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Responding to poverty in the light of the post-development debate: Some insights from the NGO Enda Graf Sahel

  • Authors: Matthews, Sally
  • Date: 2016
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142487 , vital:38084 , https://www.ajol.info/index.php/ad/article/view/135799
  • Description: How can we take on board the many valuable insights of post-development theory without seeming to advocate indifference and inaction in the face of the misery that many people in the world experience daily? In this paper, I provide a partial response to this question. I begin by looking at some of the alternative strategies offered in post-development literature and set out to show that while there are several problems with these alternatives, to read post-development theory as advocating indifference or inaction is to read it uncharitably. Secondly, I draw on the experiences of the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Enda Graf Sahel in Dakar, Senegal to suggest some ways in which the insights of post-development theory, or some versions of post-development theory, can be taken into consideration without leading to inaction or indifference in the face of the suffering of those who occupy a less advantaged position in contemporary relations of power and privilege.
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  • Date Issued: 2016

The 'global' and the 'local' : a comparative study of development practices in three South African municipalities

  • Authors: Gibb, Matthew William
  • Date: 2013-08-15
  • Subjects: Ndlambe Municipality Emalahleni Municipality Cape Town Municipality Local government -- South Africa Poor -- South Africa Globalization Economic development -- South Africa Community development -- South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
  • Identifier: vital:4871 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008413
  • Description: On first impression, it would seem that globalisation is producing an increasingly homogenous trans-border world, whereby, as a result of key changes including the impact of technological improvements, foreign travel, the spread of westernised cultural identities, market capitalism, and liberal democracy, the point has been reached where it is now becoming difficult to tell different localities apart. In this process, it is often forgotten what role individual places assume in the creation of this globalised world and that not all will benefit from globalisation. In many respects, locally specific activities, including urban renewal, place promotion, and infrastructural developments pursued within a selection of the planet's most strategically connected cities are now the primary catalysts of, and the influence behind, globalisation. Likewise, community-businesses, rural micro-industries, and alternative livelihoods are some of the key mechanisms that under-privileged localities in developing countries are employing to either respond to the marginalization imposed by globalisation, or to simply ensure survival. The emergence of localisation theory has therefore acknowledged and exemplified the importance of the locality in the context of the global economy as either a key node within it or a point within which people must engage in coping strategies, often as a result of the negative impacts of globalisation. In recent years, varying styles of locality-based development have become central to enhancing both the pro-growth global competitiveness of a number of South African localities, as well as for initiating pro-poor interventions in several of the country's smaller towns and rural areas. In the City of Cape Town, millions of Rands have been invested by the municipality and the private sector in urban regeneration strategies,which have led to an economic rebirth in the city centre and have generated numerous jobs in the tertiary and construction sectors that have helped to enhance the city's global stature. In Ndlambe Municipality, two community-businesses, which have received national funding and have strong municipal support, employ fifty people between them and have demonstrated the advantages of participatory action in propoor local development, within the context of the open market. In Emalahleni Municipality, attempts at locality-based development have been instigated directly by the local poor themselves and have been organised by members of the community in the face of non-existent local government support, which have resulted in the creation of several hundred income-earning opportunities for area residents. In summary, these three cases illustrate a range of approaches to locality-based development cunently undertaken in South Africa by different localities possessing widely differing resources, skills, and degrees of global connectivity in order to initiate growth and enhance standards of living. From a theoretical perspective this study provides a South African slant on global theories and processes and further indicates the role that a series of localities in the South are playing in a changing global system. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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Post-feminism in Cosmopolitan and For Him magazine (FHM) : a critical analysis

