From farm-workers to farm-owners: a case study of the socio-economic impact of a land reform project on Battlesden farm, Alice, Eastern Cape
- Authors: Nyanda, Langaliphumile
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Battlesden Farm (South Africa) , Farmers -- Social conditions -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies , Agricultural laborers -- Social conditions -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies , Land tenure -- Government policy -- South Africa , Land reform -- South Africa -- Case studies , Rural development -- Sociological aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Rural development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96484 , vital:31284
- Description: This is an evaluation of a land reform project of a community which was given land in 2001. There were 16 participants who were interviewed to give their perspectives on different areas of the project which, including the functioning of the Communal Property Associations (CPA), the role of strategic partners such as agribusinesses, and the support provided by the state in ensuring the success of the project. The participants were also asked about the general development of the farm since ownership was transferred to the community in 2001. The study revealed disappointing results in the state of the farm, and the lack of development that has taken place. This was evident in the functioning of the CPA, and the high unemployment which was prevalent on the farm. There were elements of dependency which resulted from the mentorship of the agribusiness, as well as a lack of state support in the general operations of the farm.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Nyanda, Langaliphumile
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Battlesden Farm (South Africa) , Farmers -- Social conditions -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies , Agricultural laborers -- Social conditions -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies , Land tenure -- Government policy -- South Africa , Land reform -- South Africa -- Case studies , Rural development -- Sociological aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Rural development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96484 , vital:31284
- Description: This is an evaluation of a land reform project of a community which was given land in 2001. There were 16 participants who were interviewed to give their perspectives on different areas of the project which, including the functioning of the Communal Property Associations (CPA), the role of strategic partners such as agribusinesses, and the support provided by the state in ensuring the success of the project. The participants were also asked about the general development of the farm since ownership was transferred to the community in 2001. The study revealed disappointing results in the state of the farm, and the lack of development that has taken place. This was evident in the functioning of the CPA, and the high unemployment which was prevalent on the farm. There were elements of dependency which resulted from the mentorship of the agribusiness, as well as a lack of state support in the general operations of the farm.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Labour market perceptions of students at a Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college in Grahamstown, South Africa
- Authors: Khambule, Nelisa
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Eastcape Midlands College (Makhanda, South Africa) -- Students -- Attitudes , College students -- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Attitudes , College graduates -- Employment -- South Africa , Labor market -- South Africa , Employability -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96515 , vital:31289
- Description: In the context of South Africa, the supply of intermediate to high-level skills is central to economic growth and development. The post-school education and training sector is a critical source of these skills. Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges are expected to provide the intermediate to high-level skills that are required in a fast-changing global and national economy. In addition to fulfilling the goal of meeting the skills needs of the country, TVET colleges are expected to expand access to education and training opportunities and create pathways that will ensure smooth transitions for learners from college to employment. Using the third-generation labour market segmentation approach to the study of labour markets, this study sought to investigate the various socio-political factors that influence TVET college students’ perceptions about employment opportunities in the labour market with a NCV qualification. Using a qualitative methodology, this research investigated whether TVET students at Eastcape Midlands College felt adequately prepared for the labour market with their prospective post-secondary school qualification. The findings varied, with some students being of the view that the theoretical component of their programme of study could be improved to better prepare them for the labour market, and others, being of the view that the practical component could be improved. At a general level, the findings showed that the students did not have perfect knowledge of the availability of employment opportunities for their prospective qualifications.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Khambule, Nelisa
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Eastcape Midlands College (Makhanda, South Africa) -- Students -- Attitudes , College students -- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Attitudes , College graduates -- Employment -- South Africa , Labor market -- South Africa , Employability -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96515 , vital:31289
- Description: In the context of South Africa, the supply of intermediate to high-level skills is central to economic growth and development. The post-school education and training sector is a critical source of these skills. Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges are expected to provide the intermediate to high-level skills that are required in a fast-changing global and national economy. In addition to fulfilling the goal of meeting the skills needs of the country, TVET colleges are expected to expand access to education and training opportunities and create pathways that will ensure smooth transitions for learners from college to employment. Using the third-generation labour market segmentation approach to the study of labour markets, this study sought to investigate the various socio-political factors that influence TVET college students’ perceptions about employment opportunities in the labour market with a NCV qualification. Using a qualitative methodology, this research investigated whether TVET students at Eastcape Midlands College felt adequately prepared for the labour market with their prospective post-secondary school qualification. The findings varied, with some students being of the view that the theoretical component of their programme of study could be improved to better prepare them for the labour market, and others, being of the view that the practical component could be improved. At a general level, the findings showed that the students did not have perfect knowledge of the availability of employment opportunities for their prospective qualifications.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Mental health, where are we now?: a sociological analysis of the integration of mental health into primary healthcare in the Kingdom of Eswatini
- Authors: Dlamini, Zenanile Zoe
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Mental health services -- Eswatini , Psychiatric hospitals -- Eswatini , Primary health care -- Eswatini , Mentally ill -- Services for -- Eswatini , Mental health policy -- Eswatini
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSci
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96269 , vital:31256
- Description: This is a qualitative study exploring the integration of mental health into primary healthcare in the Kingdom of Eswatini. Primary healthcare forms the basis of any healthcare service provision. Primary Healthcare for mental health is an essential component of any well-functioning health system. Making mental healthcare available in primary healthcare allows for early detection and early treatment while it is still easier and cheaper. Purposive sampling was used to recruit nursesand a government official in the Hhohho region in the Kingdom of Eswatini.The study found that there are major challenges in the primary health care clinics, and this negatively affects the WHO (2001) proposal on mental health integration into primary health care. This finding is similar to other low-income countries’ challenges in mental health integration into primary health care. The impact of neo-liberal policies on healthcare in Eswatini is explored and it is clear these policies impact the ability of the Ministry of Health to provide health care. The study also drew on the symbolic interaction perspective to understand the meanings that nurses attach to mental illness and their experiences mental health care.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Dlamini, Zenanile Zoe
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Mental health services -- Eswatini , Psychiatric hospitals -- Eswatini , Primary health care -- Eswatini , Mentally ill -- Services for -- Eswatini , Mental health policy -- Eswatini
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSci
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96269 , vital:31256
- Description: This is a qualitative study exploring the integration of mental health into primary healthcare in the Kingdom of Eswatini. Primary healthcare forms the basis of any healthcare service provision. Primary Healthcare for mental health is an essential component of any well-functioning health system. Making mental healthcare available in primary healthcare allows for early detection and early treatment while it is still easier and cheaper. Purposive sampling was used to recruit nursesand a government official in the Hhohho region in the Kingdom of Eswatini.The study found that there are major challenges in the primary health care clinics, and this negatively affects the WHO (2001) proposal on mental health integration into primary health care. This finding is similar to other low-income countries’ challenges in mental health integration into primary health care. The impact of neo-liberal policies on healthcare in Eswatini is explored and it is clear these policies impact the ability of the Ministry of Health to provide health care. The study also drew on the symbolic interaction perspective to understand the meanings that nurses attach to mental illness and their experiences mental health care.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Perspectives on land and water politics at Mushandike Irrigation Scheme, Masvingo, Zimbabwe
- Authors: Mafukidze, Jonathan
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/76479 , vital:30573
- Description: Access to, control and ownership of land and water, amongst other natural resources in Zimbabwe, shape and affect rural lives, livelihoods, social relations and social organisation. Rural poverty has been entrenched and exacerbated by, amongst other factors, highly restricted access to these scarce resources. Historically, Zimbabwe’s rural areas (such as communal areas, smallholder irrigation schemes and resettlement areas) have existed as sites of struggles where contestations and negotiations over access to, control or ownership of these resources have taken place. Resultantly, multifaceted and dynamic social relations have been weaved and contested social spaces carved out. In rural Zimbabwe, contestations have tended to be complex, nuanced and intricate, working themselves out in different ways across time and space. In their heightened and more visible state, they have been characterised by violent physical expressions which, in the history of the country, involved two wars of liberation, the First Chimurenga (1896-1897) and the Second Chimurenga (1960s to 1980). The most recent violent manifestation was through nation-wide land invasions, politically christened the Third Chimurenga, which peaked in 2000 and continued sporadically to this day. Few studies on smallholder irrigation schemes in Zimbabwe have focused on understanding how contestations for access to scarce land and water resources are framed and negotiated at the local level. Cognisant of this lacuna, this thesis uses social constructionism in examining, as a case study, Mushandike Smallholder Irrigation Scheme in Masvingo Province in order to understand and analyse how land and water politics occur at the local level. The study deploys a qualitative research methodology approach in examining local water and land politics, which involved original irrigation beneficiaries and more recent land invaders. Findings of the thesis indicate that land and water shortages have increased considerably in the past two decades at the irrigation scheme due to the influx of land invaders into the scheme. This influx has had a negative impact on agricultural production and other livelihood strategies. Both scheme members and land invaders lay claim to land and water at Mushandike. These claims are intricately constructed and contested, and they are linked to broader issues such as partisan party-politics, policy developments, and tradition, origin, indigeneity and belonging. Though the struggles over land and water at Mushandike are firmly rooted in the concrete conditions of existence and experiences of beneficiaries and land invaders, external actors such as political leaders, state bureaucrats and traditional chiefs tend to complicate and intensify the contestations.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Mafukidze, Jonathan
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/76479 , vital:30573
- Description: Access to, control and ownership of land and water, amongst other natural resources in Zimbabwe, shape and affect rural lives, livelihoods, social relations and social organisation. Rural poverty has been entrenched and exacerbated by, amongst other factors, highly restricted access to these scarce resources. Historically, Zimbabwe’s rural areas (such as communal areas, smallholder irrigation schemes and resettlement areas) have existed as sites of struggles where contestations and negotiations over access to, control or ownership of these resources have taken place. Resultantly, multifaceted and dynamic social relations have been weaved and contested social spaces carved out. In rural Zimbabwe, contestations have tended to be complex, nuanced and intricate, working themselves out in different ways across time and space. In their heightened and more visible state, they have been characterised by violent physical expressions which, in the history of the country, involved two wars of liberation, the First Chimurenga (1896-1897) and the Second Chimurenga (1960s to 1980). The most recent violent manifestation was through nation-wide land invasions, politically christened the Third Chimurenga, which peaked in 2000 and continued sporadically to this day. Few studies on smallholder irrigation schemes in Zimbabwe have focused on understanding how contestations for access to scarce land and water resources are framed and negotiated at the local level. Cognisant of this lacuna, this thesis uses social constructionism in examining, as a case study, Mushandike Smallholder Irrigation Scheme in Masvingo Province in order to understand and analyse how land and water politics occur at the local level. The study deploys a qualitative research methodology approach in examining local water and land politics, which involved original irrigation beneficiaries and more recent land invaders. Findings of the thesis indicate that land and water shortages have increased considerably in the past two decades at the irrigation scheme due to the influx of land invaders into the scheme. This influx has had a negative impact on agricultural production and other livelihood strategies. Both scheme members and land invaders lay claim to land and water at Mushandike. These claims are intricately constructed and contested, and they are linked to broader issues such as partisan party-politics, policy developments, and tradition, origin, indigeneity and belonging. Though the struggles over land and water at Mushandike are firmly rooted in the concrete conditions of existence and experiences of beneficiaries and land invaders, external actors such as political leaders, state bureaucrats and traditional chiefs tend to complicate and intensify the contestations.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Popular politics in the rural Western Cape, South Africa: a case study of Ruiterbos
