for impala. This indicates that even large reserves in the sour bushveld communities of the Waterberg Mountains are unlikely to sustain impala populations in a healthy productive state.
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Date Issued: 2019

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A framework for financing public transport infrastructure in South Africa

- Nobaza, Lwazi Bruce

Authors: Nobaza, Lwazi Bruce
Date: 2018
Subjects: Local transit -- South Africa -- Finance , Urban transportation -- South Africa -- Finance Transportation and state -- South Africa
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/22703 , vital:30059
Description: South African cities are faced with still challenges of economic and spatial exclusion due to the legacy of apartheid, growing need for housing opportunities, high transport costs, long commuting times between work and home, and poor integration of different modes of public transport. Although there is a strong association between public transport infrastructure investment and socio-spatial transformation, the current backlog of public transport infrastructure and the inability of public funds to address such backlog inhibit spatial transformation and socio-economic integration. Notably, public transport has a potential to expedite spatial transformation and social integration and also stimulate the economy but it is still underfunded. There are numerous alternative and innovative mechanisms that are applied internationally, that can help with financing of public transport infrastructure financing, but few or none have been applied in a South African context. The purpose of this study is to explore alternative funding mechanisms and provide a conceptual framework for that will ensure availability of finances that are critical for financing public transport infrastructure in South Africa. Literature review provides international best practices in the financing of public transport infrastructure that can be replicated in South Africa. This resulted in the identification of six independent variables, namely government funding, external financing, public private partnerships, risk management, property value capture and institutional environment and two intervening variables, namely feasibility and viability. These variables were then utilised to develop a conceptual framework with suggested hypotheses on the financing of public transport infrastructure in South Africa. Primary data was then statistically analysed to test the proposed conceptual framework and hypothesised relationships. The empirical study provides little evidence of significant relationships between dependent variables of the study, namely perceived success of financing public transport infrastructure in South Africa and the independent and intervening variables. However, the study highlights that feasibility and financial viability are preconditions for sustainable investments into public transport infrastructure. These can be only achieved in an investment climate with a conducive policy and legislative framework that does not only protect interests of various investors but also utilises government funding to leverage private sector finance. This will ensure that long term objectives spatial transformation of urban areas is achieved.
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Date Issued: 2018

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Whither South Africa – neoliberalism or an embodied communitarian indigenous ethic?

- Konik, Inga

Authors: Konik, Inga
Date: 2015
Subjects: Neoliberalism -- South Africa Communitarianism , Literature and society South Africa -- Politics and government -- 21st century
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , DPhil
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/21656 , vital:29729
Description: This thesis offers a critique of neoliberal transformation in South Africa, which process results in growing social inequality and political apathy among citizens. Many scholars have made political-economic and historical analyses of the neoliberal transition, emphasizing structural changes at work at a ‘macro’ level. However, little attention has been paid to changes that have taken place in South Africa at the ‘micro’ level – changes to individual subjectivity and gender codes. That said, the thesis opens by summarizing the above mentioned political-economic accounts of neoliberalism in South Africa, because such works are indispensable to understanding how the regime is embedded within and buttressed by major global institutions. Yet, to achieve a holistic grasp of ‘neoliberal South Africa,’ more is needed. A sociological investigation into the impact of neoliberalism on ordinary people’s self-identification uncovers deep cultural reasons for the continued perpetuation of this unjust political-economic system. Only if it can be understood why people comply with the system in the face of suffering, can effective counter-measures be proposed and implemented over time. This thesis is inherently transdisciplinary. The approach rejects the privileging of one discipline over others, and likewise cautions against collapsing or dissolving disciplines into one another. Instead, recognizing the valuable contribution that each discipline can make to critical scrutiny of a particular issue, a form of methodological transversalism is used to bring different disciplines into dialogue with one another. Following this interplay of structural and subjective analysis, the thesis uncovers the role that consumerism plays in the political neutralization of South Africans. Consumer culture, tied as it is to profitable accumulation, instigates the neoliberal ‘values’ of economistic calculation, competition, and social atomization. This ethos is inculcated in individuals, both at work and during leisure hours. Moreover, consumerism derives much of its power from its ‘sexual sell,’ the creation of fashionable and ‘exemplary’ models of masculinity and femininity. In South Africa, these hegemonic gender models serve to instill competitive individualism while derogating indigenous values. The thesis proposes that in order to counter neoliberal hegemony in South Africa, and begin reclaiming the cultural autonomy of its peoples, it is important to invigorate indigenous communitarian practices and norms. The original contribution of this thesis consists in placing the African ethos of ubuntu in transversal dialogue with global ecological feminist voices. Both political perspectives reinforce a liberatory alternative vision for a future based on principles of embodied relationality, care giving and protection of community.
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Date Issued: 2015

