Social media and development in the rural areas :an overview of the possible effects of socila media on the Thembu youth
- Authors: Matsheke, Masande Siyakudumisa
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Rural youth -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Social media -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Tembu (African people) -- History
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/45355 , vital:38573
- Description: the possible impact on the Thembu through the introduction of information communication technologies (ICTs) as a development tool is the main concern. This is done by unpacking the model of Ubuntu as the foundation of the Thembu’s value system and juxtaposing its values to those found on social media. As Ubuntu is the basis of the Thembu cultural identity, the possible effects of ICTs, more specifically social media, on the cultural identity of the Thembu is a key concept in the treatise. The treatise begins by exploring Ubuntu in different guises so as to understand the concept holistically. This is done by examining the works of Mogobe Ramose and others in unpacking Ubuntu as a way of living. The manifestations of Ubuntu in Thembu culture are also explored so as to appreciate the relevance of Ubuntu in Thembu culture. As ICTs are introduced to the rural Thembu as part of the government’s development efforts, the treatise explores the development policies of South Africa from the RDP to GEAR in order to understand the development stance of the country. The role of ICTs in the development is also looked at. The clashing values and other contradictory factors between social media and Ubuntu are looked at in order to support the main argument of the treatise –that of social media having a negative impact on the Thembu cultural identity through inherent values found therein.
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- Date Issued: 2017
The Health and Wellness programme in the Department of Roads and Public Works
- Authors: Mali, Thobela Charlotte
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Employee assistance programs -- South Africa Employee health promotion -- South Africa , Employee motivation -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/40856 , vital:36244
- Description: After 20 years of political democracy, South Africa is still faced with a variety of organisational challenges. Such challenges include crime, poverty, increasing unemployment rate, discrimination of employees in the workplace, the steadily increasing spread of HIV/AIDS and inequalities in the workplace. All these and others not mentioned, coupled with the inherited vast inequalities contribute to the increasing social and economic imbalances in the country. The Health and Wellness Programme of the Department of Roads and Public Works focuses on ensuring health and productivity within the employees of the department to help assist with the minimisation of absenteeism, diminished work performance and dissatisfaction of employees. The Health and Wellness Programme has identified, through its interventions, that there are tremendous factors that directly and indirectly plays a role on the productivity of employees within the workplace. This resulted in the formulation and implementation of various legislative frameworks after such challenges transpired. During the study, it has transpired that the majority of the employees within the Department of Roads and Public Works are not making use of the Health and Wellness Programmes due to lack of knowledge. This has resulted to absenteeism and insufficient productivity in the workplace. It is recommended that there should be coordination of the health education and promotion programmes. This includes health screenings, health promotion activities and medical surveillance. If these programmes are conducted promptly in the workplace, the chances of sick employees will be minimised and some sicknesses such as diabetes and high and low blood pressure can be detected early and treated before it becomes chronic.
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- Date Issued: 2016
NGOs and the depoliticisation of development : the case of GADRA education in Grahamstown
- Authors: Nqaba, Patronella Pinky
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: GADRA Education (Grahamstown, South Africa) , Non-governmental organizations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Non-governmental organizations -- Political aspects , Education -- South Africa -- History , Right to education -- South Africa , Educational change -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2890 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017865
- Description: Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have been criticised for depoliticising development through focusing on alleviating suffering rather than on addressing the root causes of poverty and underdevelopment. This research explores whether and how NGOs can act in ways that do not depoliticise development. The research focuses on education NGOs and in particular on the NGO GADRA education in Grahamstown, South Africa, to provide insights into ways in which politically conscious leadership of NGOs attempt to deal with the contradictions that are inherent in this field of work. This research provides a brief history of the South African Education system as a means to set a basis for the discussion of the role of education NGOs in the country. Furthermore it looks at the work that is done by GADRA education in the Grahamstown community. The thesis makes the argument that education NGOs can act in ways that do not depoliticise development because by providing access to education for people who are structurally excluded from education, they contribute to shifting power. This research found that although the leadership of GADRA Education acknowledge that they are confronted with great challenges in terms of how to bring about changes in the education system, they are hopeful that advocating for quality education will bring about the potential for the disruption of power relations as they exist between the state organs and the public.
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- Date Issued: 2015
Learning across projects in the African Development Bank
- Authors: Mukuvari, Itai
- Date: 2014
- Subjects: Development banks , Economic development projects -- Africa , Banks and banking
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:9226 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1020974
- Description: In this study, the focus will be on the possibility of a lack of learning during execution of projects, which could lead to poor performance in development effectiveness. This study will particularly look at the lessons learnt by individual road infrastructure projects and examine whether or not the learning points were embraced into other projects. The African Development Bank (AfDB) is an example of a multilateral donor agency that predominantly operates in Africa where there are some challenges with aid effectiveness as described earlier. The study is not an attempt to represent the use of lessons learnt and knowledge management in multilateral agencies in general; it is rather a start from which other researchers can build on in order to answer the question: What can donor agencies do to improve aid effectiveness in their project execution? The major contribution of this study is to encourage donor agencies to look at whether their organisations are learning from their different projects as they seek better development effectiveness.
