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Leadership and accountability in managing the Constituency Development Fund (CDF): a case study of Yei River County, Central Equatoria State, Juba

- Wani, Mary Apayi Ayiga

Authors: Wani, Mary Apayi Ayiga
Date: 2013
Subjects: Leadership -- South Sudan , Responsibility -- South Sudan , Development credit corporations -- South Sudan , Human services -- South Sudan , South Sudan -- Economic policy
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
Identifier: vital:11677 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1007150 , Leadership -- South Sudan , Responsibility -- South Sudan , Development credit corporations -- South Sudan , Human services -- South Sudan , South Sudan -- Economic policy
Description: This study is based on Leadership & Accountability in managing the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), the case of Yei River County (YRC) of Central Equatoria State, Republic of South Sudan (RSS). CDF is one of the initiatives of the government of South Sudan created by a legislation of Parliament to compliment development of the community needs as they expect more from the government of the day. The CDF Act 2007 which was passed by the parliament stipulated structures that govern the operation of the fund in terms of management, leadership and accountability to enhance effective and efficient provision of services to the people. The CDF Act provided that fund allocated to the MPs is to address the challenges that face the communities such as construction of schools, health facilities, water, roads and government facilities but not for personal interest or individual use. The problem that motivated the researcher to explore the performance of the CDF was inadequate service to the community although the government has allocated funds to each constituency channeled through the members of parliament to improve the socio-economic status of the community. The research looked at how the CDF roles, functions, and procedure were applied in the utilization of the funds to ensure efficiency. It analysed and evaluated the effectiveness and efficiency of management of CDF to promote service delivery in the constituencies of Yei, Ottogo, Tore and Mugwo Payams. The study investigated the following questions: How is the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) been managed and utilized by the Members of Parliament (MPs) to promote development in their constituencies? To what extent is the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) used in accordance with the provisions of the CDF Act (2007)? To what extent does the CDF achieve its objective in promoting development to meet the aspirations of the people within the constituencies? And, what is the nature of the relationship between the MPs, the community and the County Local Authority in relation to the CDF? The study also examined the linkage between the various committees formed by the CDF Act 2007 to guide the implementation of the fund as well as the projects at grass-root levels in regards to monitoring and evaluation process. The study used both descriptive and explanatory techniques to guide the researcher in gathering information required on the best of CDF practice in Yei River County which were carried out using interviews, focus group discussion and observation. Twenty (20) respondents comprising of head of departments, women, youth, MPs of both parliaments - the National and the State, chiefs, councilors, CDF committees from the four constituencies mentioned above were interviewed about the use of the CDF. The study reveals that there are no clear linkages between the various committees formed by the CDF Act 2007 to guide the implementation of the fund as well as the projects at the grass-root level in regards to monitoring and evaluation process. In addition to this, less participation of the community in identification, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the CDF community projects was one of the contributing factors that affected the effectiveness and efficiency of the result. Although creation of CDF has effect in some of the areas of the county, it requires more improvement in the implementation process to increase development in other areas. Based on these findings, the study argues that for the best of the CDF utilization, leadership and accountability which are components of the Public Administration Discipline that enhances efficiency in the public institutions need to be put into practice. Hence, rigorous application of the CDF rules, regulations and procedures is paramount in managing the utilization of the fund allocated for the purpose of development.
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Date Issued: 2013

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Effects of feeding Moringa Oleifera leaf meal as an additive on growth performance of chicken, physico-chemical shelf-life indicators, fatty acid profiles and lipid oxidation of broiler meat