- Authors: Ghedi Alasow, Jonis
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Political participation -- South Africa -- Cape Town , South Africa -- Politics and government -- 1994- , Land tenure -- Political aspects -- South Africa , Land use, Rural -- Political aspects -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96165 , vital:31246
- Description: This thesis argues that the philosophical foundations upon which human beings have been engaged have, across various schools of thought, made the mistake of presuming that some people are more modern than others. This suggestion is refuted throughout this thesis. To do this, intellectual traditions that take the fundamental rationality of all human beings as an indispensable starting point are engaged to argue for the need to acknowledge that everyone in the ‘now’ is indeed, of the ‘now’. This thesis connects these debates about modernity, rationality and humanity to the contemporary discussions around rural politics with particular reference to Ruiterbos in the Western Cape province of South Africa. By means of detailed empirical and ethnographic research, this thesis illustrates the issues around which people in Ruiterbos are politicised. Via this case study, the a priori assumption that rural politics will necessarily manifest itself only with respect to questions of land and agrarian reform or labour relations is complicated. The two issues around which people in Ruiterbos, during the time of this research, seem to be politicised – housing and education – are surfaced throughout this thesis. The thesis argues that the findings in this case study call for an expansion of the issues that are traditionally considered when the question of rural politics is raised. The often historicist approach that limits the possibilities for politics in rural areas should be suspended for an approach that takes popular politics and political agents in rural areas seriously. The thesis finally argues that the conclusions that are reached with respect to questions of modernity and rural politics ought to be adopted to allow for more detailed and thorough explanations of popular politics in places like Ruiterbos.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Ghedi Alasow, Jonis
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Political participation -- South Africa -- Cape Town , South Africa -- Politics and government -- 1994- , Land tenure -- Political aspects -- South Africa , Land use, Rural -- Political aspects -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96165 , vital:31246
- Description: This thesis argues that the philosophical foundations upon which human beings have been engaged have, across various schools of thought, made the mistake of presuming that some people are more modern than others. This suggestion is refuted throughout this thesis. To do this, intellectual traditions that take the fundamental rationality of all human beings as an indispensable starting point are engaged to argue for the need to acknowledge that everyone in the ‘now’ is indeed, of the ‘now’. This thesis connects these debates about modernity, rationality and humanity to the contemporary discussions around rural politics with particular reference to Ruiterbos in the Western Cape province of South Africa. By means of detailed empirical and ethnographic research, this thesis illustrates the issues around which people in Ruiterbos are politicised. Via this case study, the a priori assumption that rural politics will necessarily manifest itself only with respect to questions of land and agrarian reform or labour relations is complicated. The two issues around which people in Ruiterbos, during the time of this research, seem to be politicised – housing and education – are surfaced throughout this thesis. The thesis argues that the findings in this case study call for an expansion of the issues that are traditionally considered when the question of rural politics is raised. The often historicist approach that limits the possibilities for politics in rural areas should be suspended for an approach that takes popular politics and political agents in rural areas seriously. The thesis finally argues that the conclusions that are reached with respect to questions of modernity and rural politics ought to be adopted to allow for more detailed and thorough explanations of popular politics in places like Ruiterbos.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
South African Trade Union responses to xenophobia in workplaces: the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA)
- Authors: Gongqa, Nombulelo
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Xenophobia , Xenophobia-- South Africa , National Union of Mineworkers , National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa , Labor unions -- South Africa , Immigrants -- South Africa , Marginality, Social -- South Africa , Social conflict -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/115061 , vital:34074
- Description: This research looks at how trade unions relate to immigrants and how inclusive they are to immigrants who form part of the South African working class. South Africa has been an immigrants receiving country for decades, where most immigrants are from neighbouring countries within the South African region. It was the trade unions that empowered workers to gain back some of their basic rights during the apartheid era, and they did this for all workers who worked in sectors where they were exploited and mistreated by the apartheid regime on the basis of their skin colour. This research aims to understand how trade unions respond to xenophobia in the workplace, and the ways their strategies increase inclusion of immigrants in the trade unions. This research focuses on the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), seeking to find whether they have strategies and planned ways to respond to xenophobia in South African workplaces. This research also looks at the impact of nationalism in South Africa on immigrants. It shows that whilst the concept of nationalism is to protect South Africans, it does exclude immigrants because it places South Africans before immigrants when it comes to benefiting from the resources of the country. This shows that protecting one section of the working class over another weakens the working class movement. To get views from the trade unions, trade union officials were interviewed and from the interviews, common themes were picked out. From the interviews, it can be identified that trade union officials believe that immigrants should be included in the trade unions, and they should be treated with dignity. However, there are some conflicting themes, which highlight the view that South African locals deserve to get the resources of the country, such as housing, before immigrants. The themes will be discussed in the research to highlight the different perspectives that came from the trade union officials.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Gongqa, Nombulelo
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Xenophobia , Xenophobia-- South Africa , National Union of Mineworkers , National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa , Labor unions -- South Africa , Immigrants -- South Africa , Marginality, Social -- South Africa , Social conflict -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/115061 , vital:34074
- Description: This research looks at how trade unions relate to immigrants and how inclusive they are to immigrants who form part of the South African working class. South Africa has been an immigrants receiving country for decades, where most immigrants are from neighbouring countries within the South African region. It was the trade unions that empowered workers to gain back some of their basic rights during the apartheid era, and they did this for all workers who worked in sectors where they were exploited and mistreated by the apartheid regime on the basis of their skin colour. This research aims to understand how trade unions respond to xenophobia in the workplace, and the ways their strategies increase inclusion of immigrants in the trade unions. This research focuses on the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), seeking to find whether they have strategies and planned ways to respond to xenophobia in South African workplaces. This research also looks at the impact of nationalism in South Africa on immigrants. It shows that whilst the concept of nationalism is to protect South Africans, it does exclude immigrants because it places South Africans before immigrants when it comes to benefiting from the resources of the country. This shows that protecting one section of the working class over another weakens the working class movement. To get views from the trade unions, trade union officials were interviewed and from the interviews, common themes were picked out. From the interviews, it can be identified that trade union officials believe that immigrants should be included in the trade unions, and they should be treated with dignity. However, there are some conflicting themes, which highlight the view that South African locals deserve to get the resources of the country, such as housing, before immigrants. The themes will be discussed in the research to highlight the different perspectives that came from the trade union officials.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Students’ perceptions of their employability as revealed by their understandings of the South African Labour Market
- Authors: Gabobegwe, Maoshadi Keletso
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71482 , vital:29857
- Description: The state of the South African labour market is characterized −among other things− by inequalities and the chronic issue of unemployment, with a rate that has come up to 27.7% in the third quarter of 2017. Considering this, unemployment in South Africa is explained by numerous authors as a structural issue. In a sense that unemployed people do not have the skills required by the labour market. But, since education attainment improves an individuals’ employment prospects and outcome. It would be expected that people with higher education would have high prospects of getting employment. Yet, people with higher education qualifications also face challenges of obtaining employment. Even though research finds that graduate unemployment is not as bad when compared to general and overall unemployment of the country. It still remains that skills shortages and/or mismatch are deemed to be the main contributor of the South African graduate unemployment. Existing research finds that just as the labour market is characterized with differences on the grounds of gender and race. This also reflects on how graduates enter the labour market. With the white race having more employment outcomes than blacks and males than females. It is against this background that this dissertation set out to explore what Rhodes University final-year students’ −who are nearing the transition from varsity to the labour market− perceive to be their employment prospects and outcomes. Taking into consideration the issue of unemployment and inequalities in the labour market. In essence, one of the key issues that the dissertation focuses on, is what students think of their employability based on their understanding of the labour market. More than that, the dissertation investigates how aspects such as the student’s field of study, race and gender factor into how students understand the labour market and ultimately how they perceive their employment prospects and outcomes. As a consequence, evidence suggests that students’ perceptions of the labour market influences how they perceive their employability. Over and above, the research finds that the students field of study especially, features significantly in how students perceive the labour market and their employability. While race and gender also factored in students’ responses, it was not as significant as compared to their field of study respectively. The general finding is that students are well aware of the issues of the labour market and are concerned about the implications of these issues on their employability. This awareness and concern varied based on students’ field of study, race and gender.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Gabobegwe, Maoshadi Keletso
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71482 , vital:29857
- Description: The state of the South African labour market is characterized −among other things− by inequalities and the chronic issue of unemployment, with a rate that has come up to 27.7% in the third quarter of 2017. Considering this, unemployment in South Africa is explained by numerous authors as a structural issue. In a sense that unemployed people do not have the skills required by the labour market. But, since education attainment improves an individuals’ employment prospects and outcome. It would be expected that people with higher education would have high prospects of getting employment. Yet, people with higher education qualifications also face challenges of obtaining employment. Even though research finds that graduate unemployment is not as bad when compared to general and overall unemployment of the country. It still remains that skills shortages and/or mismatch are deemed to be the main contributor of the South African graduate unemployment. Existing research finds that just as the labour market is characterized with differences on the grounds of gender and race. This also reflects on how graduates enter the labour market. With the white race having more employment outcomes than blacks and males than females. It is against this background that this dissertation set out to explore what Rhodes University final-year students’ −who are nearing the transition from varsity to the labour market− perceive to be their employment prospects and outcomes. Taking into consideration the issue of unemployment and inequalities in the labour market. In essence, one of the key issues that the dissertation focuses on, is what students think of their employability based on their understanding of the labour market. More than that, the dissertation investigates how aspects such as the student’s field of study, race and gender factor into how students understand the labour market and ultimately how they perceive their employment prospects and outcomes. As a consequence, evidence suggests that students’ perceptions of the labour market influences how they perceive their employability. Over and above, the research finds that the students field of study especially, features significantly in how students perceive the labour market and their employability. While race and gender also factored in students’ responses, it was not as significant as compared to their field of study respectively. The general finding is that students are well aware of the issues of the labour market and are concerned about the implications of these issues on their employability. This awareness and concern varied based on students’ field of study, race and gender.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
The impact of land restitution and resettlement in the Eastern Cape, South Africa: restoring dignity without strengthening livelihoods?
