List of Titles

Quick View

Promoting entrepreneurship in agriculture in the Eastern Cape:

- Antrobus, Geoffrey G, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Antrobus, Geoffrey G , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2010
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/143067 , vital:38198 , DOI: 10.1080/03031853.1994.9524779
Description: Selected cases in developing entrepreneurship in small-scale subsistence and commercial agriculture in the Eastern Cape are examined, including the provision of marketing facilities, the training programme of the Africa Cooperative Action Trust (ACAT) in Ciskei, government sponsored irrigation projects and the farmer support programme. An attempt is made to draw general conclusions about the necessary ingredients for successful entrepreneurship and the formulation of proposals for further promoting entrepreneurship in agriculture in South Africa.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2010

Quick View

The market for commercial farm land in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa as a means of redistribution:

- Antrobus, Geoffrey G, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Antrobus, Geoffrey G , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 1999
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/143024 , vital:38194 , DOI: 10.4314/rosas.v3i1.22991
Description: The election promise of the majority party in the new South African government was to redistribute 30% of the agricultural land in the hands of Whites within a period of 5 years. Transfers of land in the Eastern Cape Province are examined as a case study. While 60% of the total number of Eastern Cape farms changed hands over 5 years, these constituted only 19% of the surface area. A large proportion of rural transfers were small (less than 5 hectares) peri-urban properties which cannot all be considered as viable farming units. At average prices about R1 to R2 billion would be required to establish new farmers on land with the necessary livestock, machinery and equipment. Resource poor new entrants would need a major state contribution to make initial entry and subsequent survival feasible. To achieve their goal through market transfers the government would need to either substantially lengthen its time horizon or lower its target.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 1999

Quick View

Role of agricultural marketing in transforming subsistence agriculture: African Case Study

- Antrobus, Geoffrey G, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Antrobus, Geoffrey G , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 1989
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/143112 , vital:38202 , https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/197714/
Description: A lack of agricultural marketing facilities is generally seen as one of the major obstacles to agricultural development. However, subsistence producers in southern Africa are influenced by certain exogeneous factors, such as competition from commercial production, the well-developed marketing system, and off-farm employment opportunities in South Africa. This paper studies the effect of the institution of an organized marketing system in Ciskei on the level of agricultural production. This is found to have had no significant effect because the majority of the able-bodied males are working in the metropolitan areas of South Africa. This has resulted in agriculture becoming a part-time supplementary activity for women, old men, and children in the rural areas.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 1989

Quick View

Quantifying the economic water savings benefit of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) control in the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme

- Arp, Reinhardt S, Fraser, Gavin C G, Hill, Martin P

Authors: Arp, Reinhardt S , Fraser, Gavin C G , Hill, Martin P
Date: 2017
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/472762 , vital:77570 , https://www.ajol.info/index.php/wsa/article/view/150822
Description: Global freshwater resources are threatened by an ever-growing population and continued economic development, highlighting the need for sustainable water management. Sustainable management must include the control of any additional factors that may aggravate water scarcity, such as invasive alien plants. Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), one of the world’s most destructive invasive plants, presents a direct threat to economically productive water resources. Through high levels of evapotranspiration, water hyacinth leads to substantial water losses that could otherwise be used more productively, thereby creating an externality on water-dependent industries, such as irrigation-fed agriculture. This study provides an economic valuation of the water-saving benefit of water hyacinth control, using Warrenton Weir on the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme as a case study. A Residual Value Method was employed to estimate the average production value of irrigation water, based on water’s relative proportion of total costs (TC), to serve as a proxy for the value of water lost via evapotranspiration by water hyacinth. Three evapotranspiration to evaporation ratios, derived from the literature, at three levels of invasion (100; 50 and 25% cover), were used to estimate the annual water loss at Warrenton Weir. The average production value of irrigation water was estimated to be R38.71/m3, which translated into an annual benefit of between R54 million and R1.18 billion. These results highlight the need for invasive plant control, particularly in economically productive water resources. An alien plant control policy should prioritise invasions of this nature, as they present significant costs to the economy and threaten the sustainability of freshwater resources.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2017

Quick View

Smallholder farmers’ access to credit in the Amathole District Municipality, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

- Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2014
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69351 , vital:29503 , https://jarts.info/index.php/jarts/article/view/2014121946870/814
Description: Provision of credit has being identified as an important instrument for improving the welfare of smallholder farmers directly and for enhancing productive capacity through financing investment by the farmers in their human and physical capital. This study investigated the individual and household characteristics that influence credit market access in Amathole District Municipality, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, using a cross sectional data from smallholder farmers’ household survey. The aim is to provide a better understanding of the households’ level socio-economic characteristics, not only because they influence household’s demand for credit but also due to the fact that potential lenders are most likely to base their assessment of borrowers’ creditworthiness on such characteristics. The results of the logistic regression suggest that credit market access was significantly influenced by variables such as gender, education, households’ income, value of assets, savings, dependency ratio, repayment capacity and social capital. Implications for rural credit delivery are discussed.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2014

Quick View

Vulnerability and poverty dynamics in rural areas of Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

- Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2011
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473079 , vital:77604 , https://www.ajol.info/index.php/gjds/article/view/74661
Description: If the aim of studying poverty is not only improving the well-being of households who are currently poor, but also preventing people from becoming poor in the future, a new forward looking perspective must be adopted. This study analyses determinants of household poverty dynamics in rural areas of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa using a panel dataset on a representative sample of 300 rural households in the Amathole District Municipality. The result of the study shows a significant flow in and out of poverty, which is a sign of vulnerability. While 63% of the sampled households are poor (ex post), while 48% are vulnerable to becoming poor (ex ante) in future. The result of the probit model indicates that age, level of education and household heads’ occupation, dependency ratio, remittance/diversified income base, exposure to idiosyncratic risks and access to credit are statistically significant in explaining households’ vulnerability to poverty. Implications for policy are discussed.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2011

Quick View

Resource use efficiency in sole sorghum production in three villages of Kaduna State, Nigeria

- Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S, Chikwendu, D O, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S , Chikwendu, D O , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2010
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/470989 , vital:77406 , https://academicjournals.org/journal/AJAR
Description: In explaining the differences in the efficiency of farms, it is necessary to look into the use of resources to show the close links existing between the performance attained from resources on individual farms and efficient allocation of resources between farms of different sizes. This study estimates the productivity of farm resources on small and large scale farms in three villages of Giwa Local Government Area of Kaduna State. Production data were collected using a structure questionnaire from a representative sample of 78 sorghum farmers. The study used the double log production function to determine the relationship between farm resources and the efficiency of resource use. Empirical results showed that seed, fertilizer and labour inputs are statistically significant in explaining the variation in sorghum output in the study area. However the estimates of the ratio of the marginal value productivities (MVP) and marginal factor cost (MFC), point clearly to the non optimal combination of inputs among the farmers, it showed that the farm resources were inefficiently utilized for sole sorghum production by small and large scale farmers, hence, the need for resource adjustment. Implications for regional and national food policies are discussed.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2010

Quick View

Profitability in sorghum production in three villages of Kaduna State, Nigeria

- Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2009
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/472720 , vital:77566
Description: Poverty in Nigeria is overwhelmingly a rural problem. In 1985, 86.6 percent of those living below poverty line of US $1 per day were in the agricultural sector. This figure dropped to 66 per cent in 1992. However, of the total population of poor people in 1992, 10 million were living in the rural areas and are engaged in farming. Nigerian small-scale farmers are characterized by the use of unimproved inputs and traditional production tools that are capable of generating only very small incomes. This low income of the farmers leads to vicious cycle of poverty with low levels of savings and investments, which in turn leads to low productivity and low income. In explaining the poverty status of farmers, it is necessary to look into the profitability of their farm enterprise to show the close links existing between productivity and farm income. This study attempts to estimate the profitability of sole sorghum production on small and large scale farms, it uses the gross margin analysis to determine the farm income on small and large scale farms. Empirical results indicate that the farmers are making profits, given the benefits relative to costs involved in sorghum production on both the small and large scale farms. To fully tap the potential of increase productivity and farm income, the study surmises that expanded access to improved technologies on sorghum production should be extended to the farmers through extension services.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2009

Quick View

Poverty incidence among smallholder farmers in the amathole district municipality, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

- Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2014
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/472681 , vital:77562 , DOI: 10.31901/24566608.2014/46.03.02
Description: Strategies aimed at poverty alleviation need to identify factors that are strongly associated with poverty and are amenable to modification by policy. The study employed a household welfare function, approximated by household expenditure per adult equivalent to offer explanation for the incidence of poverty and its correlates. Data were collected from a household level survey of 150 smallholder farmers in the Amathole District Municipality, Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The Foster, Greer, and Thorbecke (FGT) poverty index was used to analyse the extent and severity of poverty and the results revealed that about 44 percent of the sampled households live below poverty line with average poverty gap of 0.097, while results from the Tobit regression model showed that household head’s gender, age, education, households’ dependency ratio, occupation, security of land rights, credit availability, social capital and assets ownership are important determinants of smallholder farmers’ poverty. Implications for smallholder farmers’ poverty reduction were discussed.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2014

Quick View

Determinants of household poverty dynamics in rural regions of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

- Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Baiyegunhi, Lloyd J S , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2010
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , report
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/471254 , vital:77434 , ISBN , https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/97078/?v=pdf
Description: Poverty has always been studied in a world of certainty. However, if the aim of studying poverty is not only improving the well-being of households who are currently poor, but also preventing people from becoming poor in the future, a new forward looking perspective must be adopted. For thinking about appropriate forward-looking anti-poverty interventions (i.e. interventions that aim to prevent or reduce future poverty rather than alleviate current poverty), the critical need then is to go beyond a cataloging of who is currently poor and who is not, to an assessment of households’ vulnerability to poverty. This study analyses a panel dataset on a representative sample of 150 rural households interviewed in 2007 and 2008 in the Amathole District Municipality of the Eastern Cape Province to empirical assess the dynamics of poverty and estimate the determinants of households’ vulnerability to poverty. The result of the study indicates that the number of vulnerable households is significantly larger than for the currently poor households; the vulnerability index was found to be 0,62 compared to 0,56 headcount index in 2008. This implies that while 56 percent of the sampled households are poor (ex post) in 2008, 62 percent are vulnerable to becoming poor (ex ante) in future. The result of the Probit model shows that the age, level of education and occupation of the household head, dependency ratio, exposure to idiosyncratic risks and access to credit are statistically significant in explaining a households’ vulnerability to poverty.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2010

Quick View

Skill and Earnings Amongst Golfers on the Southern‐African Sunshine Tour

- Botha, Ferdi, Fraser, Gavin C G, Rhoads, Thomas A

Authors: Botha, Ferdi , Fraser, Gavin C G , Rhoads, Thomas A
Date: 2021
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473021 , vital:77599 , https://doi.org/10.1111/saje.12269
Description: This paper estimates the determinants of the success of golfers on the Southern‐African Sunshine Tour. Using a simultaneous‐quantile regression approach and real earnings per tournament as a measure of success, a higher greens‐in‐regulation percentage and a lower number of putts per greens‐in‐regulation are associated with higher earnings. Calculations of the value of the marginal product of key golfer skills suggest a dynamic human capital acquisition process for many Sunshine Tour golfers at the earliest stages of their professional golf career.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2021

Quick View

Sport consumption patterns in the Eastern Cape: cricket spectators as sporting univores or omnivores

- Brock, Kelcey, Fraser, Gavin C G, Botha, Ferdi

Authors: Brock, Kelcey , Fraser, Gavin C G , Botha, Ferdi
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69362 , vital:29508 , https://doi.org/10.4102/jef.v9i3.64
Description: Since its inception, consumption behaviour theory has developed to account for the important social aspects that underpin or at least to some extent explain consumer behaviour. Empirical studies on consumption behaviour of cultural activities, entertainment and sport have used Bourdieu’s (1984) omnivore/univore theory to investigate consumption of leisure activities. The aim of this study is to investigate whether South African cricket spectators are sporting omnivores or univores. The study was conducted among cricket spectators in the Eastern Cape at four limited overs cricket matches in the 2012/2013 cricket season. The results indicate that consumption behaviour of sport predominantly differs on the grounds of education and race. This suggests that there are aspects of social connotations underpinning sports consumption behaviour within South Africa.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