- Wapi, Cwayita

Authors: Wapi, Cwayita
Date: 2012
Subjects: Moringa , Broilers (Chickens) , Meat -- Quality
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc Agric (Animal Science)
Identifier: vital:11822 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1007546 , Moringa , Broilers (Chickens) , Meat -- Quality
Description: Effects of feeding Moringa oleifera leaf meal as an additive on growth performance of chicken, physico- chemical shelf-life indicators, fatty acids profiles and lipid oxidation of broiler meat The main objective of the study was to determine the effect of M.oleifera leaf meal (MOLM) as an additive on growth performance, carcass characteristics, physico-chemical shelf-life indicators (colour, ultimate pH, driploss), fatty acids profiles and lipid oxidation of meat from broilers. A total of 432 1day old unsexed broiler chicks (Aviane 48) were randomly allocated to four dietary treatments (TRTS) in 72 cages. There were 18 cages per treatment and each cage allocated 6 chicks. Water and feed was provided at ad libitum. The feeding phases were, prestarter (0-7 Days), starter (8-18 Days), grower (19-28 Days), finisher (29-35 Days). The four TRTS contained graded levels of MOLM at 1000g/ton, 750g/ton, 500g/ton, and 0g/ton (control), respectively. The birds were slaughtered at 35 days of age. Breast muscles were sampled for meat, ultimate pH (pHu ), colour, drip loss over a 7 days shelf-life test. After each day’s test sub-samples were dipped in liquid nitrogen and kept at -180 C for thiobarbituric acid reactive substances determination. On Day1 and Day 7 extra sub-samples were also kept at -180 C for fatty acids analysis.The TRTS had no effect on average feed intake (AFI), feed conversion efficiency (FCE), and on average daily gain (ADG). Slaughter weight (SW), carcass weight (CW), dressing percentage and gizzard weight (GW) values were similar in all TRTS. Liver weight (LW), heart weight (HW), and gastro-intestinal fat (GIF) differed in all the TRTS, with treatment 2 having the highest value of HW (28.3±2.55), and LW (44.2±1.60) was the highest on treatment 4 . The pH values in all TRTS were constant from Day1 to Day5, reached peak on Day6, and then declined on Day7. Meat from broilers given treatment 1 with MOLM (1000g/ton) had the highest lightness (L*) values. The redness (a*) values were the highest in meat from treatment 2 (750g/ton MOLM). Treatments had no effect on yellowness (b*) values and on drip loss of the breasts. During storage L* values were high from Day1 to Day5 and decreased from Day6 to Day7. Drip loss increased with storage time as expected. Treatment 4 (control) had the highest proportions of poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (30.3±1.87). Treatment 1 (1000g/ton) had the highest proportion of saturated fatty acids (SFA) (60.9±1.87). Treatment 1 (1000g/ton) had the highest proportion of SFA (60.9±4.30). Treatment 2 (750g/ton) had the highest n-6/n-3 ratio than other TRTS. Days had no effect (P>0.05) on PUFA, SFA, and n-6/n-3 ratio. Treatment 1 had a highest amount of malondialdehyde (MDA), treatment 4 had no effect (P>0.05) on MDA . Storage time had an effect (P<0.05) on MDA levels, except for on Day1 and Day7. Day2 had the highest amount of MDA (0.7±0.08). The use of MOLM as an additive in broiler diets reduced lipid oxidation in meat, and maintained the quality of the broiler meat during storage. It also did not have any adverse effects on the growth performance of broilers. Therefore, it has the potential to be used as an additive in broiler diets.
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Date Issued: 2012

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Enlarging the place of human rights and development in international trade regulation: an evaluation of the problems and prospects of incorporating a social clause in the legal framework of the World Trade Organization

- Warikandwa, Tapiwa Victor

Authors: Warikandwa, Tapiwa Victor
Date: 2012
Subjects: Social Clause -- Development -- International Trade Regulation -- Human Rights -- World Trade Organization
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , LLD
Identifier: vital:11120 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1015224
Description: An agreement on the inclusion of a social clause in the World Trade Organization‟s (WTO) multilateral trade agreements largely depends on reassuring objecting member states that such inclusion will contribute to an improved recognition of core labour standards in trade, without altering the competitive advantage of one trading partner over another. Reassurance must be given to the effect that incorporating a social clause in the WTO legal framework would not be used as a trade restricting mechanism which might have direct, negative effects on the development of countries worldwide. Such an argument may not be won easily from a legal and economic perspective. There is an omnipresent conflict at the international level between the basic values underlying multilateral trade agreements and principles governing the protection of core labour standards. On the one hand, supporting the stance of free trade is the fundamental force of profit maximization while on the other hand, and in direct opposition to this market driven value system, are human rights-based calls for recognising core labour standards in employment matters related to trade. Increased international trade is a powerful tool for tackling poverty and social misery worldwide. It could thus be important to adopt a legal framework in the multilateral trade system to harness potential opportunities a trade-labour linkage could provide. In that case, the legal questions of whether or not there should be a tradeoff between the right to trade and compliance with core labour standards and whether a social clause in the WTO would achieve this purpose had to be addressed. However, without a compatible underpinning legal framework of universally accepted trade-labour standards, incorporating a social clause in the WTO would be a misplaced legal objective which is unachievable as it could lead to a conflict between the WTO and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and at most could create a legal fiction whose results may not be positively measurable. Setting two international legal norms at conflict with each other is systematically studied as a conflict in which the values of the global market economy are in a supposed confrontation with those protecting core labour standards as human rights. Therefore, this study undertook a contemporary legal analysis of the possibilities and challenges of incorporating a social clause in the WTO for purposes of entrenching the protection of core labour standards. It put forward arguments and tentative proposals for a trade-labour linkage legal framework which could dispel calls for excluding a social clause in the WTO.
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Date Issued: 2012

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Effects of Vigna unguiculata and Lablab purpureus on methanogenesis, haematological parameters and the quality of meat from Xhosa Lop Ear goats