  • Authors: Legge, Janet Helen
  • Date: 2013-07-02
  • Subjects: For Him Magazine (South Africa) Cosmopolitan (South Africa) Discourse analysis -- Social aspects Mass media and language Mass media criticism Women in mass media Sex role in mass media Women in popular culture Men in popular culture
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:2375 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005956
  • Description: Cosmopolitan and For Him Magazine (FHM) are, at present, both the most widely read and, therefore, the most popular "white" consumer magazines in South Africa. They both appeal to young audiences of between 18 and 34 years of age, approximately, and target middle-class, educated groups of readers. My interest in Cosmopolitan and FHM lies in their ability to influence and shape their readers' actions, values, identities and relationships, in particular with the other gender. My analysis is focused on the cover pages and the Editor's letters of six copies of each magazine, ranging from April to September 2003, providing me with a corpus of 12 cover pages and 12 Editor's letters. I adopt a critical perspective through the use of Fairclough's (1989) Critical Discourse Analysis, supported by Mills (1995) Feminist Stylistics, McLoughlin's (2000) textual analysis of cover pages and Kress & van Leeuwen's (1996) visual analysis tools. By combining these different methodologies my research falls into what is newly termed Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis (Lazar 2005). The cover page analyses used primarily McLoughlin and Kress & van Leeuwen and provides an element of pure genre analysis, while the analysis of the Editor's letters were subject to Fairclough's three inter-related stages of analysis, namely: a Description of the formal textual elements of the letters, an Interpretation which analyses the processes of text production and interpretation, and lastly an Explanation of the socio-historical context. Through an analysis of these magazines, whose interests are being served and how the readers are shaped and positioned by the magazines can be identified. My analyses revealed conflicting discourses within each magazine, however it was Cosmopolitan that revealed more tension and conflict in terms of identifying and representing women, while FHM subscribed, for the most part, uniformly to the "new lad" ideology. However, while Cosmopolitan attempted to show a forward-thinking and emancipatory view of the roles of men and women in society, both magazines covertly sustain patriarchal dominance and hegemonic masculinity. In conclusion, I reveal the need for consumers of the mass media to become more critically aware of the ideologies that are promoted through the differing tools of the media and that only through this critical awareness can any further movement towards equal relations between men and women be made. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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An investigation of the factors necessary in the development of a retention strategy for a financial organization

  • Authors: Gouws, Erika
  • Date: 2013-07-01
  • Subjects: Employee retention Organizational change Personnel management Discrimination in employment -- Law and legislation Employee motivation Incentives in industry Employee morale Employees -- Rating of
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:3181 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008198
  • Description: rhe research study investigated the factors necessary for the development of an organizational retention ;trategy for a financial organization pertaining to key equity employees. Equity employees are those employees jescribed as such in the Employment Equity Act 55 of(1998). Bussin's (2002) Total Rewards Model was used as the theoretical framework for the study. The investigation was conducted within an interpretive paradigm and employed a qualitative methodology. Thematic analysis was used in the interpretation of the three data sources gained access through the data collection process. A previously completed employee relationship audit's findings, and the data derived from nine exit interviews formed the basis for the twenty-four semi-structured individual interviews, which were conducted with a sample ofthe employees. A purposive sampling technique enabled the identification of particular employees, who were the equity participants in the study. An additional component of the Total Rewards Model, namely Talent Management was identified from an analysis of the results. Six salient factors were highlighted in the investigation. The factors identified were: A need for a short-term incentive plan, which would provide recognition above and beyond an employee's monthly salary. The need for career development opportunities. The utilization of new skills from the training initiated by the organization. The representation of women and Black people in senior management positions. The need for formal performance support. The standardization of the recruitment process, the management of unrealistic or unattainable expectations and listening to employees' concerns. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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What makes news on the front page? : an investigation of conceptions of newsworthiness in the East African Standard