- Authors: Xaba, Mzingaye Brilliant
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Reparations for historic injustices -- South Africa , Land reform -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Land reform -- South Africa -- Social aspects , Agricultural development projects -- South Africa -- Social aspects , Land tenure -- Law and legislation -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96336 , vital:31264
- Description: Land reform in South Africa, which is comprised of land redistribution, land tenure reform, and land restitution, continues to be an emotive subject and has largely racially polarised South Africa. The slow pace of land reform, expropriation, the amount of land to be returned to black people, debates around the role of the Constitution in land reform, the market-based approach and the perceived negative attitude of white farmers have dominated the debates on land reform. There is, therefore, a huge chorus on the struggles for land acquisition and less on what happens when people are given land. A few studies on post-settlement livelihoods experience have managed to close this gap slightly in the literature by showing that land reform has contributed little or no material and livelihood benefits to beneficiaries and that many farms are lying idle after land reform, especially land restitution, projects. These studies on post-settlement livelihoods experiences of land reform beneficiaries have not managed to capture fully the “voices” of beneficiaries on land and livelihoods. This dissertation seeks to provide a sociological documentation of the post-settlement livelihood experiences of land restitution beneficiaries. It does this by primarily tracing the ability and/or the inability of land restitution beneficiaries of Macleantown, about 40 kilometres northwest of East London, in the Eastern Cape to reconstruct livelihoods after resettlement, bearing in mind that these land restitution beneficiaries have been resettled twice, during forced removals in the 1970s and after land restitution, post-1994. Therefore, the study engages with questions of whether or in what ways land compensated restitution beneficiaries have managed to reconstruct livelihoods after land transfer. To capture the livelihood experiences of land restitution beneficiaries fully, I also studied the Salem restitution case, which is 20km away from Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape. Because land restitution involves resettlement, I decided to use two resettlement theories, namely Thayer Scudder’s four stages model and Michael Cernea’s Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction (IRR), to understand risks associated with resettlement. Additionally, since this dissertation seeks to understand and document livelihood reconstruction and poverty reduction within the context of restitution resettlement, I also utilised the Sustainable Livelihoods approach and Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach. This thesis is based on multiple research methods that include documentary study, focus group discussions, conversations, archival research, in-depth interviews, transect walks, participant observation and life histories. My findings show that land transfer under the land restitution programme has largely not enabled land beneficiaries in Macleantown and Salem to reconstruct land-based livelihoods after settlement. I also established that land restitution beneficiaries face risks that are identified by resettlement theorists such as lack of proper planning, resettling trauma, struggles in community reconstruction and poverty. Beneficiaries have not managed to reap any meaningful benefits from the land, meaning that restitution has not led to self-sufficiency for these beneficiaries because all land beneficiaries are heavily dependent on social grants. However, one needs to emphasize that land restitution has restored the dignity of beneficiaries because beneficiaries have accessed their forefathers’ land that they fought for. This is because beneficiaries believed that it was their duty to fight for their land on behalf of their ancestors. I reach the conclusion that the whole idea that restitution claimants who are scattered all over can be grouped into a Community Property Association (CPA) and farm collectively as a ‘community’ to improve livelihoods is a misleading romanticisation of the envisaged outcomes of the land restitution project. Time has passed after land dispossession and land claimants are different human beings to what they were before land dispossession, i.e. far from the agrarian society they were before land dispossession. Group dynamics, lack of adequate post-settlement support (PSS), land reform designs, lack of commercial agricultural skills, as well as entitlement syndrome, old age of beneficiaries, infighting and marginality of agricultural business has made it nearly impossible for restitution beneficiaries to reconstruct land-based livelihoods. Additionally, the government appears to be more interested in ‘correcting apartheid’ rather than creating viable farms. It is important to state that this thesis does not advocate for the erasure of the restitution programme or to belittle land beneficiaries but argues for the rethinking of the restitution model in the context of massive failures, as well as coming up with a new and flexible model of land restitution that will meet the modern needs of beneficiaries. This thesis contributes to an understanding of the risks and the challenges of livelihoods reconstruction faced by resettling communities through an investigation into the post-settlement livelihoods experiences of land restitution beneficiaries through ‘thick descriptions’.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Xaba, Mzingaye Brilliant
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Reparations for historic injustices -- South Africa , Land reform -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Land reform -- South Africa -- Social aspects , Agricultural development projects -- South Africa -- Social aspects , Land tenure -- Law and legislation -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96336 , vital:31264
- Description: Land reform in South Africa, which is comprised of land redistribution, land tenure reform, and land restitution, continues to be an emotive subject and has largely racially polarised South Africa. The slow pace of land reform, expropriation, the amount of land to be returned to black people, debates around the role of the Constitution in land reform, the market-based approach and the perceived negative attitude of white farmers have dominated the debates on land reform. There is, therefore, a huge chorus on the struggles for land acquisition and less on what happens when people are given land. A few studies on post-settlement livelihoods experience have managed to close this gap slightly in the literature by showing that land reform has contributed little or no material and livelihood benefits to beneficiaries and that many farms are lying idle after land reform, especially land restitution, projects. These studies on post-settlement livelihoods experiences of land reform beneficiaries have not managed to capture fully the “voices” of beneficiaries on land and livelihoods. This dissertation seeks to provide a sociological documentation of the post-settlement livelihood experiences of land restitution beneficiaries. It does this by primarily tracing the ability and/or the inability of land restitution beneficiaries of Macleantown, about 40 kilometres northwest of East London, in the Eastern Cape to reconstruct livelihoods after resettlement, bearing in mind that these land restitution beneficiaries have been resettled twice, during forced removals in the 1970s and after land restitution, post-1994. Therefore, the study engages with questions of whether or in what ways land compensated restitution beneficiaries have managed to reconstruct livelihoods after land transfer. To capture the livelihood experiences of land restitution beneficiaries fully, I also studied the Salem restitution case, which is 20km away from Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape. Because land restitution involves resettlement, I decided to use two resettlement theories, namely Thayer Scudder’s four stages model and Michael Cernea’s Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction (IRR), to understand risks associated with resettlement. Additionally, since this dissertation seeks to understand and document livelihood reconstruction and poverty reduction within the context of restitution resettlement, I also utilised the Sustainable Livelihoods approach and Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach. This thesis is based on multiple research methods that include documentary study, focus group discussions, conversations, archival research, in-depth interviews, transect walks, participant observation and life histories. My findings show that land transfer under the land restitution programme has largely not enabled land beneficiaries in Macleantown and Salem to reconstruct land-based livelihoods after settlement. I also established that land restitution beneficiaries face risks that are identified by resettlement theorists such as lack of proper planning, resettling trauma, struggles in community reconstruction and poverty. Beneficiaries have not managed to reap any meaningful benefits from the land, meaning that restitution has not led to self-sufficiency for these beneficiaries because all land beneficiaries are heavily dependent on social grants. However, one needs to emphasize that land restitution has restored the dignity of beneficiaries because beneficiaries have accessed their forefathers’ land that they fought for. This is because beneficiaries believed that it was their duty to fight for their land on behalf of their ancestors. I reach the conclusion that the whole idea that restitution claimants who are scattered all over can be grouped into a Community Property Association (CPA) and farm collectively as a ‘community’ to improve livelihoods is a misleading romanticisation of the envisaged outcomes of the land restitution project. Time has passed after land dispossession and land claimants are different human beings to what they were before land dispossession, i.e. far from the agrarian society they were before land dispossession. Group dynamics, lack of adequate post-settlement support (PSS), land reform designs, lack of commercial agricultural skills, as well as entitlement syndrome, old age of beneficiaries, infighting and marginality of agricultural business has made it nearly impossible for restitution beneficiaries to reconstruct land-based livelihoods. Additionally, the government appears to be more interested in ‘correcting apartheid’ rather than creating viable farms. It is important to state that this thesis does not advocate for the erasure of the restitution programme or to belittle land beneficiaries but argues for the rethinking of the restitution model in the context of massive failures, as well as coming up with a new and flexible model of land restitution that will meet the modern needs of beneficiaries. This thesis contributes to an understanding of the risks and the challenges of livelihoods reconstruction faced by resettling communities through an investigation into the post-settlement livelihoods experiences of land restitution beneficiaries through ‘thick descriptions’.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Understanding defiant identities: an ethnography of gays and lesbians in Harare, Zimbabwe
- Authors: Muparamoto, Nelson
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Gays -- Zimbabwe , Gays -- Abuse of -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Political aspects -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Social aspects -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Religious aspects -- Zimbabwe , Homophobia -- Zimbabwe
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67720 , vital:29133
