- Title
- A digital transformation framework for municipalities in the Eastern Cape
- Creator
- Luke, Lamla Lonwabo Leadley
- Subject
- Internet in public administration
- Subject
- Information technology -- Political aspects
- Subject
- Electronic government information
- Date Issued
- 2023-12
- Date
- 2023-12
- Type
- Master's thesis
- Type
- text
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10948/62506
- Identifier
- vital:72779
- Description
- Digital transformation (DT) integrates technology into all business areas, fundamentally changing how businesses operate and deliver value to their clients. It is also a cultural change that requires organisations to continually challenge the status quo, experiment and get comfortable with change. Smart Municipalities in South Africa have various challenges concerning integrating services and information flow among departments within the municipalities, thus preventing the creation of value for the citizens. The ongoing digital transformation revolutionises urban development and governance, offering opportunities for enhanced citizen services, resource optimisation, and sustainable growth. However, the complexity of implementing smart city initiatives demands a structured approach. Due to urbanisation, municipal management in developing nations must deal with issues like increased energy consumption, pollution, the disposal of toxic wastes, resource depletion, ineffective management of urban infrastructures, ineffective planning processes, overloaded transportation networks, endemic congestion, as well as social inequality and socioeconomic disparity. The extent of digital adoption in the South African province of the Eastern Cape has provided municipalities with a learning opportunity to change into data-driven Smart Municipalities in order to increase productivity, growth, employment, and the need for people with a variety of skills. This study required a review of the literature to examine digital transformation, Smart Municipalities, Smart Municipalities at national and international levels, and Smart Municipality models. The literature review also helped to create a Smart Municipality conceptual model. Data for this study were collected in four Eastern Cape municipalities, namely: DR. AB. Xuma, Enoch Mgijima, Intsika Yethu Local municipalities, and their critical stakeholder Chris Hani District Municipality. The population was all municipal workers, including Municipal Managers, Councillors, Executive Management, ICT officials, Unit Managers, Computer Users and other municipal employees who were using IT to do their job responsibilities within the municipalities. This research study followed a positivistic approach using quantitative methods of analysis. Accordingly, the conceptual model was hypothesised and tested using a questionnaire to collect data and the data were statistically analysed. The study followed a descriptive research designwith a quantitative approach. Various statistical analyses were conducted, including descriptive statistics, reliability and validity metrics of the research instrument, correlation coefficients and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA). South Africa has provided municipalities with a learning opportunity to change into data-driven Smart Municipalities to increase productivity, growth, and employment supported by the need for people with a variety of skills. A Value Alignment Smart City Stakeholder (VASCS) model was created in previous research and identified nine dimensions of a smart city, namely Smart Economy, Smart Environment, Smart Governance, Smart Living, Smart Mobility, Smart Organisation, Smart People, Smart Policies and Smart Technology. Due to lack of DT framework and guidelines that guides municipalities on how they can adopt Smart Municipality concept, the objective of this study was to propose and evaluate a Value Alignment Smart Municipality Stakeholder (VASMS) model for municipalities in the Eastern Cape. The nine dimensions were empirically evaluated by stakeholders in four Eastern Cape municipalities. The results depict a change towards the importance of developing a Smart Municipality in the four municipalities, while following appropriate planning, designing, management, operations and governance guidelines. The respondents regarded the smart policy dimension as the most important dimension in the proposed VASMS model. This study further provided practical guidelines for the adoption of smart municipalities in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. This proposed VASMS model aims to address the unique challenges faced by municipalities in the Eastern Cape as they embark on their digital transformation journey. It outlines a stepby- step process encompassing strategic planning, technological integration, stakeholder engagement, and governance restructuring. Moreover, it emphasises the importance of fostering a collaborative ecosystem between government agencies, private sector partners, and citizens. By offering this VASMS model, this research contributes to the advancement of Smart Municipality initiatives in the Eastern Cape, ultimately paving the way for more efficient, resilient, and citizen-centric urban environments.
- Description
- Thesis (MCom) -- Faculty of Science, School of Computing Sciences, 2023
- Format
- computer
- Format
- online resource
- Format
- application/pdf
- Format
- 1 online resource (xvi, 280 pages)
- Format
- Publisher
- Nelson Mandela University
- Publisher
- Faculty of Science
- Language
- English
- Rights
- Nelson Mandela University
- Rights
- All Rights Reserved
- Rights
- Open Access
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Collections
NMU School of Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics and Statistics
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | SOURCE1 | Luke, LLL.pdf | 6 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |