The land restitution programme on Rural Livelihoods in the Amathole District, Eastern Cape: The case of Cata Community land claim.
- Authors: Mnqandi, Nomgqibelo Beauty
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Restitution -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Land tenure -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Land reform -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Soc Sc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/10453 , vital:35475
- Description: The history of South Africa has been shaped by the dictatorial laws of the apartheid regime which ushered an order of domination and segregation, ostensibly to perpetuate social inequality along racial lines. In the process the white minority intended to stifle the potential of the black communities and render them subservient and unable to question or stand against white domination. To this effect the white minority instituted discriminatory laws such as The Native Land Act of 1913, among others, in a bid to give impetus to the dispossession of black communities of their land. The dispossessed people were eventually forcefully removed from their land and posted to the middle of nowhere, at the so-called Ciskei and Transkei territories. In these homelands, as these states were called, the black South Africans started to feel the pinch of apartheid more. The worst of all, these people were impoverished since they had no jobs. It is only after the emergence of the democratic dispensation, in 1994, that the transformative action was taken even though it failed to deliver as expected. In the process, the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform was established with a mission to transform and redress the evils of the past by either giving the dispossessed back their land, alternative land or financial compensation, among other arrangements. However, since it was difficult to give people back their land, the most popular option became financial compensation. This choice, it has been argued, was influenced by the high levels of poverty, high unemployment rate, low rural household incomes and poor levels of education – instances which may have led to the beneficiaries attaching little or no value towards land ownership and other possible means of land restitution. As such, ii the majority of the community thought that financial compensation would lead to sustainable livelihood and would, therefore, not allow such opportunity to slip off their hands. However, more than two decades after the emergence of the democratic dispensation, the popular financial compensation has not yielded the expected results. Yet there is a Cata community which, being among the first members of the society to successfully claim for land restitution opted for land restoration and financial compensation award was given to claimants to pay for houses that were demolished during the betterment process. Out of the award, the Cata community took a calculated risk and invested 50% of the compensation money towards the development and improving the livelihood of the Cata community. This being the case, the study sought to explore to what extent the restitution programme (with the financial compensation option) could succeed in improving the livelihoods of the Cata community. In a way, while this statement is the main objective of the study, it also satisfies the key question of the study. It will ensure that the Cata community, in their attempt to lead sustainable livelihoods, will become creative and ensure that people have good paying jobs, they budget and rationalise before using money; and that they are even prepared to take calculated risks in order to succeed, just as the Cata communities have done. No doubt this would ensure that every member of the society enjoys and is regaled by the fruits and transformative actions of the new democratic dispensation. Qualitative research methodology has been selected to conduct research of this study because it requires a researcher to dig deep to the research problems and give out rich research findings with insight because community experiences can only be understood qualitatively not through the statistics. The main findings of this study among others are that financial compensation should be linked with iii development in order to sustain livelihoods of the rural poor as the case has been with Cata community. A number of communities who opted financial compensation did not lead a sustainable livelihood instead they either became poorer or fell victims of poverty because they fail to use their financial compensation award wisely.
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Characterization of livestock manures biochar and their effect on soil chemical properties and crop growth under glasshouse conditions
- Authors: Dzvene, Admire Rukudzo
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Biochar Soil fertility
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/9863 , vital:35091
- Description: Biochar is being promoted as an amendment to improve soil properties, crop productivity, and carbon sequestration. In Africa, biochar adoption is hindered by production systems which include technology and feedstocks availability. However, little research has been published on the influence of biochar incorporation on soil chemical properties and early crop establishment. The aim of this study was to characterize biochar from cattle, goat, sheep and poultry kraal manures and their effect on soil properties and crop growth. This was guided by the following specific objectives, (i) to explore the mixed-farming system of Raymond Mhlaba Municipality on availability and utilization of livestock kraal manures (ii) to characterize biochar samples produced from cattle, goat, sheep and poultry kraal manures (iii) to determine the nutrient release patterns of biochars amended in a degraded soil (iv) to determine the effectiveness of converting manure to biochar and cattle manure on maize early development and, (v) to determine the effects of biochar type and application rate on early maize development. The farming system was surveyed to identify quantities of livestock manure, its availability and utilization for soil fertility amendment in cropping in the Raymond Mhlaba Municipality. The emerging results across all the villages revealed that, the mean livestock numbers were, 9.24±8.21 sheep, 9.37±8.15 goats, 7.95±7.66 cattle and 9.02±9.47 chickens. The findings revealed that 94 (82.4percent) of the respondents had access to cropland allocations in the form of outfields and homegardens. However, only 55 (48.2percent) of the respondents were currently cropping their fields. Maize was the most common crop grown followed by butternuts and potatoes. The application of manure by the respondents currently cropping their lands was only 40 (35.1percent) and the quantities used ranged from 210-1450 kg ha-1. The results further showed that the estimated total manure production was 2.9 t year-1, 0.82 t year-1, 0.04 t year-1, and 0.8 t year-1 from cattle, goats, chicken, and sheeps respectively. Drum retort method of slow pyrolysis at a temperature of 400°C was used to produce biochar from cattle, goat, sheep and poultry manure feedstocks. The biochar yields were 63percent, 72percent, 61percent and 83percent on a weight basis for the different feedstocks. The chemical properties of the biochar were significantly different from those of the manure from which they were made. Biochars that were high in Ca and K such as poultry manure biochar and sheep manure biochar indicated higher pH and electrical conductivity values. For instance, sheep manure biochar was (8.1 mS cm-1) and poultry manure biochar was (9.2 mS cm-1). The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that, the biochars had porous structures ranging from 1.23um to 5.23um in diameter which are important for water conductance and holding capacity. The target soil carbon level to determine the effects of biochar soil incorporation was 2percent and the soil had 0.7percent. Therefore, it was treated with four livestock manure biochars at application rates of 0; 53.2 t ha-1 (CMB); 48.1 t ha-1 (GMB); 50.7 t ha-1 (SMB); and 40.2 t ha-1 (PMB) based on their carbon content to supplement the soil carbon difference. The effect on soil pH was such that SMB increased to 6.44, PMB (6.45), CMB (6.54), and GMB (6.53) relative to the control which did not show any changes. An increase was also observed on Olsen P concentrations (mg P kg-1) which varied with biochar treatments: PMB (6.22), GMB (6.37), SMB (6.44) and CMB (6.44) and were significantly higher than the control. Ammonium-N(NH4+) concentrations (mg NH4+-N) were increased in biochar treatments but, no significant differences were obtained with sampling time. SMB released 7.95 mg kg-1, CMB 7.50 mg kg- 1, PMB 7.46 mg kg-1 and GMB 7.05 mg kg-1, compared to the control 3.23 mg kg-1. Maize growth in soil sampled from farmers fields in cultivation and abandoned treated with biochar without application of inorganic fertilizer did not differ with control (soil only) treatments. However, maize growth in soil treated with biochar and inorganic fertilizer was comparative to manure treatments. This resulted in a follow up study to elucidate the effects of biochar alone and was carried out with cattle, goat, sheep and poultry biochars at five application rates (0, 100, 200, 300, and 400 kg C ha-1) applied to a sandy loam and a clayey loam soil of the Oakleaf and Tukulu soil forms respectively. Post-harvest soil pH, electrical conductivity and Olsen P showed improvements in biochar treatments relative to the control. Improvements in the chemical parameters and plant growth increased simultaneously with biochar application rate. Maize growth was not affected by biochar application at different rates.
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Strategies, challenges and socio-economic contribution of immigrant entrepreneurship in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipal Area
- Authors: Muridzo, Phillemon Dudzai
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Minority business enterprises -- South Africa Entrepreneurship -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSoc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/17849 , vital:41375
- Description: Immigrants, in whatever country they settle, have always been involved in entrepreneurial activities mainly for survival, remittance and other purposes. Globally, immigrant entrepreneurship has significantly contributed to the economy of host nations. The aim of this research study is to investigate the business strategies, challenges and socio-economic contribution of immigrant entrepreneurship in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipal (BCMM) area, Eastern Cape, South Africa. This study builds upon fieldwork undertaken within the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipal area situated in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. A Case Study research design was utilised, and it encompassed three kinds of data collection methods – indepth interviews, focus groups and direct observation. The key finding of this study indicated that as a consequence of the challenges they encounter, immigrant entrepreneurs in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipal area had devised different business strategies to ensure that their businesses remain afloat and profitable. Another key finding of the study is that immigrant entrepreneurs in the BCMM Area make significant socio-economic contributions to their host communities. In addition to other positive contributions, immigrant entrepreneurs add to the revitalization of neighbourhoods and provide employment to their respective communities.
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An exploration of corporate social responsibility in SME liquor retail outlets in Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, Eastern Cape
- Authors: Mupazi, Rutendo Getrude
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Small business -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Retail trade -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Liquor industry -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Social responsibility of business -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Liquor laws -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Com (Business Management)
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/799 , vital:26498 , Small business -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Retail trade -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Liquor industry -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Social responsibility of business -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Liquor laws -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: In the contemporary business environment, a plethora of retail literature exists which examine the influence of CSR on the business. However, literature that explores Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the liquor retail sector has been relatively sparse. This study explored CSR in Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) liquor retail outlets in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The objectives of the study were to investigate the engagement of SME liquor retailers in CSR practices, to ascertain whether a relationship exists between providing employee training on responsible retailing of alcohol and CSR practices by SME liquor retailers, to investigate whether employee involvement in decision making influences CSR practices by SME liquor retailers, to ascertain whether a relationship exists between the practical actions to reduce alcohol-related harm and CSR practices by SME liquor retailers, to investigate whether SME liquor retailers do social good as an expression of CSR as well as to determine whether SME liquor retailers are influenced by stakeholders to engage in CSR initiatives. Both primary and secondary data sources were used in this study. A quantitative research design was used in conducting this research. Convenience sampling, a non-probability sampling technique, was used to select a sample of 94 from the sample frame of 123 SME liquor retailers. The survey method, by way of a self-administered questionnaire was used to collect primary data. The statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) as statistical software was used to analyse data. The Chi-square test, Pearson correlation, and descriptive statistics were used to analyse data. The findings of this research revealed that Stakeholder influence, employee involvement in decision making and employee training in responsible retailing of alcohol have an influence on the CSR practices of SME liquor retailers. The study also identified the safety and practical measures that SME liquor retailers are practicing as a way of reducing alcohol related-harm. A recommendation to stakeholders, such as suppliers and government to find more strategies of influencing SME liquor retailers to practice CSR, was made. Lastly, recommendations were made to SME liquor owners and managers on how to improve their CSR practices.
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