- Description: Over the years, western and local media have mediated a narrative of a thoroughly homophobic Zimbabwe, not the least emanating from the former president Robert Mugabe’s ongoing homocritical utterances which recurrently generated global news stories. The country does indeed have a protracted history characterised by various forms of attacks on Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe, its membership, and the general lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. A dominant discourse has framed homosexual identities as on or beyond the border of what is acceptable, giving the clear message that they should not be tolerated. However, the narrative needs a more nuanced analysis than what has been popularised. That homophobia has played a significant role in Zimbabwe is of great import, but it is not and cannot be all there is to say about LGBT lives in the country. And, while scholarship on Zimbabwean homosexualities has engaged with debates about its indigeneity, morality and acceptability, it has as of yet not significantly explored the lived realities of non-heterosexual individuals from their own point of view. This thesis aims to begin doing exactly that, addressing the experiences of same-sex loving and attracted individuals in Harare. Drawing on ethnographic sociology, the thesis focuses on understanding how gay and lesbian identities are constructed, negotiated and experienced within an environment that is in many ways overtly homophobic, where, for example, the risk for social exclusion is considerable. It explores what characterises and shapes gay and lesbian identities in Harare in an attempt to interrogate how they reinforce, modify and challenge dominant social categories and relate to globally circulating queer identity categories. The thesis demonstrates that the construction of identities among same sex loving people in Harare variously draws on both locally and globally circulating ideas and insights. The thesis reveals that beyond the considerable attacks on homosexual identities in Zimbabwe, the intersection of local and international discourses on gay and lesbian identities produces identities that are to varying degrees emergent, fluid and perhaps fragmented. Despite attempts to expunge non-heterosexuals from Zimbabwean citizenry by drawing borders on the basis of sexual orientation, same sex loving individuals in Harare have defiantly expressed, negotiated and managed their sexual identities. The thesis describes and analyses things like dating patterns, decision making in same sex relations as well as family and religious experiences. Invoking Goffman’s concept of self-presentation enables one to understand how participants expressed themselves in the midst of like-minded or homo-tolerant individuals and how they deployed themselves in ‘spaces’ considered homocritical or where resentment was likely to be provoked by them openly expressing their sexual orientation. Crucially, same-sex loving and attracted individuals are agentic individuals who have variously stretched the traditional meanings associated with gender and sexuality in a context characterised by heteronormativity. This thesis usefully deploys Giddens’ (1991, 1992) theorisation of late modernity as characterised by conditions allowing a profusion of competing and sometimes contradictory identity discourses which offers the opportunity for self-reflexivity and identity negotiation. This helps us to understand the defiant identities. Whereas western circulating identity politics tout ‘coming out of the closet’, for most of the participants overt indiscriminate disclosure was to be avoided with participants therein deploying strategies that would help them to remain closeted to some family members as well as in religious circles. The consequences of ‘outing’ or disclosure are ostensibly not straightforward but complex, thus requiring a nuanced analysis that goes beyond the binary categories framed as either negative or positive. The thesis shows that experiences of same sex loving people in their families are complex rather than simply situated on the polar ends of either rejection or acceptance. Whilst dominant discourse has depicted religion as fuelling homophobia as it depicts a Christian identity and queer identities as incompatible, the thesis also explores how some participants challenge the borders drawn in religious circles and maintain a relatively active religious life but not always without conflict.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Muparamoto, Nelson
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Gays -- Zimbabwe , Gays -- Abuse of -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Political aspects -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Social aspects -- Zimbabwe , Homosexuality -- Religious aspects -- Zimbabwe , Homophobia -- Zimbabwe
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67720 , vital:29133
- Description: Over the years, western and local media have mediated a narrative of a thoroughly homophobic Zimbabwe, not the least emanating from the former president Robert Mugabe’s ongoing homocritical utterances which recurrently generated global news stories. The country does indeed have a protracted history characterised by various forms of attacks on Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe, its membership, and the general lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. A dominant discourse has framed homosexual identities as on or beyond the border of what is acceptable, giving the clear message that they should not be tolerated. However, the narrative needs a more nuanced analysis than what has been popularised. That homophobia has played a significant role in Zimbabwe is of great import, but it is not and cannot be all there is to say about LGBT lives in the country. And, while scholarship on Zimbabwean homosexualities has engaged with debates about its indigeneity, morality and acceptability, it has as of yet not significantly explored the lived realities of non-heterosexual individuals from their own point of view. This thesis aims to begin doing exactly that, addressing the experiences of same-sex loving and attracted individuals in Harare. Drawing on ethnographic sociology, the thesis focuses on understanding how gay and lesbian identities are constructed, negotiated and experienced within an environment that is in many ways overtly homophobic, where, for example, the risk for social exclusion is considerable. It explores what characterises and shapes gay and lesbian identities in Harare in an attempt to interrogate how they reinforce, modify and challenge dominant social categories and relate to globally circulating queer identity categories. The thesis demonstrates that the construction of identities among same sex loving people in Harare variously draws on both locally and globally circulating ideas and insights. The thesis reveals that beyond the considerable attacks on homosexual identities in Zimbabwe, the intersection of local and international discourses on gay and lesbian identities produces identities that are to varying degrees emergent, fluid and perhaps fragmented. Despite attempts to expunge non-heterosexuals from Zimbabwean citizenry by drawing borders on the basis of sexual orientation, same sex loving individuals in Harare have defiantly expressed, negotiated and managed their sexual identities. The thesis describes and analyses things like dating patterns, decision making in same sex relations as well as family and religious experiences. Invoking Goffman’s concept of self-presentation enables one to understand how participants expressed themselves in the midst of like-minded or homo-tolerant individuals and how they deployed themselves in ‘spaces’ considered homocritical or where resentment was likely to be provoked by them openly expressing their sexual orientation. Crucially, same-sex loving and attracted individuals are agentic individuals who have variously stretched the traditional meanings associated with gender and sexuality in a context characterised by heteronormativity. This thesis usefully deploys Giddens’ (1991, 1992) theorisation of late modernity as characterised by conditions allowing a profusion of competing and sometimes contradictory identity discourses which offers the opportunity for self-reflexivity and identity negotiation. This helps us to understand the defiant identities. Whereas western circulating identity politics tout ‘coming out of the closet’, for most of the participants overt indiscriminate disclosure was to be avoided with participants therein deploying strategies that would help them to remain closeted to some family members as well as in religious circles. The consequences of ‘outing’ or disclosure are ostensibly not straightforward but complex, thus requiring a nuanced analysis that goes beyond the binary categories framed as either negative or positive. The thesis shows that experiences of same sex loving people in their families are complex rather than simply situated on the polar ends of either rejection or acceptance. Whilst dominant discourse has depicted religion as fuelling homophobia as it depicts a Christian identity and queer identities as incompatible, the thesis also explores how some participants challenge the borders drawn in religious circles and maintain a relatively active religious life but not always without conflict.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Understanding the experiences of Zimbabwean students as foreign students at South African universities: the case of Rhodes University
- Authors: Daki, Andile Lebohang
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Rhodes University -- Students -- Attitudes , Zimbabwean college students -- South Africa , Zimbabwean college students -- South Africa -- Conduct of life , Zimbabwean college students -- South Africa -- Psychology
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96225 , vital:31252
- Description: This thesis seeks to understand the cultural and social experiences of black Zimbabwean students, as foreign students, at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa. It examines the ways in which black Zimbabwean students negotiate the cultural, social and institutional milieu of Rhodes University, which is a former white English-medium university. In doing so, the thesis draws upon Interface theory because, once entering the university space, these students interpret the space and simultaneously negotiate their way in and through this space along cultural and social interfaces. The fieldwork for the thesis involved in-depth interviews with eighteen black Zimbabwean students at the university, stratified in terms of both gender and year of study. A focus on gender facilitated an understanding of possible differences between male and female Zimbabwean students in terms of social and cultural experiences; while a consideration of year of study allowed for an examination of possible shifts in negotiation over time, from first year to Master’s level. The findings demonstrate a range of challenges faced by black Zimbabwean students while at Rhodes University, some of which arise from differences between Zimbabwean and South African society. At the same time, there are considerable differences amongst black Zimbabwean students in relation to the manner in which negotiation took place. While some students negotiate the space through active socialising and assimilating into the local world and lives of South African students as well as the university’s institutional culture, other students negotiate the space through isolation and alienation. Overall, with regard to adjusting to the world of Rhodes and South Africa, students pursued different routes which, in the end, made sense to them.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Daki, Andile Lebohang
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Rhodes University -- Students -- Attitudes , Zimbabwean college students -- South Africa , Zimbabwean college students -- South Africa -- Conduct of life , Zimbabwean college students -- South Africa -- Psychology
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/96225 , vital:31252
- Description: This thesis seeks to understand the cultural and social experiences of black Zimbabwean students, as foreign students, at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa. It examines the ways in which black Zimbabwean students negotiate the cultural, social and institutional milieu of Rhodes University, which is a former white English-medium university. In doing so, the thesis draws upon Interface theory because, once entering the university space, these students interpret the space and simultaneously negotiate their way in and through this space along cultural and social interfaces. The fieldwork for the thesis involved in-depth interviews with eighteen black Zimbabwean students at the university, stratified in terms of both gender and year of study. A focus on gender facilitated an understanding of possible differences between male and female Zimbabwean students in terms of social and cultural experiences; while a consideration of year of study allowed for an examination of possible shifts in negotiation over time, from first year to Master’s level. The findings demonstrate a range of challenges faced by black Zimbabwean students while at Rhodes University, some of which arise from differences between Zimbabwean and South African society. At the same time, there are considerable differences amongst black Zimbabwean students in relation to the manner in which negotiation took place. While some students negotiate the space through active socialising and assimilating into the local world and lives of South African students as well as the university’s institutional culture, other students negotiate the space through isolation and alienation. Overall, with regard to adjusting to the world of Rhodes and South Africa, students pursued different routes which, in the end, made sense to them.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
A gender based analysis of the Amalima Programme in empowering married women within households in rural Gwanda, Zimbabwe
- Authors: Sibanda, Patience
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Non-governmental organizations Zimbabwe Matabeleland South Province , Power (Social sciences) Zimbabwe Matabeleland South Province , Women Zimbabwe Social conditions , Women's rights Zimbabwe , Patriarchy Zimbabwe Matabeleland South Province
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63682 , vital:28470
- Description: Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have occupied a prominent role in the socio-economic development of rural areas of Zimbabwe since the time of the country’s independence in 1980, including a focus on improving the conditions and status of women in communal areas. These NGOs adopt a participatory methodology in their development programmes and projects, as they try to ensure that the active participation of women in rural development facilitates women’s access to resources and the realisation of their rights. These initiatives are important given the pronounced system of patriarchy which exists in communal areas. In the context of local patriarchies, NGOs also often claim that they empower women. This thesis focuses on the work of one particular NGO programme, namely the Amalima programme, with a particular focus on three wards in the communal areas in Gwanda, Zimbabwe. From a gendered perspective concerned with questions of women’s empowerment, the main objective of the thesis is to provide a critical analysis of the Amalima programme with particular reference to married women in Gwanda. Based on original fieldwork (including interviews with men, women and NGO practitioners), the thesis concludes that the outcomes of the Amalima programme in empowering married women in Gwanda are uneven and that, overall, the local system of patriarchy (including at household level) remains largely intact.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Sibanda, Patience