  • Authors: Nzioka, Roseleen M
  • Date: 2013-06-19
  • Subjects: East African Standard (Nairobi, Kenya) Journalism -- Social aspects -- Kenya Journalism -- Editing -- Kenya Newspapers -- Sections, columns, etc -- Kenya Mass media -- Political aspects -- Kenya Newspapers -- Kenya
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:3519 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008178
  • Description: Determining what is newsworthy is a daily challenge even to the very people who source news, produce and disseminate it. This study is part an exposition and exploration of the different approaches that media researchers have used to explain and determine the value of news. Like similar research before it, this study more specifically delves into the news selection process of news of one particular newspaper with the goal of investigating why and how news is selected for publication in the front page. News is the 'result of many forces: ranging from source power, journalistic orientation, medium-preference and market model, news values and production routines and processes. The study briefly expounds on the different definitions of news as perceived in terms of the developed and developing world. Just as journalists do not operate in a vacuum, a close examination of the various definitions reveals that news cannot be defined in isolation. Its definition is intrinsically tied to that of news values. Also explored here are debates about news values and their Western rootedness. Here reference is made to literature regarding theories on the social construction of meanings and on the gatekeeping concept.The study is informed by similar research in gatekeeping studies and sociology of news studies. It is important to state at the outset that the study is not concerned with how news is produced but why there is a bias for certain kinds of news. I am interested in explaining why and how the writers and editors at the East African Standard make decisions about what is worthy of being published on the front page of the newspaper. This distinction is necessary because the theories that inform this study transcend news sourcing and production. This study takes cognizance ofthe fact that one cannot separate social processes from the individual and vice versa. For this reason, this study investigates and analyses the biases of individual gatekeepers at the East African Standard as well as their collective biases. In the concluding section, this study calls for an alternative paradigm for journalism and news. The foregoing discussions in the other sections prove that a universal definition of news and what is newsworthy will not suffice and there is need to contexualise it.
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Externalism, self-knowledge and explanation

  • Authors: Flockemann, Richard
  • Date: 2013-06-11
  • Subjects: Burge, Tyler Externalism (Philosophy of mind) Self-knowledge, Theory of Philosophy of mind
  • Language: English
  • Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
  • Identifier: vital:2743 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008060
  • Description: In recent years, much attention has been given to the question of whether content externalism is compatible with an account of self-knowledge maintaining that we have an epistemically privileged access to the content of our propositional mental states. Philosophers who maintain the two are incompatible (incompatibilists) have put forward two majors types of challenge, which I call - following Martin Davies - the Achievement and Consequence Problems, which aim to demonstrate that self-knowledge cannot be reconciled with externalism. These challenges have spawned a great deal of literature, and a diverse range of arguments and positions have emerged in response. In this dissertation, I intend to focus on examples of these different avenues of response, and show how none of them are adequate. In the first chapter, I lay the groundwork for the debate, setting up how externalism and self-knowledge are to be understood, and outlining both the incompatibilist challenges as well as the available responses to them. In the second chapter I examine these responses in more detail, concluding finally that the best available response is Tyler Burge's. Burge has two arguments that together establish his compatibilist position. First, he shows that even if externalism is true, our judgements about our occurrent thoughts are immunejrom error. This establishes that our judgements about our thoughts must be true. Second, he offers a transcendental argument for self-knowledge, arguing that our access to our mental states must be not only true, but non-accidentally true, in a way sufficient for genuine knowledge. This establishes that we possess the correct epistemic entitlement to our thoughts. In the third chapter, I argue Burge's arguments do not, in fact, give us good reason to suppose externalism and self-knowledge to be compatible. This, I argue, is because B urge relies upon a transcendental argument, which, in this context, cannot establish that we have self-knowledge if externalism is true. All it establishes, I argue, is that we do possess self-knowledge. And this is insufficient to establish that externalism and self-knowledge are compatible. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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A Crown on the Move: stylistic integration of the Luba-Lunda complex in Lunda-Kazembe performance

  • Authors: Simbao, Ruth K
  • Date: 2013
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/147524 , vital:38646 , https://doi.org/10.1162/afar.2006.39.3.26
  • Description: Carried on a scarlet and zebra-hide litter above the heads of a throbbing crowd, Mwata Kazembe XIX gloriously stretches out his arms as if to embrace a world that is his own (Fig. 1). As he parts the sea of well-wishers, splashes of red burst into view and the talking drum beats out its decree. Basking in a charged clamor where the senses blur in clouds of dust, Mwata gracefully sways from side to side, jangling the beads and cowries on the back of his akatasa crown. It is on this day that the Lunda-Kazembe Crown moves.
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  • Date Issued: 2013

Cultivation of medicinal plants as a tool for biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation in the Amatola region, South Africa:

  • Authors: Wiersum, K Freerk , Dold, Anthony P , Husselman, Madeleen , Cocks, Michelle L
  • Date: 2010
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , book
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141489 , vital:37979 , ISBN 9781402054488 , https://library.wur.nl/ojs/index.php/frontis/issue/view/232
  • Description: This paper describes the assumptions and results of a study to assess whether cultivation of medicinal plants can serve as a tool for combined biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation. The study was carried out in the Amatola region of Eastern Cape, South Africa, where sustained beliefs in medicinal plant use, also under non-traditional conditions, has resulted in an increase in commercial demands. It was based on the assumption of poverty alleviation not only referring to an increase in income and labour, but also an increase in social capital and human dignity. The study assessed the local perceptions of the use and cultivation of medicinal plants and the need for conservation of these plants, as well as the features of already ongoing cultivation practices and options for increased cultivation. It consisted of participatory assessments in three villages involving around 250 persons and participatory trials with 14 rural women selling medicinal plants on urban markets. The study indicated that the growing demand for medicinal plants is related to the great cultural significance attached to medicinal plants.
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  • Date Issued: 2010

Indicators of sustainable fishing for South African sardine Sardinops sagax and anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus

  • Authors: Fairweather, T P , Van der Lingen, C D , Booth, Anthony J , Drapeau, L , Van Der Westhuizen, J J
  • Date: 2010
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/124778 , vital:35691 , https://doi.10.2989/18142320609504215
  • Description: Six indicators were investigated for South African sardine Sardinops sagax and anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus: mean length of catch, length-at-50% maturity, total mortality, exploitation rate, ratio of bycatch, and centre of gravity of commercial catches. Sardine length-at-50% maturity is the most promising as a descriptive indicator because it is positively correlated with population size for an extensive time period (1953–2005). The remaining indicators were limited by shorter data-series (1984–2005). However, mean length of catch, ratio of bycatch and exploitation rate were found to be useful when considered in conjunction with other indicators. The centre of gravity of commercial sardine catches has shown a significant eastward shift from the West Coast, whereas that of anchovy has remained off that coast. Ratio of bycatch indicates that school composition is a reliable descriptive indicator of relative abundance in the two species. Fewer indicators for anchovy were useful, which is attributed to this species’ flexible life-history pattern.
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  • Date Issued: 2010

Shark fishing effort and catch of the ragged-tooth shark Carcharias taurus in the South African competitive shore-angling fishery

  • Authors: Dicken, Matthew L , Booth, Anthony J , Smale, Malcolm J
  • Date: 2010
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/126944 , vital:35937 , https://doi.10.2989/18142320609504209
  • Description: In South Africa, Carcharias taurus is commonly known as the ragged-tooth shark or raggie. The species is also referred to as the sand-tiger shark in North America and as the grey-nurse shark in Australia. It is a long-lived species with an estimated longevity of up to 40 years (Goldman 2002). Female sharks reach sexual maturity at approximately 10 years (Goldman 2002), and they exhibit a biennial reproductive cycle (Branstetter and Musick 1994, Lucifora et al. 2002, G Cliff, Natal Sharks Board, unpublished data). Intra-uterine cannibalisation results in a maximum fecundity of two pups per litter after a gestation period of approximately 9–12 months (Bass et al. 1975, Gilmore et al. 1983). These life-history characteristics make this species particularly susceptible to overexploitation.
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  • Date Issued: 2010

Site of struggle: the Freedom Park fracas and the divisive legacy of South Africa’s Border War/Liberation Struggle