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- Date Issued: 2014
Lived bodies: women’s experience of sex and gender
- Authors: Lothian, Julie-Anne
- Date: 2014
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69445 , vital:29538
- Description: This thesis will discuss the category of women, as a social group, through a phenomenological understanding of women’s subjective experiences. In arguing for the phenomenological perspective of the lived body, I show the ways in which other conceptions of women’s embodied subjectivity ultimately fail to provide comprehensive accounts of the lived experience of being a woman. I begin with an investigation into how biological determinists hypothesise women’s bodies as sexed. I then move to respond to Judith Butler’s poststructuralist feminist account of the gendered body. Finally, I argue that the embodied experience of being a woman is best explained as an ambiguous relationship between socially constructed expectations of femininity and biological materiality.
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- Date Issued: 2014
Dog wars : a Victorian steampunk adventure
- Authors: Molino, Nicolene Chloe
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Creative writing , Fiction , South Africa , Creative writing (Higher education) , Short stories, South African (English) -- 21st century , South African fiction (English) -- 21st century , English language -- Writing
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:5965 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1001815
- Description: We're in an alternate universe, circa Dickensian London. Leofric Lieven, a local crime lord, is about to find the past catching up on him. The Romany Carnival has come to town, and a gypsy woman, his former lover and partner in crime, demands from him a favour which will redress his betrayal of years before: he must secure a stolen object and return it to her. But things go horribly wrong when local delivery boy Cards Bennish is kidnapped by Leofric’s competitor before he can deliver the goods that will cover Leofric's debt to the gypsy. In this world, humans can shape shift into animals, entirely or only partially, dog fighting is the favourite pastime for high stakes betting, and power belongs to the highest bidder. The gypsy’s final bet, for the highest stakes yet, will seal the fates of a number of people, for better or worse
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- Date Issued: 2013
The role of Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in the upkeep and management of open spaces in Zwide Township
- Authors: Zonke, Gcobani
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Refuse and refuse disposal -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Waste minimization -- Law and legislation -- South Africa -- Nelson Mandela Bay , Municipal services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:9135 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1018657
- Description: This paper is an investigation into the role of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality (NMBMM) in the up-keep and management of open spaces, in Zwide Township. The study examines the manner in which the legislative framework for waste management is being implemented as prescribed in legislative directives. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act, 1996 (Act 108 of 1996), envisions the transformation of the local government system. Subsequently, policy frameworks and principles have been developed to support the new vision of local government. The Batho Pele Principles and the white paper were passed in March 1998. Both documents spelt out the implementation of the principle and the framework in which the local government system should operate as set out in the developmental local government concept. The developmental local government system’s core ethos lies in working with local citizenry to find ways of meeting their needs, thereby improving their quality of life. It also makes provision for public participation. Ward councillors and ward committees are an indispensable backbone of community participation. It is assumed in this study that a number of environmental, social, economic and health challenges are associated with waste disposal in open spaces. Such hazards range from health risks to the abuse of open spaces by antisocial individuals and groups. The situation is exacerbated by poor implementation of constitutional and legislative directives regarding waste management and disposal to ensure a humane and environmentally friendly atmosphere. The research assumes that the problem cannot be overcome by the NMBMM alone. Well-orchestrated community awareness education programmes such as projects like “trash is cash “and innovative ways of managing waste, including waste recycling, need to be drawn upon. The strategic placement of waste stations and the timeous collection of waste could improve the situation. The observation is that the level of service delivery varies within residential areas and in socioeconomic strata. The previously disadvantaged areas seem to have borne the brunt in terms of poor waste management services until now. The municipality has been accustomed to a situation whereby it removes the waste on an ad hoc basis in selected areas in the townships. The situation is exacerbated by little foresight into the ever growing population, specifically amongst the lower socioeconomic sector of the population. As a result, the ecology and environment is impacted in a negative way. Amidst the challenges of dumping in open spaces, a sense of determination appears within the community to want to prevent the situation; to illustrate: There is an organized group of youths who have cleaned up open spaces at along Qeqe Street in Zwide. They developed a car wash bay as a venture to generate an income. The Green Township Movement is another scheme which is mobilising the community, street by street, to keep their neighbourhood environmentally clean and green. Potentially, the Waste Management Directorate could collaborate with these groupings to halt waste dumping in open spaces. In so doing they could contribute to establishing an environmentally friendly neighbourhood. The NMBMM needs therefore to take advantage of the situation and reengineer its waste management strategy, policies and directives and augment the initiatives that the community have taken upon themselves. The study will endeavour to ultimately advise on viable strategies in an attempt to unravel barriers that have been identified, while simultaneously addressing the challenges to improving the quality of life in the township. This will be done by analysing a legislative framework and thereafter replicating the best practice used locally, nationally and internationally.. It also seeks to associate with individuals within local government in addition to groups that are like minded in combating the concern. The existing environmental regulations and the present economic situation are sound starting points. Together they present an opportunity to change the prevailing attitudes towards recycling. Finally, a number of conclusions that were arrived at during the study will be followed by recommendations. These will be based on the literature review and observations.