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Non-governmental organizations Zimbabwe Matabeleland South Province , Power (Social sciences) Zimbabwe Matabeleland South Province , Women Zimbabwe Social conditions , Women's rights Zimbabwe , Patriarchy Zimbabwe Matabeleland South Province
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63682 , vital:28470
- Description: Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have occupied a prominent role in the socio-economic development of rural areas of Zimbabwe since the time of the country’s independence in 1980, including a focus on improving the conditions and status of women in communal areas. These NGOs adopt a participatory methodology in their development programmes and projects, as they try to ensure that the active participation of women in rural development facilitates women’s access to resources and the realisation of their rights. These initiatives are important given the pronounced system of patriarchy which exists in communal areas. In the context of local patriarchies, NGOs also often claim that they empower women. This thesis focuses on the work of one particular NGO programme, namely the Amalima programme, with a particular focus on three wards in the communal areas in Gwanda, Zimbabwe. From a gendered perspective concerned with questions of women’s empowerment, the main objective of the thesis is to provide a critical analysis of the Amalima programme with particular reference to married women in Gwanda. Based on original fieldwork (including interviews with men, women and NGO practitioners), the thesis concludes that the outcomes of the Amalima programme in empowering married women in Gwanda are uneven and that, overall, the local system of patriarchy (including at household level) remains largely intact.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A narrative study of patients’ illness experiences on antiretroviral treatment
- Authors: Tsope, Lindiwe
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: AIDS (Disease) Social aspects South Africa , HIV infections Social aspects South Africa , Stigma (Social psychology) , Antiretroviral agents , Disclosure of information , Social media in medicine South Africa , Discourse analysis, Narrative
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63032 , vital:28356
- Description: Eight female respondents, who have publicly disclosed their HIV-positive status on social media, were involved in a semi-structured in-depth interview process. Using the theoretical frameworks of symbolic interactionism and social constructionism, the study explores the effects of antiretroviral treatment on patients’ illness experiences, looking at the personal and social symbolisms and meanings attached to taking antiretrovirals. The study revealed a positive and inspirational aspect of living with HIV/AIDS and especially consuming antiretroviral therapy. It became evident that the knowledge participants had of antiretrovirals before consuming them was misguided and based more on false ‘general knowledge’ among laypersons than actual medical fact. Moreover, the study revealed that there is a social reconstruction of narratives that has taken place in each participant’s life due to consuming antiretrovirals. Publicly disclosing their statuses has also proved to have both negative and positive consequences for the individuals and for society at large. While there is a consensus that participants’ illness experiences are directly affected by antiretroviral treatment, each participant’s narrative is different, yet positive.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Tsope, Lindiwe
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: AIDS (Disease) Social aspects South Africa , HIV infections Social aspects South Africa , Stigma (Social psychology) , Antiretroviral agents , Disclosure of information , Social media in medicine South Africa , Discourse analysis, Narrative
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63032 , vital:28356
- Description: Eight female respondents, who have publicly disclosed their HIV-positive status on social media, were involved in a semi-structured in-depth interview process. Using the theoretical frameworks of symbolic interactionism and social constructionism, the study explores the effects of antiretroviral treatment on patients’ illness experiences, looking at the personal and social symbolisms and meanings attached to taking antiretrovirals. The study revealed a positive and inspirational aspect of living with HIV/AIDS and especially consuming antiretroviral therapy. It became evident that the knowledge participants had of antiretrovirals before consuming them was misguided and based more on false ‘general knowledge’ among laypersons than actual medical fact. Moreover, the study revealed that there is a social reconstruction of narratives that has taken place in each participant’s life due to consuming antiretrovirals. Publicly disclosing their statuses has also proved to have both negative and positive consequences for the individuals and for society at large. While there is a consensus that participants’ illness experiences are directly affected by antiretroviral treatment, each participant’s narrative is different, yet positive.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A thematic analysis of the challenges experienced by those living with tuberculosis
- Authors: Walaza, Robert Letsholo
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Tuberculosis Patients South Africa , Tuberculosis Social aspects , South Africa Social conditions , Poor Health and hygiene South Africa , Poor Medical care South Africa , Social medicine South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61850 , vital:28068
- Description: Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) in his study, The condition of the working class in England, argued that the cause of illness and death amongst the working class was due to their living conditions such as poor housing, over-crowding, poor sanitation, food shortage, low paying jobs and a lack of material resources. The objective of the study was to understand the experiences of six South African individuals who have shared their experiences and challenges of living with TB on the TB&ME blog, and to show how TB is linked to the living conditions of these individuals. The study found that the challenges experienced by TB patient bloggers are of a social nature and confirms Engel’s study findings on the conditions of the working class in England. For example, a disease such as TB has a direct association with the living conditions of people, especially the poor. Thus, socio economic status of TB patient bloggers plays a role in the escalation of their ill health. Further, the study found that gender is central in understanding non-compliance to treatment. This is significant as it highlights the need to not only focus on issues of socioeconomics, but gender issues in fighting TB. Despite the negative consequences associated with living with TB, the bloggers have noted that the support from loved ones and other stakeholders in the fight against TB alleviates the challenges inherent in living with TB.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Walaza, Robert Letsholo
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Tuberculosis Patients South Africa , Tuberculosis Social aspects , South Africa Social conditions , Poor Health and hygiene South Africa , Poor Medical care South Africa , Social medicine South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61850 , vital:28068
- Description: Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) in his study, The condition of the working class in England, argued that the cause of illness and death amongst the working class was due to their living conditions such as poor housing, over-crowding, poor sanitation, food shortage, low paying jobs and a lack of material resources. The objective of the study was to understand the experiences of six South African individuals who have shared their experiences and challenges of living with TB on the TB&ME blog, and to show how TB is linked to the living conditions of these individuals. The study found that the challenges experienced by TB patient bloggers are of a social nature and confirms Engel’s study findings on the conditions of the working class in England. For example, a disease such as TB has a direct association with the living conditions of people, especially the poor. Thus, socio economic status of TB patient bloggers plays a role in the escalation of their ill health. Further, the study found that gender is central in understanding non-compliance to treatment. This is significant as it highlights the need to not only focus on issues of socioeconomics, but gender issues in fighting TB. Despite the negative consequences associated with living with TB, the bloggers have noted that the support from loved ones and other stakeholders in the fight against TB alleviates the challenges inherent in living with TB.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
An analysis of the asset-based community development approach to early childhood development interventions in Grahamstown township pre-schools: a case study of the Centre for Social Development and Rhodes University Community Engagement
- Authors: Maponya, Mapula
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63670 , vital:28469
- Description: Is the glass half-full or half-empty? The purpose of this research was to show how Centre for Social Development and Rhodes University Community Engagement applies the Asset-Based Community Development approach in ECD interventions in Grahamstown township pre-schools. The subsidiary goals of the research were to highlight the challenges in the Early Childhood Development sector in Gahamstown, find out how the approach contributes to empowerment, participation and sustainability, and analyse the challenges that CSD and RUCE face in applying the approach and the relationship between the two organisations. The case study focused on the Centre for Social Development (CSD) and Rhodes University Community Engagement (RUCE). These two cases established projects that aim to improve Grahamstown township pre-schools. The apartheid system created a childhood of adversity for black children including inadequate access to social services, quality nutrition, health care and education. Black children in rural areas and townships faced tremendous obstacles in terms of access to quality ECD centres due to poverty and lack of adequate resources. In Grahamstown, various problems such as unemployment, poverty and restrictive apartheid regulations created a need for ECD interventions. Both organisations applied the Asset-Based Community Development approach to improve ECD in Grahamstown. The asset-based approach was created as a response to the impact of the needs-based approach. The needs- based approach focuses on deficiencies that exist in a community and uses outside experts and resources to address the deficiencies. The needs-based approach builds communities from the outside in, further disempowers community members and creates an environment of dependency. The asset-based approach on the other hand, was created to change the legacy of dependency by focusing on capacity building. A capacity-focused paradigm recognizes the gifts, skills and talents of community members. This approach is bottom- up beginning with what is available in the community and building on that. The approach aims to empower people, create a positive outlook on circumstances, and encourages organisations to work together with community members in community development projects. To achieve the main and subsidiary goals of the research, qualitative research was conducted using the case study method. In pursuing the objective of the thesis, I conducted research among ECD practitioners, student volunteers and staff from CSD and RUCE. Based on the findings it is clear that the application of the Asset-Based approach has a positive impact on ECD practitioners, children at the pre-schools and student volunteers. Through the application of the ABCD approach, ECD practitioners became proactive and took the driving seat in the development process. The ECD practitioners built strong relationships with community members and outside organisations. They have improved their skills and qualifications, and are on their way to restoring their agency, finding their voice and achieving independence. This has a positive impact on children at the pre-schools as they receive quality education and care. There are various challenges and contradictions in the application of the approach but the ECD practitioners view the communities in which they operate as half-full and not half-empty
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Maponya, Mapula
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63670 , vital:28469