  • Authors: Baines, Gary F
  • Date: 2010
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/126954 , vital:35938 , https://doi.10.1080/02533950903076428
  • Description: In South Africa, Carcharias taurus is commonly known as the ragged-tooth shark or raggie. The species is also referred to as the sand-tiger shark in North America and as the grey-nurse shark in Australia. It is a long-lived species with an estimated longevity of up to 40 years (Goldman 2002). Female sharks reach sexual maturity at approximately 10 years (Goldman 2002), and they exhibit a biennial reproductive cycle (Branstetter and Musick 1994, Lucifora et al. 2002, G Cliff, Natal Sharks Board, unpublished data). Intra-uterine cannibalisation results in a maximum fecundity of two pups per litter after a gestation period of approximately 9–12 months (Bass et al. 1975, Gilmore et al. 1983). These life-history characteristics make this species particularly susceptible to overexploitation.
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  • Date Issued: 2010

Spatial and seasonal distribution patterns of the ragged-tooth shark Carcharias taurus along the coast of South Africa

  • Authors: Dicken, Matthew L , Booth, Anthony J , Smale, Malcolm J
  • Date: 2010
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/127008 , vital:35943 , https://doi.10.2989/18142320609504210
  • Description: Off South Africa, the ragged-tooth shark Carcharias Taurus has been occasionally reported from the West Coast, but it is more commonly found along the East and South coasts from Cape Town to northern KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) (Bass et al. 1975, Smale 2002). Mating is thought to occur off the south coast of KZN from October to late November (G Cliff, Natal Sharks Board, unpublished data). Pregnant females then move northward to spend the early part of their gestation in the warmer waters of northern KZN and possibly southern Moçambique. During July and August, the near-term pregnant females begin to move southwards towards the cooler waters of the Eastern Cape (Wallett 1973, Bass et al. 1975, G Cliff, unpublished data), where they give birth from September to November (Smale 2002). After parturition, many of the females migrate back to KZN. The whereabouts of mature males outside of the mating season is unclear. These broadscale distribution and migratory habits for C. taurus have been inferred from limited catch records obtained for only parts of its range along the South African coast.
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  • Date Issued: 2010

Spatial description of hake-directed fishing activity off the west coast of South Africa

  • Authors: Fairweather, T P , Booth, Anthony J , Sauer, Warwick H H , Leslie, R W
  • Date: 2010
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/127031 , vital:35945 , https://doi.10.2989/18142320609504129
  • Description: Historically, the two species of Cape hakes Merluccius capensis and M. paradoxus off South Africa were commercially exploited exclusively by demersal trawling. In 1994, hake-directed demersal longline was introduced on an experimental basis, and in 1998 was initiated as a commercial fishing sector. The effect of a combined fleet composed of both trawlers and longliners on the Cape hake resource is not fully understood. Analysis of fishing intensity and catch-rate data revealed that the highest catch rates were found around the 400m and 500m isobaths for the trawl and longline fisheries respectively. Catch rates from both fishing sectors were also noted to be higher over sediments with a sand component. Differences between areas of the highest fishing intensity and highest catch rates were noted. In addition to other factors, it is suggested that a ‘friction of distance’ effect applies — vessels will trade-off higher catch rates with the increased costs associated with fishing in deeper waters.
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  • Date Issued: 2010

'Come back when you are 65, Sir': discrimination in respect of access to social assistance for the elderly

  • Authors: Krüger, Rósaan
  • Date: 2009
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71119 , vital:29786 , http://www.ldd.org.za/images/stories/Ready_for_publication/V10-2_Come_back_65.pdf
  • Description: Messrs Roberts, Whitebooi, Casling and Visagie are four elderly gentlemen who live in poverty in Gelvandale, Port Elizabeth. At the end of 2005 they wished to apply for social assistance from the State. At the time of their applications, the men were over the age of 60, but none of them had attained the age of 65. Had they been female, they would have qualified for social assistance in the form of old age pensions at the age of 60. 'These pensions would not have made them rich, but would have enabled them to sustain themselves.
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  • Date Issued: 2009

Ameliorating poverty in South Africa through natural resource commercialisation : how can NGO's make a difference?

  • Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E
  • Date: 2009
  • Language: English
  • Type: Article
  • Identifier: vital:6615 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1016222
  • Description: [From Introduction] Some of the poorest rural people in South Africa are turning to the natural resource base for income generation. Using traditional skills they are converting a variety of wild resources into commodities that are sold in the market place. Wood and woven craft, medicines, fresh and processed wild foods, alcoholic beverages, building materials, fuelwood, dried mopane worms, cultural artefacts and brooms are just some examples of the array of natural resource products increasingly seen for sale in local and external markets. Many of the participants in this trade have minimal education, few assets to draw on, and little access to alternative sources of income or jobs. A significant proportion are women, with more than half heading their own households. Many come from households devastated by HIV/AIDS. The cash earned from selling natural resource products, however modest, is of critical importance to the households involved, preventing them from slipping deeper into poverty. “Since I have been making brooms my children no longer go to bed crying of hunger” observed one broom producer. NGOs, particularly those involved in rural development, can play an important role in assisting producers overcome some of the obstacles they face and in enhancing the opportunities to grow this informal sector. , This policy brief is based on the original brief made available for a workshop in August 2006. It draws on, amongst other sources, the results of several case studies of natural resource commercialisation undertaken across South Africa. The project was funded by the South Africa-Netherlands Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD), BP South Africa and the National Research Foundation (NRF). The Center for International Forestry Research, with support from SIDA, provided the funding to share these findings with key stakeholders including government policy and decision makers.
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  • Date Issued: 2009

Making the Invisible Visible: Ameliorating Poverty through Natural Resource Commercialisation

  • Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E
  • Date: 2009
  • Language: English
  • Type: text
  • Identifier: vital:6618 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1016226
  • Description: [From Introduction] The majority of households in South Africa, especially those in the rural communal areas, live in abject poverty. Some 70% of rural households can be classified as poor, while 18-24% fall into the chronically poor category. Unlike many other developing nations, South Africa's rural communal areas are characterised by relatively poor availability of agricultural land, with only about 40% of rural households involved in field cropping. This results in high levels of integration and dependence on the cash economy. Unemployment levels are amongst the highest in the world at about 30%. Unemployment amongst women tends to be greater than amongst men resulting in a poverty rate amongst rural female-headed households of over 60%; double that of male-headed households. The scourge of HIV/AIDS is devastating already poor households' ability to cope. More than half of HIV/AIDS affected households have insufficient food (UNDP 2003). Impacts of the pandemic include not only the loss of income, but also increased expenditure particularly on medical care and funerals. The need to care for ill household members or orphaned children also limits the choices of occupation that other household members can pursue, and may restrict labour availability for food production. Household assets are often sold for cash eroding the few safety nets people have. HIV/AIDS is expected to contribute to a chronic impoverishment of 26-33% more households than would be the case in its absence (Aliber 2003). , Endnote: This policy brief is based on the original brief made available for a workshop in August 2006. It is derived, amongst other sources, from the findings of nine case studies of local natural resource commercialisation undertaken as part of a project funded by the South Africa-Netherlands Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD), BP South Africa and the National Research Foundation (NRF). Case studies on woodcraft, furniture production, weaving, broom production and the sale of wild foods and traditional marula beer were completed by Zwoitwa Makhado (UWC), Sibongile Mavimbela (Rhodes), Taryn Pereira (Rhodes), Sheona Shackleton (Rhodes) and Jabulile Sithole (WSU). CIFOR with support from SIDA, provided the funding to share these findings with key stakeholders. The opinions expressed in these policy briefs are those of the author and research team and should not necessarily be attributed to funders and partner institutions.
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  • Date Issued: 2009

An Investigation into the Performance of General Sorting on Graphics Processing Units