A production function for cricket: the South African perspective

- Brock, Kelcey, Fraser, Gavin C G, Botha, Ferdi

Authors: Brock, Kelcey , Fraser, Gavin C G , Botha, Ferdi
Date: 2012
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/396007 , vital:69143 , xlink:href="https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC124240"
Description: Production functions are common to any productive activity. Although it may not appear obvious, cricket is no different. Production functions in cricket provide a wide range of information, utilised to enhance efficiency and maximize match success. Given these benefits, this study involved the derivation of a production function for the South African SuperSport Series and an analysis of technical efficiency. An econometric analysis was conducted on data from the 2004-2011 cricket seasons and it was concluded that the most optimal strategy for South African teams involved a combination of attacking batting and defensive bowling. Furthermore, South African teams had a relatively low variable substitutability and a high degree of technical efficiency.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2012

Quick View

Economic evaluation of wetland restoration: a systematic review of the literature

- Browne, Michelle, Fraser, Gavin C G, Snowball, Jeanette D

Authors: Browne, Michelle , Fraser, Gavin C G , Snowball, Jeanette D
Date: 2018
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/471292 , vital:77438 , https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.12889
Description: Evaluating the outcomes of wetland restoration projects is critical to improve practice and justify further investment in wetland restoration. We conducted a systematic literature review to evaluate the current state of knowledge on the economic valuation of the outcomes of wetland restoration. We assessed the economic methods applied, the attributes valued, and the timing of the evaluation in relation to the age of restoration along with publication trends. Research on the topic is increasing, but studies from Africa and South America are lacking. A diverse cross‐disciplinary interest is notable, yet collaborations between disciplines are less frequent. Of particular concern is that only a third of the studies were undertaken postrestoration, and even fewer for restorations older than 10 years. Gaps in the knowledge base mean that our present understanding of the value achieved through wetland restoration is tentative. The need for postrestoration site‐specific valuation efforts remains large both to justify further investment and to improve confidence in predictive and value transfer approaches as practical tools to inform decision‐making.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2018

Quick View

Economic evaluation of sweet sorghum in biofuel production as a multi-purpose crop: the case of Zambia

- Chagwiza, Clarietta, Fraser, Gavin C G

Authors: Chagwiza, Clarietta , Fraser, Gavin C G
Date: 2012
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , book chapter
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/471178 , vital:77426 , ISBN 978-94-007-2181-4 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2181-4_5
Description: Increasing awareness of the environmental damage caused by the existing fossil fuel-based energy system and rising fossil fuel prices explain, in part, the growing interest in renewable energy sources. In March 2008, oil broke through the psychological ceiling of 100 US$ a barrel, and later in early June 2008 rose to 140 US$ on the way to 150 US$. In addition, rising issues on global warming have resulted in the need to consider alternative sources of energy. This also resulted in debates about biofuels in most developing and developed countries. Zambia is faced with an energy crisis from importation of large amounts of crude oil and the high cost of fuel and petroleum products. Sweet sorghum has been flagged as a potential biofuel feedstock in Zambia. This chapter evaluates different varieties of sweet sorghum and identifies production scenarios under which sweet sorghum can be produced in Zambia by the use of Gross Margin Analysis. It also evaluates notable trade-offs in producing sweet sorghum instead of grain sorghum. The results show that identifying high sweet sorghum yielding varieties and optimum production scenarios are important pre-requisites for the successful implementation of the use of sweet sorghum in biofuel production. The results indicate a positive relationship between the yield of sweet sorghum and the production regime.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2012

Quick View

Issues and concerns in developing regulated markets for endangered species products: the case of rhinoceros horns

- Collins, Alan, Fraser, Gavin C G, Snowball, Jeanette D

Authors: Collins, Alan , Fraser, Gavin C G , Snowball, Jeanette D
Date: 2015
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/124877 , vital:35706 , https://doi.org/10.1093/cje/bev076
Description: A proposal for addressing rhinoceros poaching is to legalise the trade in rhino horn and adopt a regulated market approach, overturning the current trade ban. This orthodox economic prescription aims to reduce incentives to poach endangered wildlife by driving down the market price of their products via auctioned stockpile releases. Biologists are clear, however, that securing a stockpile for some species needs biological success in captive breeding programmes (CBPs), which varies markedly across species and habitats. Rhinoceros herds in a CBP would need spatially extensive terrain and costly permanent security measures; this only appears feasible for the less aggressive ‘white’ rhino. We argue that the market price would actually need to be sustained at a high level to cover protection costs over the longer reproduction cycles in CBPs and that, without extensive monitoring and the correct institutional structures being in place, legalising trade may encourage, rather than prevent, poaching. Supplementary policy measures that differentiate among consumer groups would also likely prove necessary.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2015