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- Date Issued: 2013
An investigation into the roles and functions of community health committees
- Authors: Wood, Sally Dawn
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Community health services , Public health
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:9071 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1008403 , Community health services , Public health
- Description: Community participation has been a popular method of people centred, grassroots development in many developing countries. With an emphasis on primary health care (PHC) through the signing of the Declaration of Alma Atta in 1978, there was a renewed commitment to community participation within the health care system. In South Africa, the end of the apartheid era announced a new dedication towards the principles of a comprehensive, promotive and preventative health care in line with the principles of PHC. These changes were outlined in The White Paper on Transformation of the Health System (1997) and advocated the importance of community involvement in the health care system. These roles were formalised in the National Act Health (61 of 2003) with the provision for the establishment of the clinic and community health centre committees as statutory bodies. The initial implementation of the committees had no guidelines or policy to direct their functioning and therefore led to them being differentiated and poorly functioning. In 2009, the Eastern Cape Department of Health issued a Policy on the Establishment and Effective functioning of Clinic and Community Health Centre Committees. In 2010, the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University’s Community Development Unit, in collaboration with the Health Department, provided a program to formally establish and train all the community health committees in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in accordance with the new policy. This research aimed to investigate the community health committees (CHCs) in the Nelson Mandela Bay District, specifically the way in which they were functioning, three years on from this establishment process, with regards to the roles and functions outlined in the Policy document. This report highlights the extent to which the roles are being met, the challenges impeding the fulfilment of these roles and other factors which inhibit the effective functioning of the CHCs. A qualitative research method was used including focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with key informants to illicit the necessary data. These results were transcribed and analysed to identify recurring themes in order to draw conclusions. The CHCs were found to have varying levels of functionality but had similar challenges in fulfilling the roles. Generally there was a poor level of awareness of the policy and the roles defined within and in addition to this there was confusion over the terminology used within the Policy. The role of Advocacy was undertaken enthusiastically by the CHCs with many forms of education and health programs being promoted. However, a lack of knowledge of the PHC model was evident, which inhibited the CHCs from advocating the importance of this. Oversight was seen by the CHC members as being the most important role for them to fulfil, as the level of medical care received in the clinic was perceived to be poor. The CHC members readily monitor levels of medication, staff presence and service provision but do not feel that they have much power to improve the situation. The role of Social Mobilisation was poorly fulfilled due to a lack of outreach into the community and therefore social upliftment only takes place when community members come to the clinic to use the services. Finally, fundraising was the most unsuccessfully achieved role of the CHCs. A combination of a lack of formal recognition and misguided ideas, have resulted in little means of funding for the CHCs. Generally the major inhibiting factors that the CHCs face are; an incomplete fulfilment of the outlined membership of the committees, lack of comprehensive community representation, a lack of commitment from the Health Department and a feeling of isolation. All of these factors are reducing the motivation of the dedicated CHC members. Recommendations were made at the end of the study to help increase the impact these committees are having on their communities. It is hoped that the Provincial Health Department can work together with the CHCs and other stakeholders to implement these recommendations to help sustain the CHCs further.
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- Date Issued: 2012
The investigation of the impact of household contractor project in Ukhahlamba District since 2003 with regards to poverty alleviation among the participating household contractors
- Authors: Ngwendu, Mandlenkosi Victor
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Economic assistance, Domestic -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Poverty -- Governmentpolicy -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:9060 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1396 , Economic assistance, Domestic -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Poverty -- Governmentpolicy -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: This study investigates impact made by Household Contractor Project as a Poverty Alleviation initiative on participating Household Contractors in Ukhahlamba in the Eastern Cape Province. Household Contractor Project is an Expanded Public Works Project implemented by the Eastern Cape Provincial Government to achieve the following EPWP principles, namely: Poverty alleviation; Creation of employment opportunities and; Creation of opportunities for skills development. The project (meaning Household Contractor Project) is implemented in the Province's six districts, namely: Alfred Nzo, Amathole, Cacadu, Chris Hani, O.R. Tambo, and Ukhahlamba. The study aims at investigating whether Household Contractor Project in Ukhahlamba district has resulted in poverty alleviation among participating household contractors. The study uses measurable indicators like food security, education for children, health needs and basic household needs to achieve its aim.
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- Date Issued: 2010