- Washaya, Soul

Authors: Washaya, Soul
Date: 2017
Subjects: Legumes Forage Forage plants
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , DPhil
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/9996 , vital:35249
Description: The objective of the current study was to evaluate the nutritive value of forage legumes Lablab purpureus (Lablab) and Vigna unguiculata (Cowpea) and their effects on intake, growth, blood parameters and meat quality in Xhosa goats. Forages were established at UFH research farm in the summer of the 2014 /15 growing season in blocks measuring 8m width x 16m long for each legume, replicated three times, making a total of four blocks, and eight treatment units for each legume. Samples were collected at three different stages of growth of preanthesis, anthesis and post anthesis for biomass yield determination. A homogenous sub-sample was then oven dried for 72 hours at 60 0C. After drying the forage samples were milled through a 1mm screen and a 20g sample from each stage of growth and forage sample was subjected to proximate analysis, in-vitro digestibility and anti-nutrient evaluation. The in-vitro digestibility experiment was done with rumen liquor of cattle and sheep collected from an abbatoir. Tannins, total phenolics and sapponins were the only anti-nutrients evaluated as they are perceived to influence methanogenesis in ruminat animals. At 50percent flowering, forage legumes were harvested for hay making which was then used in an in-vivo trial to evaluate the nutritive value of forages. This trial was conducted using eighteen one-year-old goats of average weight 14.2±0.24 kg over a period of sixty days. The results showed that biomass yield, which increased with stage of growth, was significantly higher (P < 0.05) for Lablab than Cowpea (7.968t/ha vs 7.105t/ha). Cowpea exhibited higher moisture content (7.72percent), Ash (13.11percent), acid detergent fibre (ADF) (38.42percent) and crude protein (CP) (20.23percent) than Lablab which had 7.50percent, 11.45 percent, 36.17percent and 19percent, respectively. Lablab forage had significantly higher (P < 0.05) fat content (2.41percent), neutral detergent fibre (NDF) (49.27percent) and hemicellulose (13.07percent) than Cowpea which had 2.1percent; 46.91percent and 8.48percent, respectively. The stage of growth significantly (P < 0.05) affected the mineral content of both forages. Lablab showed significantly higher (P < 0.05) values (1.22percent 0.55percent, 2.67percent) than Cowpea (1.00percent, 0.45percent, 2.30percent) for calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) respectively. Lablab forage had significantly higher (P < 0.05) tannin (3.345mgCAE/gDM), phenolic (13.47mgGAE/gDM) and saponin (0.75percent) content compared to Cowpea with values of 1.494mgCAEg/DM; 9.402mgGAE/gDM and vs 1.55percent respectively. The tannin content significantly influenced in-vitro digestibility and enteric methane production. The forage type, harvesting stage and inoculum source significantly (P < 0.05) affected the in-vitro digestibility of the forages. The in-vitro dry matter (IVDM) and in-vitro organic matter (IVOM) digestibility was significantly higher (P < 0.05) for Lablab (41.13percent; 39.63percent) than Cowpea (39.86percent; 19.44percent), respectively. Both forages recorded higher dry matter (DM) digestibility coefficients at anthesis stage of growth 61.58percent, and 51.5 percent for Lablab and Cowpea respectively. The IVOM digestibility increased with stage of harvest (23.7percent to 25.57percent) for Cowpea while Lablab showed a decrease (44.6 percent to 43.9percent) when cattle inoculum was used. The IVDM digestibility was higher (P < 0.05) for Lablab (50.5percent) when cattle inoculum was used while Cowpea was observed to have higher digestibility co-efficiencies (38.54percent) when sheep inoculum was used. Cowpea had lower (P < 0.05) IVOM digestibility than Lablab (19.44percent) vs. 39.6percent). Lablab exhibited higher (P < 0.05) metabolisable energy (ME) values than Cowpea (6.21 vs. 2.70 MJ/kgDM). In the feeding study, the total DM intake by goats for Lablab was higher (P < 0.05) compared to Cowpea (688.1 vs. 607.8 g/head/ day). There was a positive (P < 0.05) correlation between dry matter intake and average daily gain (r= 0.8513, and r=0.5279) for Cowpea and Lablab respectively. Lablab and Cowpea promoted growth of Xhosa goats at a rate of 35.0g/d; and 38.3g/d, respectively which was not significantly different (P > 0.05). However, this growth was associated with a significantly higher (P < 0.05) food conversion ratio (FCR) of 19.16 vs 18.11 for Cowpea and Lablab, respectively. The apparent DM, non structural carbohydrate (NSC) nutrient digestibilities were significantly different (P < 0.05) for Lablab and Cowpea. Furthermore sex of animal influenced significantly (P < 0.05) the DM, ADF, NSC and NDF digestibilities. Lablab and Cowpea did not influence (P > 0.05) individual VFA molar concentrations in both sexes. However, animals fed Lablab had significantly higher butyrate concentrations (P < 0.05). Lablab and Cowpea forages significantly lowered (P > 0.05) enteric methane production in goats compared to a concentrate diet, and this was related to animal activity. Animals produced significantly more (P < 0.05) methane gas when ruminating than feeding or just standing. The average methane produced each year was lower but not significant (P > 0.05) for animals fed Cowpea than Lablab (4.602kg CH4, vs. 4.719kg CH4) when expressed per year. Male animals produced more gas than females with values of 17.40L/day; 12.46 g/kg DMI and 0.126g/day vs. 15.47L/day, 12.28 g/kg DMI, and 0.0109g/day, respectively. Forage legumes had no significant effects (P > 0.05) on serum total proteins (TP), globulin, urea, creatinine, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and gamma- glutamyl transferase (GGT) concentrations, but serum concentration of albumin was influenced by the diets (P < 0.05). Sex of animals significantly influenced ALP concentration (P < 0.05) with male animals exhibiting higer ALP values than females. Measured over time, the plasma concentration of urea and ALP significantly increased (P < 0.05) while creatinine and cholesterol concentration decreased (P < 0.05). Although the overall serum concentration of urea, total proteins, globulin, creatinine, ALT, ALP and GGT remained unchanged among the treatments and between sexes; treatment by sex, treatment by day and sex by day interactions were significant (P < 0.05). The white blood cell (WBC), red blood cell (RBC), mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), haemoglobin, haematocrite, platelet and mean platelet volume (MPV) levels were similar among treatments and between sexes (P > 0.05). The WBC decreased with time by 8.07 x10 9/l while mean crepuscular volume (MCV) increased by 11.83(fl) from day 15 to day 55. Treatment diets significantly (P < 0.05) influenced neutrophile (percent) content while sex influenced basophile (percent) content. There were no treatment or sex effects (P > 0.05) on lymphocytes (percent), monocytes (percent) and eosinophiles (percent). In the meat quality study, the dietary treatments and sex had a significant (P < 0.05) effect on dressing out percent (DPpercent), initial pH, redness (a*), yellowness (b*), Warner Blartze Shear force (WBS) , drip loss and cooking loss in the chevon from Xhosa goats. Compared with a commercial pellet diet, Lablab and Cowpea diets resulted in similar slaughter body weights (SBW), hot carcass weight (HCW) and cold dressed mass (CDM) of carcasses. However, female animals exhibited a significantly (P < 0.05) higher DPpercent than male animals (42.3percent vs. 38.9percent) for all treatments. The male animals exhibited significantly (P < 0.05) higher pH values one hour after slaughter than females (5.79 vs 5.67). Neverthreless the diet and gender did not significantly (P > 0.05) affect the ultimate pH (pHu). Meat samples from male animals had significantly (P < 0.05) higher redness values than females. Feeding cowpea significantly (P < 0.05) increased meat redness with the least drip loss of chevon. Female animals produced significantly (P < 0.05) tougher chevon compared to male animals; 4.16kg and 3.36kg for female and male, respectively. Lablab and Cowpea posses high CP levels and moderately lower NDF with high ADF values that influences dry matter intake (DMI), digestibility and growth of goats. These forage legumes meet animal requirements for fat, ADF, NDF, CP, Ca, Mn, zinc and Cu and their biomass yield is satisfactory.
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Date Issued: 2017