- Description: Is the glass half-full or half-empty? The purpose of this research was to show how Centre for Social Development and Rhodes University Community Engagement applies the Asset-Based Community Development approach in ECD interventions in Grahamstown township pre-schools. The subsidiary goals of the research were to highlight the challenges in the Early Childhood Development sector in Gahamstown, find out how the approach contributes to empowerment, participation and sustainability, and analyse the challenges that CSD and RUCE face in applying the approach and the relationship between the two organisations. The case study focused on the Centre for Social Development (CSD) and Rhodes University Community Engagement (RUCE). These two cases established projects that aim to improve Grahamstown township pre-schools. The apartheid system created a childhood of adversity for black children including inadequate access to social services, quality nutrition, health care and education. Black children in rural areas and townships faced tremendous obstacles in terms of access to quality ECD centres due to poverty and lack of adequate resources. In Grahamstown, various problems such as unemployment, poverty and restrictive apartheid regulations created a need for ECD interventions. Both organisations applied the Asset-Based Community Development approach to improve ECD in Grahamstown. The asset-based approach was created as a response to the impact of the needs-based approach. The needs- based approach focuses on deficiencies that exist in a community and uses outside experts and resources to address the deficiencies. The needs-based approach builds communities from the outside in, further disempowers community members and creates an environment of dependency. The asset-based approach on the other hand, was created to change the legacy of dependency by focusing on capacity building. A capacity-focused paradigm recognizes the gifts, skills and talents of community members. This approach is bottom- up beginning with what is available in the community and building on that. The approach aims to empower people, create a positive outlook on circumstances, and encourages organisations to work together with community members in community development projects. To achieve the main and subsidiary goals of the research, qualitative research was conducted using the case study method. In pursuing the objective of the thesis, I conducted research among ECD practitioners, student volunteers and staff from CSD and RUCE. Based on the findings it is clear that the application of the Asset-Based approach has a positive impact on ECD practitioners, children at the pre-schools and student volunteers. Through the application of the ABCD approach, ECD practitioners became proactive and took the driving seat in the development process. The ECD practitioners built strong relationships with community members and outside organisations. They have improved their skills and qualifications, and are on their way to restoring their agency, finding their voice and achieving independence. This has a positive impact on children at the pre-schools as they receive quality education and care. There are various challenges and contradictions in the application of the approach but the ECD practitioners view the communities in which they operate as half-full and not half-empty
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Naming in Germany in the 20th century: a sociological study of naming in times of social change, with a focus on statistical problems in empirical onomastic research
- Authors: Huschka, Denis
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Onomastics , Names, Personal -- Germany , Names, German -- Etymology , Names, German -- Social aspects , German language -- Etymology -- Names , German Socio Economic Panel Study (SOEP)
- Language: German , English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63054 , vital:28359
- Description: In this thesis names are used as social indicators to observe social change in Germany in the 20th century. The German Socio Economic Panel Study (SOEP) offers the rare opportunity to analyse representative survey data of first names. The empirical results of the analyses in this thesis offer a comprehensive picture on how the naming reality in Germany looks like and how naming changed in a period of about 100 years. Names can serve as social indicators. It is demonstrated how chosen names mirror social change in the German society: Name choices have become less traditional and more individual. Over time names from other world regions and cultures have found their way into the German culture. There are more different names in use today than 100 years ago and the names have become more evenly distributed over the population. Today children are less likely to share their names with many of their peers. These are signs of an increasingly individualised, transnationalised modern behaviour of the people in contemporary Germany. Almost all of these developments started earlier and tend to be more pronounced for girl’s names. The secularisation of the German society - however - did not cause substantial changes in naming over time. Christian names still are used to the greatest extent, but – possibly – not because they are regarded as being of Christian origin. The analyses of the social-structural influences on naming touch on some effects of education and status. The analyses of differences in naming between the two German states during the time of division adds some evidence to the real-life experience that naming in the communist East Germany was much more oriented towards the free western hemisphere – a kind of silent protest. Obviously naming was a possibility to distance oneself from an un-loved regime. On a methodological level referring to onomastics, the so-called „Large Number of are Events-Zone (LNRE)“, a feature of the distribution of names that has mostly been handled inappropriately up to now, is discussed with respect to its effects on name statistics when using samples. An alternative approach is proposed for the appropriate handling of this feature. , In der vorliegenden Arbeit werden Vornamen als soziale Indikatoren benutzt, um gesellschaftlichen Wandel im 20. Jahrhundert zu beschreiben. Das Soziooekonomische Panel (SOEP) bietet die seltene Möglichkeit, Umfragedaten über die Vornamen der Deutschen repräsentativ auszuwerten. Die empirischen Ergebnisse der vorliegenden Arbeit bieten einen umfassenden Einblick in die deutsche Vornamensrealität und über die Entwicklungen der Namensvergabe in 100 Jahren. Namen sind soziale Indikatoren. Es wird aufgezeigt, wie die Namensgebung den sozialen Wandel in der deutschen Gesellschaft spiegelt: Namenwahlen weisen über die Zeit weniger traditionelle Bezüge auf, sie wurden individueller. Namen aus anderen Kulturen und Ländern fanden Eingang in die deutsche Kultur. Es werden mehr verschiedene Namen benutzt als vor 100 Jahren und die typischerweise hoch konzentrierten Verteilungen der Vornamen stellen sich über die Zeit etwas weniger konzentriert dar. Heute geborene Kinder teilen ihre Namen mit anteilig weniger anderen Kindern ihrer Kohorte. Dies sind Anzeichen für eine individualisierte, transnational orientierte moderne Gesellschaft. Fast alle dieser Entwicklungen sind für Mädchennamen früher und in deutlicherem Maße zu beobachten. Die Säkularisierung der deutschen Gesellschaft hat hingegen wenig Einfluss auf die Vornamenswahlen genommen. Nach wie vor werden vor allem christliche Namen vergeben, auch wenn der christliche Bezug unter Umständen nicht mehr der maßgebliche Grund für die Auswahl ist. Die Analyse der sozialstrukturellen Einflüsse auf Namenswahlen bestätigt einige Effekte von Bildung und Status der Mütter. Die Analyse der Unterschiede in der Namensgebung der beiden deutschen Staaten während der 40 jährigen Teilung zeigt, dass der lebensweltliche Eindruck einer zunehmenden West-Orientierung der Namenswahlen ostdeutscher Eltern nicht trügt. Offenbar waren westliche Namen eine Möglichkeit, sich vom ungeliebten Regime zu distanzieren. Auf einer statistisch-methodischen Ebene wird eine bislang in der empirischen Onomastik unrichtig gehandhabte Besonderheit von Vornamensverteilungen – die Large Number of Rare Events-Zone (LNRE) – diskutiert und Lösungsvorschläge für den statistisch korrekten Umgang mit dieser Besonderheit in Gruppenvergleichen auf der Basis von Stichproben vorgelegt.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Huschka, Denis
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Onomastics , Names, Personal -- Germany , Names, German -- Etymology , Names, German -- Social aspects , German language -- Etymology -- Names , German Socio Economic Panel Study (SOEP)
- Language: German , English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63054 , vital:28359
- Description: In this thesis names are used as social indicators to observe social change in Germany in the 20th century. The German Socio Economic Panel Study (SOEP) offers the rare opportunity to analyse representative survey data of first names. The empirical results of the analyses in this thesis offer a comprehensive picture on how the naming reality in Germany looks like and how naming changed in a period of about 100 years. Names can serve as social indicators. It is demonstrated how chosen names mirror social change in the German society: Name choices have become less traditional and more individual. Over time names from other world regions and cultures have found their way into the German culture. There are more different names in use today than 100 years ago and the names have become more evenly distributed over the population. Today children are less likely to share their names with many of their peers. These are signs of an increasingly individualised, transnationalised modern behaviour of the people in contemporary Germany. Almost all of these developments started earlier and tend to be more pronounced for girl’s names. The secularisation of the German society - however - did not cause substantial changes in naming over time. Christian names still are used to the greatest extent, but – possibly – not because they are regarded as being of Christian origin. The analyses of the social-structural influences on naming touch on some effects of education and status. The analyses of differences in naming between the two German states during the time of division adds some evidence to the real-life experience that naming in the communist East Germany was much more oriented towards the free western hemisphere – a kind of silent protest. Obviously naming was a possibility to distance oneself from an un-loved regime. On a methodological level referring to onomastics, the so-called „Large Number of are Events-Zone (LNRE)“, a feature of the distribution of names that has mostly been handled inappropriately up to now, is discussed with respect to its effects on name statistics when using samples. An alternative approach is proposed for the appropriate handling of this feature. , In der vorliegenden Arbeit werden Vornamen als soziale Indikatoren benutzt, um gesellschaftlichen Wandel im 20. Jahrhundert zu beschreiben. Das Soziooekonomische Panel (SOEP) bietet die seltene Möglichkeit, Umfragedaten über die Vornamen der Deutschen repräsentativ auszuwerten. Die empirischen Ergebnisse der vorliegenden Arbeit bieten einen umfassenden Einblick in die deutsche Vornamensrealität und über die Entwicklungen der Namensvergabe in 100 Jahren. Namen sind soziale Indikatoren. Es wird aufgezeigt, wie die Namensgebung den sozialen Wandel in der deutschen Gesellschaft spiegelt: Namenwahlen weisen über die Zeit weniger traditionelle Bezüge auf, sie wurden individueller. Namen aus anderen Kulturen und Ländern fanden Eingang in die deutsche Kultur. Es werden mehr verschiedene Namen benutzt als vor 100 Jahren und die typischerweise hoch konzentrierten Verteilungen der Vornamen stellen sich über die Zeit etwas weniger konzentriert dar. Heute geborene Kinder teilen ihre Namen mit anteilig weniger anderen Kindern ihrer Kohorte. Dies sind Anzeichen für eine individualisierte, transnational orientierte moderne Gesellschaft. Fast alle dieser Entwicklungen sind für Mädchennamen früher und in deutlicherem Maße zu beobachten. Die Säkularisierung der deutschen Gesellschaft hat hingegen wenig Einfluss auf die Vornamenswahlen genommen. Nach wie vor werden vor allem christliche Namen vergeben, auch wenn der christliche Bezug unter Umständen nicht mehr der maßgebliche Grund für die Auswahl ist. Die Analyse der sozialstrukturellen Einflüsse auf Namenswahlen bestätigt einige Effekte von Bildung und Status der Mütter. Die Analyse der Unterschiede in der Namensgebung der beiden deutschen Staaten während der 40 jährigen Teilung zeigt, dass der lebensweltliche Eindruck einer zunehmenden West-Orientierung der Namenswahlen ostdeutscher Eltern nicht trügt. Offenbar waren westliche Namen eine Möglichkeit, sich vom ungeliebten Regime zu distanzieren. Auf einer statistisch-methodischen Ebene wird eine bislang in der empirischen Onomastik unrichtig gehandhabte Besonderheit von Vornamensverteilungen – die Large Number of Rare Events-Zone (LNRE) – diskutiert und Lösungsvorschläge für den statistisch korrekten Umgang mit dieser Besonderheit in Gruppenvergleichen auf der Basis von Stichproben vorgelegt.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
The construction of household livelihood strategies in urban areas: the case of Budiriro, Harare, Zimbabwe
- Authors: Chevo, Tafadzwa
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Income -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Cost and standard of living -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Quality of life -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Informal sector (Economics) -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Agricultural wages -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Households -- Economic aspects -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Macrosociology , Zimbabwe -- Social conditions -- 1980- , Zimbabwe -- Economic conditions -- 1980- , Livelihoods Framework
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63043 , vital:28357
- Description: The main objective of this thesis is to understand and explain the ongoing construction of livelihood activities by urban households in the low-income high-density area of Budiriro, Harare, Zimbabwe in a context characterised by systemic crisis and a general decline of the national economy. The study utilised a mixed methods research approach, which combined both qualitative and quantitative research, including a survey, life histories and focus group discussions. The thesis discusses a diverse range of livelihood activities of Budiriro households, such as formal employment, informal trading and agricultural activities, and the ways in which households seeks to diversify their livelihood portfolio. It does this by way of also examining the contemporary and historical factors influencing the livelihood activities pursued by these households, along with the shocks and disturbances encountered and experienced by households in trying to construct viable livelihoods. The thesis makes useful contributions to the existing literature on livelihoods studies. Firstly, the thesis disaggregates the households by showing the existence of three wealth categories in Budiriro and the varying livelihood strategies of households in different wealth categories. Secondly, the study highlights the significance of intra-household dynamics in Budiriro for livelihoods as well as of inter-household kinship networks, which transcend the urban space and entail multi-spatial livelihoods. Thirdly, the thesis examines livelihoods over time, such that it goes beyond a strictly synchronic examination, therefore providing a diachronic analysis of diverse and complicated livelihood pathways. Finally, the Livelihoods Framework is located within broader macro-sociological theorising including the work of Pierre Bourdieu. In this respect, important insights arise about livelihood choices and practices in the light of ongoing debates within sociology about human agency.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Chevo, Tafadzwa