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The influence of selected branding variables on corporate reputation

- Potgieter, Adéle

Authors: Potgieter, Adéle
Date: 20XX
Subjects: Corporate image Corporations|xPublic relations , Branding (Marketing) Brand name products -- Management
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , DPhil
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/19839 , vital:28984
Description: Despite research on relationships between branding constructs such as corporate identity, corporate image, employer branding, corporate branding and corporate reputation over the past years, limited research has been conducted on the influence of employees on these constructs. Although the concept of personal branding has been debated by many, there is a dearth of research on personal branding and the relationship between personal branding and employer branding, corporate branding and corporate reputation. As a result, this study was carried out in order to explore the influence of employer branding, employee’s personal branding and corporate branding on corporate reputation. It is argued in this study that corporate reputation is one of the most valuable intangible assets of an organisation. Organisations need to ensure that they comprehend the elements in the establishment of a corporate identity and a corporate image, and how employees influence these constructs. It became clear that an individual’s associations, awareness and assessment of an organisation influence their direct and indirect experiences with an organisation resulting in the formulation of a corporate reputation. The study also emphasised that employees are one of the most important tangible assets of an organisation and play an important role in establishing a corporate reputation and corporate brand. It was stated that an organisation combines a set of organisational qualities that focus on streamlining priorities, escalate productivity and improve recruitment, commitment and retention of employees through the process of employer branding. The study revealed that potential employees use the organisational attractiveness as an essential decision making tool in their quest to find the perfect employer. During the employer branding process prospective employees compare their own needs, values and personalities to that of the employer brand of the organisation. It is suggested that a well-executed employee branding process alleviates the profile of the organisation internally as well as externally, enhancing the competitive advantage of, and ultimately the corporate brand and reputation of an organisation. The study revealed that the emotional connections that stakeholders make with employees are moulded through formal and informal interactions with customers. Throughout the study it became evident that the individual provides a ‘package’ of their own values and qualities (what they believe in) expressed by what they do and how they do it, in order to create their own unique selling proposition in the market place through personal branding. It is, therefore, imperative that organisations find the correct person-organisation fit. The study indicated that the establishment of a personal brand is important for the employee but equally important for the organisation that becomes the employer. This highlighted the fact that any misalignment between the employee’s brand package content and the organisation’s brand values, objectives and personality results in the employee behaving differently to the expectations of the organisation. In order to establish the relationships between the variables of the study, empirical research was conducted. The study employed an exploratory as well as a causal approach. The Top500 best managed companies in South Africa was used as the sample population of the study. Companies were selected from the Top500 list and was guided by the sectors they have been assigned to. Eight industries were chosen that broadly constitute the most important sectors in the South African context. All five companies within the following sectors were selected: Arts/entertainment/recreation; Finance and Insurance; Banking sector; Government and Public administration; Hotel and Food services; Manufacturing and Retail. A self-administered web-based survey, consisting of five sections was utilised as measuring instrument. The questions in sections one to four related to the variables of the study whilst Section five was used to collect the demographic data of the respondents. A total of 312 usable questionnaires were received from a possible 900 respondents, indicating a 35 percent response rate.
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Date Issued: 20XX

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