Quick View

Could a regulated market approach for rhinoceros horns work in South Africa? Some practical issues and concerns

- Collins, Alan, Fraser, Gavin C G, Snowball, Jeanette D

Authors: Collins, Alan , Fraser, Gavin C G , Snowball, Jeanette D
Date: 2013
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68600 , vital:29292 , http://www.essa2013.org.za/fullpaper/essa2013_2708.pdf
Description: Publisher version , One of the proposals for fighting rhinoceros poaching is to legalise the trade in rhino horn and adopt a regulated market approach (RMA), which would require a vote at the 2016 CITES meeting in order to overturn the ban on the trade in rhino horn. The legal trade in rhino horn would enable the auctioning of stockpiles of horn and encourage captive breeding programmes. The aim of increasing the supply of horn is to reduce incentives to poach by driving down the price. This paper uses a conceptual/theoretical approach to consider the practical implications of the adoption of an RMA, drawing on demand, supply and production theory. The intention is explicitly to set out some practical concerns and issues that seem to have been underplayed or neglected in most published economic discourse on the subject. To secure a stockpile for some species needs biological success in captive breeding programs (CBPs) but this varies across species and habitats. Rhinoceros herds in a CBP would need relatively spatially extensive terrain and costly permanent security measures, and only appear feasible for the less aggressive “white” rhino. Thus, market price would actually need to be sustained at a high level to cover the start-up and security costs of such a programme that are unlikely to fall significantly. This is a double-edged sword in that the persistent high price of rhino horn provides an incentive for continued poaching activities. Supplementary policy measures that differentiate among consumer groups may also prove necessary.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2013

Quick View

Rhino poaching: supply and demand uncertain

- Collins, Alan, Fraser, Gavin C G, Snowball, Jeanette D

Authors: Collins, Alan , Fraser, Gavin C G , Snowball, Jeanette D
Date: 2013
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/70476 , vital:29665 , https://doi.org/10.1126/science.340.6137.1167-a
Description: IN THEIR POLICY FORUM “LEGAL TRADE OF AFRICA’S RHINO HORNS” (1 MARCH, P. 1038), D. Biggs et al. point out that the trade ban on rhino horn has not been successful in reducing rhino poaching, which reached a record high of 668 in 2012. They argue that trade bans support illegal organizations, whereas a regulated legal market could reduce poaching effort and provide much-needed income for conservation. In making their case, Biggs et al. overlook a few important points.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2013

Quick View

Willingness to pay for marine-based tourism in the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve, Mozambique

- Daly, Clare A K, Fraser, Gavin C G, Snowball, Jeanette D

Authors: Daly, Clare A K , Fraser, Gavin C G , Snowball, Jeanette D
Date: 2015
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473119 , vital:77608 , https://doi.org/10.2989/1814232X.2015.1012556
Description: Marine and coastal ecosystems face widespread degradation largely because market failure hides the economic value of the goods and services they provide. Marine protected areas (MPAs) can serve as structures that ensure the continued functioning of marine and coastal ecosystem goods and services. Yet, to be effective and sustainable, MPAs must be able to prove their economic worth and generate revenue. User-fee systems are used commonly to partially finance multi-use MPAs. This study applies contingent valuation as a method of economic valuation within an MPA in southern Mozambique. Using a payment card and questionnaire from November 2012 to April 2013, this study determined the willingness to pay (WTP) of three user groups for access to the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve. The study also investigated the potential for the reserve to increase revenues for conservation through the implementation of a user fee for marine-based activities. Probit and ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions were used to determine the effects of various independent variables on WTP. The OLS model found income, African residency and environmental awareness to be significant factors that influenced visitors' WTP for access to the reserve. The mean WTP was R 43.75 (South African rands) per person per day. Using data supplied by the reserve management, conservative estimated annual revenues based on the implementation of this fee amount ranged between R 1.46 million and R 3.3 million.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2015

Showing items 1 - 20 of 57