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Income -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Cost and standard of living -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Quality of life -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Informal sector (Economics) -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Agricultural wages -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Households -- Economic aspects -- Zimbabwe -- Harare , Macrosociology , Zimbabwe -- Social conditions -- 1980- , Zimbabwe -- Economic conditions -- 1980- , Livelihoods Framework
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63043 , vital:28357
- Description: The main objective of this thesis is to understand and explain the ongoing construction of livelihood activities by urban households in the low-income high-density area of Budiriro, Harare, Zimbabwe in a context characterised by systemic crisis and a general decline of the national economy. The study utilised a mixed methods research approach, which combined both qualitative and quantitative research, including a survey, life histories and focus group discussions. The thesis discusses a diverse range of livelihood activities of Budiriro households, such as formal employment, informal trading and agricultural activities, and the ways in which households seeks to diversify their livelihood portfolio. It does this by way of also examining the contemporary and historical factors influencing the livelihood activities pursued by these households, along with the shocks and disturbances encountered and experienced by households in trying to construct viable livelihoods. The thesis makes useful contributions to the existing literature on livelihoods studies. Firstly, the thesis disaggregates the households by showing the existence of three wealth categories in Budiriro and the varying livelihood strategies of households in different wealth categories. Secondly, the study highlights the significance of intra-household dynamics in Budiriro for livelihoods as well as of inter-household kinship networks, which transcend the urban space and entail multi-spatial livelihoods. Thirdly, the thesis examines livelihoods over time, such that it goes beyond a strictly synchronic examination, therefore providing a diachronic analysis of diverse and complicated livelihood pathways. Finally, the Livelihoods Framework is located within broader macro-sociological theorising including the work of Pierre Bourdieu. In this respect, important insights arise about livelihood choices and practices in the light of ongoing debates within sociology about human agency.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
The impact of South African business on employment relations in Mozambique: a case study of Banco Austral, a subsidiary of ABSA
- Mtyingizana, Beata Nontlahla
- Authors: Mtyingizana, Beata Nontlahla
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Industrial sociology -- Mozambique , Industrial relations -- Mozambique , Industrial relations -- Cross-cultural studies , Industrial sociology -- Political aspects , Personnel management -- Mozambique , Personnel management -- Political aspects , ABSA Bank , Banco Austral
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/60267 , vital:27760
- Description: This thesis examines the impact of South African business on employment relations in Mozambique. The study specifically focuses on a case study of Banco Austral, a subsidiary of the Amalgamated Banks of South Africa (ABSA), to provide a richer and deeper analysis of employment practices. The study examines the extent to which the expansion of South African businesses in Mozambique has influenced the development of employment relations there. It examines whether the employment relations that exist at Banco Austral are a direct result of the influence of its parent firm, ABSA. It assesses whether the prevailing managerial practices at Banco Austral are distinctly local and a product of Mozambican history or whether the employer and employee relations that exist in that bank are an outcome of some form of hybridised host country and parent firm practices. The study is contextualised within the period of transition that both countries underwent. In the South African context, the end of apartheid promised political stability, democracy and racial harmony. It facilitated South Africa’s reinsertion into the international economy and enabled its investors to embark on large-scale penetration of potential markets. It also opened up opportunities for investors to take advantage of the new global order in the rest of Africa and particularly in Mozambique. Similarly, in Mozambique, the transition to capitalism and to liberal democracy in 1994 marked a clear shift of policy from an authoritarian one-party state characterised by a planned socialist economy. In embracing a liberal market economy, Mozambique facilitated a transference of ownership of major state assets to the private sector and opened itself to the private sector’s market-driven business practices and managerial cultures. The study found that the impact of these historical developments on the evolution of employment relations at Banco Austral has been contradictory. ABSA’s ownership of Banco Austral opened as many opportunities as it closed them. On the one hand, it marked an opportunity for the growth and development of the ABSA brand across Mozambique. It presented opportunities for the integration of the Mozambican workforce into the larger ABSA Group and thereby enabling the transference of innovative managerial practices, world class human resources management techniques and advanced banking technology from ABSA and into Banco Austral. ABSA’s acquisition of Banco Austral also opened prospects for the development of skills for the workforce, enhanced the chances of job mobility as well as opened opportunities for Banco Austral workers to take advantage of the newly created jobs. On the other hand, however, the managerial practices and the human resource management techniques transferred from ABSA was reported by Banco Austral workers to be far from innovative. Instead, they resembled traits of past practices characteristic of Mozambique’s colonial workplace regime and South Africa’s apartheid workplace regime. This tilted the balance of power in favour of managers who arbitrarily exercised their authority in ways similar to that of the Portuguese managers in colonial Mozambique and that of the production councils during the post-independence socialist period. Access to senior positions and training opportunities continued to be allocated along national and racial lines. Many Mozambican workers were said to be ABSA-unfit and could not be trained in critical areas to improve their relevance in the larger ABSA Group. Despite these findings however, this study shows that Banco Austral workers were not helpless actors in the employment relationship. Rather, they remained agents of change in their own right, endowed with varying degrees of power, which they used to minimise the impact of arbitrary management practices and influence the direction of the employment relationship to advance their interests. The argument of this thesis is advanced by locating the study within Pierre Bourdieu’s theoretical triad of capital, field and habitus. Bourdieu’s theoretical triad is used as important analytical tools for understanding how ABSA-specific practices evolved and continued to shape the conduct and thoughts of its managers and workers alike. This study also makes special contribution to Marxism by revisiting Marx’s conception of the labour process to expose a number of analytical dilemmas when Marx is applied to bank labour.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Mtyingizana, Beata Nontlahla
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Industrial sociology -- Mozambique , Industrial relations -- Mozambique , Industrial relations -- Cross-cultural studies , Industrial sociology -- Political aspects , Personnel management -- Mozambique , Personnel management -- Political aspects , ABSA Bank , Banco Austral
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/60267 , vital:27760
- Description: This thesis examines the impact of South African business on employment relations in Mozambique. The study specifically focuses on a case study of Banco Austral, a subsidiary of the Amalgamated Banks of South Africa (ABSA), to provide a richer and deeper analysis of employment practices. The study examines the extent to which the expansion of South African businesses in Mozambique has influenced the development of employment relations there. It examines whether the employment relations that exist at Banco Austral are a direct result of the influence of its parent firm, ABSA. It assesses whether the prevailing managerial practices at Banco Austral are distinctly local and a product of Mozambican history or whether the employer and employee relations that exist in that bank are an outcome of some form of hybridised host country and parent firm practices. The study is contextualised within the period of transition that both countries underwent. In the South African context, the end of apartheid promised political stability, democracy and racial harmony. It facilitated South Africa’s reinsertion into the international economy and enabled its investors to embark on large-scale penetration of potential markets. It also opened up opportunities for investors to take advantage of the new global order in the rest of Africa and particularly in Mozambique. Similarly, in Mozambique, the transition to capitalism and to liberal democracy in 1994 marked a clear shift of policy from an authoritarian one-party state characterised by a planned socialist economy. In embracing a liberal market economy, Mozambique facilitated a transference of ownership of major state assets to the private sector and opened itself to the private sector’s market-driven business practices and managerial cultures. The study found that the impact of these historical developments on the evolution of employment relations at Banco Austral has been contradictory. ABSA’s ownership of Banco Austral opened as many opportunities as it closed them. On the one hand, it marked an opportunity for the growth and development of the ABSA brand across Mozambique. It presented opportunities for the integration of the Mozambican workforce into the larger ABSA Group and thereby enabling the transference of innovative managerial practices, world class human resources management techniques and advanced banking technology from ABSA and into Banco Austral. ABSA’s acquisition of Banco Austral also opened prospects for the development of skills for the workforce, enhanced the chances of job mobility as well as opened opportunities for Banco Austral workers to take advantage of the newly created jobs. On the other hand, however, the managerial practices and the human resource management techniques transferred from ABSA was reported by Banco Austral workers to be far from innovative. Instead, they resembled traits of past practices characteristic of Mozambique’s colonial workplace regime and South Africa’s apartheid workplace regime. This tilted the balance of power in favour of managers who arbitrarily exercised their authority in ways similar to that of the Portuguese managers in colonial Mozambique and that of the production councils during the post-independence socialist period. Access to senior positions and training opportunities continued to be allocated along national and racial lines. Many Mozambican workers were said to be ABSA-unfit and could not be trained in critical areas to improve their relevance in the larger ABSA Group. Despite these findings however, this study shows that Banco Austral workers were not helpless actors in the employment relationship. Rather, they remained agents of change in their own right, endowed with varying degrees of power, which they used to minimise the impact of arbitrary management practices and influence the direction of the employment relationship to advance their interests. The argument of this thesis is advanced by locating the study within Pierre Bourdieu’s theoretical triad of capital, field and habitus. Bourdieu’s theoretical triad is used as important analytical tools for understanding how ABSA-specific practices evolved and continued to shape the conduct and thoughts of its managers and workers alike. This study also makes special contribution to Marxism by revisiting Marx’s conception of the labour process to expose a number of analytical dilemmas when Marx is applied to bank labour.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
The power of mysticism: understanding political support for President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe
- Manzira, Rufaro Coucou Annette
- Authors: Manzira, Rufaro Coucou Annette
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Mysticism -- Psychology , Zimbabwe -- Politics and government -- 1980- , Mugabe, Robert Gabriel, 1924-2019 , Allegiance -- Zimbabwe , Political capital -- Zimbabwe , Political psychology -- Zimbabwe , ZANU-PF (Organization : Zimbabwe) , Apotheosis , Zimbabwe -- Kings and rulers -- Religious aspects