  • Authors: Pilkington, Nick , Irwin, Barry V W
  • Date: 2008
  • Subjects: To be catalogued
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/429881 , vital:72648 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-8741-7_65
  • Description: Sorting is a fundamental operation in computing and there is a constant need to push the boundaries of performance with different sorting algo-rithms. With the advent of the programmable graphics pipeline, the par-allel nature of graphics processing units has been exposed allowing programmers to take advantage of it. By transforming the way that data is represented and operated on parallel sorting algorithms can be im-plemented on graphics processing units where previously only graphics processing could be performed. This paradigm of programming exhibits potentially large speedups for algorithms.
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  • Date Issued: 2008

Educated mother-tongue South African English: A corpus approach

  • Authors: Adendorff, Ralph , de Klerk, Vivian A , de Vos, Mark , Hunt, Sally , Simango, Ronald , Todd, Louise , Niesler, Thomas
  • Date: 2008
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/124352 , vital:35597 , https://doi.org/10.1080/10228190608566261
  • Description: South Africa is anecdotally known for its complex system of speech varieties correlating with variables such as ethnicity, first language, class and education. These intuitions (e.g. Lass 1990) require further investigation, especially in the context of a changing South Africa where language variety plays a key role in identifying social, economic and ethnic group membership. Thus, in this research, the extent to which these variables play a role in variety is explored using a corpus approach (the nature of class and race in the corpus is discussed more fully later in the article). The corpus project, focusing primarily on accent, has been undertaken by members of the Department of English Language and Linguistics at Rhodes University in South Africa, collaborating with staff from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Stellenbosch University, South Africa. A corpus (the first of its kind) is being compiled, comprising the speech of educated, white, mother-tongue speakers of South African English (as distinct from Afrikaans English, Indian English, and the second language (L2) varieties of English used by speakers of indigenous African languages), and data collection is well under way. This short article aims to describe the aims of the project, and the methodological approach which underpins it, as well as to highlight some of the more problematic aspects of the research.
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  • Date Issued: 2008

Household attributes promote diversity of tree holdings in rural areas, South Africa:

  • Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Paumgarten, Fiona , Cocks, Michelle L
  • Date: 2008
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141301 , vital:37960 , DOI: 10.1007/s10457-007-9066-5
  • Description: Trees within the homestead area provide many functions to rural households. However, within the semi-arid regions of southern Africa, there has been only limited examination of the correlates between the socio-economic attributes of rural households and the density, species richness and types of trees they keep. This paper reports on a multivariate analysis of household attributes in relation to homestead tree holdings from six rural villages in South Africa. In terms of density of trees per household, gender of the household head was the only significant correlate, with female-headed households having significantly fewer trees than their male-headed counterparts. This was especially so for the density of indigenous trees.
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  • Date Issued: 2008

Determining the daily spawning cycle of the chokka squid, Loligo reynaudii off the South African Coast

  • Authors: Melo, Y , Sauer, Warwick H H
  • Date: 2007
  • Language: English
  • Type: text , article
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/124275 , vital:35588 , https://doi.10.1007/s11160-006-9034-6
  • Description: The study investigated the duration and peak of the daily spawning cycle of the chokka squid Loligo reynaudii, and the possibility of estimating the spawning frequency by means of classification and grouping (by age) of postovulatory follicles. Post-ovulatory follicles were classified into three types: new, intermediate or old, based in part on the degree of resorption of the follicles determined from histological sections. Ovulation in this species appears to be a rapid process, seen by the occurrence of both mature oocytes and post-ovulatory follicles in partially spent ovaries. Results suggest that chokka squid present a diel timing of spawning, with successive periods of egg accumulation at night, interrupted by periods of active spawning during the day. The ovarian cycle for this species appears typical of serial spawners. During the spawning phase ovaries go through ripe, partially spent and recovering stages by undergoing a process of maturation, ovulation and redeveloping, where a new batch of advanced oocytes is recruited. The cycle typically appears to last between 24 and 36 h, and may depend on a number of factors such as environmental conditions and the presence of predators. The short-lived (about 14 h) nature of the post-ovulatory follicles precludes the calculation of the exact spawning interval and does not allow us to accurately predict the spawning frequency. Together with the degree of oviduct fullness they do however give a good indication of imminent or recent spawning.
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  • Date Issued: 2007
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