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63693 , vital:28472
- Description: Significant debate exists within Zimbabwean studies about the basis for which people support on an ongoing basis the ruling Zimbabweans African National Union- Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) under the leadership of Robert Mugabe. In academic literature, the party and state president (Mugabe) is typically seen as an oppressor such that any support for Mugabe is understood based on compulsion rather than consent. Genuine support for the ruling party though implies that Mugabe is a liberator. In drawing upon Zimbabwean academic literature which seeks to understand why Mugabe might be understood as a liberator, this thesis seeks to provide an innovative sociological analysis focusing on the mysticism surrounding the person and ruler-ship of Mugabe. The mysticism portrays Mugabe as being blessed by the ancestors and spirits, as having divine and sage-like qualities, as speaking for the bones of the dead heroes, and as acting as a modern day national chief who cares for his national subjects and defends his chiefdom against enemies from within or without. This portrait of Mugabe resonates with many Zimbabweans as it speaks to their everyday experiences and their longings for nation-building and national belonging. Hence, it should not be strictly understood as a ruling party ideology foisted upon citizens as a means of political deception. This is explored through interviews with a small number of ZANU-PF supporters.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Manzira, Rufaro Coucou Annette
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Mysticism -- Psychology , Zimbabwe -- Politics and government -- 1980- , Mugabe, Robert Gabriel, 1924-2019 , Allegiance -- Zimbabwe , Political capital -- Zimbabwe , Political psychology -- Zimbabwe , ZANU-PF (Organization : Zimbabwe) , Apotheosis , Zimbabwe -- Kings and rulers -- Religious aspects
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63693 , vital:28472
- Description: Significant debate exists within Zimbabwean studies about the basis for which people support on an ongoing basis the ruling Zimbabweans African National Union- Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) under the leadership of Robert Mugabe. In academic literature, the party and state president (Mugabe) is typically seen as an oppressor such that any support for Mugabe is understood based on compulsion rather than consent. Genuine support for the ruling party though implies that Mugabe is a liberator. In drawing upon Zimbabwean academic literature which seeks to understand why Mugabe might be understood as a liberator, this thesis seeks to provide an innovative sociological analysis focusing on the mysticism surrounding the person and ruler-ship of Mugabe. The mysticism portrays Mugabe as being blessed by the ancestors and spirits, as having divine and sage-like qualities, as speaking for the bones of the dead heroes, and as acting as a modern day national chief who cares for his national subjects and defends his chiefdom against enemies from within or without. This portrait of Mugabe resonates with many Zimbabweans as it speaks to their everyday experiences and their longings for nation-building and national belonging. Hence, it should not be strictly understood as a ruling party ideology foisted upon citizens as a means of political deception. This is explored through interviews with a small number of ZANU-PF supporters.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Transformation at Rhodes University: investigating the extent of support for the participation of students with disabilities in the transformation processes of the Institution
- Authors: Israel, Veronica
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Rhodes University , Educational change -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Educational equalization -- South Africa -- Makhanda , College students with disabilities -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Students with disabilities -- Services for , Corporate culture -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Critical Disability Studies Approach (CDSA)
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62006 , vital:28095
- Description: This study is motivated by the vigorous discourse around transformation at Rhodes University and investigates the extent of support for and engagement with students with disabilities in the transformation processes of the institution. It analyses the extent to which integration is holistic at institutions of Higher Learning. Particular interest is given to the institutional culture of Rhodes University, namely whether it values and embraces diversity and is committed to inclusivity, centering the presence and voice of students with disabilities. It explores institutional responses to students with disabilities and their capacity to flourish beyond notions of access, therefore, delivering on the demand for institutional transformation. The thesis draws on the Critical Disability Studies Approach (CDSA), the social justice reform agenda with reference to the feminist analysis of disability, and the concept of inclusive education. The study uses a qualitative research methodology. The sample size used in the study was sufficient to highlight the challenges students with disabilities at Rhodes University face and their coping mechanisms while investigating the extent of support and active participation in the transformation discourse. The study found that the majority of the participants’ academic capabilities were influenced by their disability and impacted on their academic success. The study further revealed that there is a disjuncture between policy and practice in terms of awareness, and as such, effectiveness. While there is a supportive institutional framework, as indicated by more than 50% of the participants in the study, the recommendations ensuing from this research indicate that there are areas in which the university can improve its support mechanisms. Improving support structures is possible through establishing platforms which can be used for students to share their lived experiences and making disability a visible part of the institutional discourse on transformation. The study concludes by arguing for the application of principles of Ubuntu which demonstrate the commitment of Rhodes University in inculcating an inclusive institutional culture and understanding that disability is intersectional with social registers such as race and gender. It emphasises the recognition of the institution as a transforming one if the body that matters is the body whose presence, voice and lived experience is acknowledged and recognised.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Israel, Veronica
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Rhodes University , Educational change -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Educational equalization -- South Africa -- Makhanda , College students with disabilities -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Students with disabilities -- Services for , Corporate culture -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Critical Disability Studies Approach (CDSA)
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62006 , vital:28095
- Description: This study is motivated by the vigorous discourse around transformation at Rhodes University and investigates the extent of support for and engagement with students with disabilities in the transformation processes of the institution. It analyses the extent to which integration is holistic at institutions of Higher Learning. Particular interest is given to the institutional culture of Rhodes University, namely whether it values and embraces diversity and is committed to inclusivity, centering the presence and voice of students with disabilities. It explores institutional responses to students with disabilities and their capacity to flourish beyond notions of access, therefore, delivering on the demand for institutional transformation. The thesis draws on the Critical Disability Studies Approach (CDSA), the social justice reform agenda with reference to the feminist analysis of disability, and the concept of inclusive education. The study uses a qualitative research methodology. The sample size used in the study was sufficient to highlight the challenges students with disabilities at Rhodes University face and their coping mechanisms while investigating the extent of support and active participation in the transformation discourse. The study found that the majority of the participants’ academic capabilities were influenced by their disability and impacted on their academic success. The study further revealed that there is a disjuncture between policy and practice in terms of awareness, and as such, effectiveness. While there is a supportive institutional framework, as indicated by more than 50% of the participants in the study, the recommendations ensuing from this research indicate that there are areas in which the university can improve its support mechanisms. Improving support structures is possible through establishing platforms which can be used for students to share their lived experiences and making disability a visible part of the institutional discourse on transformation. The study concludes by arguing for the application of principles of Ubuntu which demonstrate the commitment of Rhodes University in inculcating an inclusive institutional culture and understanding that disability is intersectional with social registers such as race and gender. It emphasises the recognition of the institution as a transforming one if the body that matters is the body whose presence, voice and lived experience is acknowledged and recognised.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Understanding ongoing support for the African National Congress amongst the urban poor in national elections in South Africa: the case of Mlungisi, Queenstown
- Authors: Makwetu, Ncebakazi
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: African National Congress , Urban poor -- South Africa -- Queenstown , Elections -- South Africa , Political campaigns -- South Africa , Political capital -- South Africa -- Queenstown , Political psychology -- South Africa -- Queenstown , Postcolonialism -- South Africa , Allegiance -- South Africa -- Queenstown
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62582 , vital:28209
- Description: The main objective of the thesis is to understand the ongoing support for the African National Congress (ANC) amongst the urban poor in national elections in South Africa with specific reference to Queenstown. The study involved 50 residents in Mlungisi in Queenstown, the vast majority of whom are shack dwellers. The use of semi-structured interviews allowed for an indepth understanding of why people vote for the ANC. The research participants have always voted for the ANC and have no intentions of voting for any other political party. Since 1994, the ANC has in the main pursued a neo-liberal project with a limited focus on redistribution. Because of this, most blacks living in urban areas continue to live under conditions of extreme poverty. The abject material conditions of people living in Mlungisi does not provide a strong basis for why they would vote almost unreservedly for the ANC. In seeking to offer an explanation, the thesis turns to theories of the post-colony, including the work of Frantz Fanon and Partha Chatterjee, as these theories provide an analysis of the character of the post-colonial state and the ways in which the government engages with its citizens. These macro-level theories are complemented by middle-level theories about voting and voting patterns in seeking to understand why Mlungisi residents vote for the ANC, raising questions of identity, loyalty and clientelism in the process.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Makwetu, Ncebakazi
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: African National Congress , Urban poor -- South Africa -- Queenstown , Elections -- South Africa , Political campaigns -- South Africa , Political capital -- South Africa -- Queenstown , Political psychology -- South Africa -- Queenstown , Postcolonialism -- South Africa , Allegiance -- South Africa -- Queenstown
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62582 , vital:28209
- Description: The main objective of the thesis is to understand the ongoing support for the African National Congress (ANC) amongst the urban poor in national elections in South Africa with specific reference to Queenstown. The study involved 50 residents in Mlungisi in Queenstown, the vast majority of whom are shack dwellers. The use of semi-structured interviews allowed for an indepth understanding of why people vote for the ANC. The research participants have always voted for the ANC and have no intentions of voting for any other political party. Since 1994, the ANC has in the main pursued a neo-liberal project with a limited focus on redistribution. Because of this, most blacks living in urban areas continue to live under conditions of extreme poverty. The abject material conditions of people living in Mlungisi does not provide a strong basis for why they would vote almost unreservedly for the ANC. In seeking to offer an explanation, the thesis turns to theories of the post-colony, including the work of Frantz Fanon and Partha Chatterjee, as these theories provide an analysis of the character of the post-colonial state and the ways in which the government engages with its citizens. These macro-level theories are complemented by middle-level theories about voting and voting patterns in seeking to understand why Mlungisi residents vote for the ANC, raising questions of identity, loyalty and clientelism in the process.
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- Date Issued: 2018