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Clinicians knowledge and perceptions of point of care testing (poct) in selected hospitals in the free state, South Africa

- Watkins, Edgar Jeffrey

Authors: Watkins, Edgar Jeffrey
Date: 2022-08
Subjects: Point-of-care testing , Preventive health services , Medical technology
Language: English
Type: Master's theses , text
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/27264 , vital:66487
Description: Point of care testing (POCT) improves access and equity to health diagnostic services in resource-limited settings like South Africa, where some health facilities do not have on-site laboratories. With recent technological advancements, most traditional laboratory tests can now be conducted on-site at primary health clinics (PHC), hospital wards and clinics. One advantage of the POCT device is that it can be used by a non-medical laboratory expert at the patient’s bed side during hospitalizations or near the patient in the doctor’s consultation rooms. This results in a shorter turnaround time for the availability of test results when compared to that from a specimen sent to a traditional clinical laboratory. Despite the benefits of POCT, many clinicians (doctors and nurses) avoid utilizing POCT for quality assurance reasons. Clinicians believe the results from a POCT device may not be as reliable as the results from tests performed by a medical laboratory scientist in the traditional clinical laboratory. This study used a concurrent mixed method research design to explore clinicians' POCT knowledge and attitudes in a subset of hospitals in the Free state of South Africa. The study population comprised of consenting medical professionals from the ten (10) selected Free State district hospitals (study sites). The findings demonstrated that hospitals in urban areas have easier access to laboratory services. There were two (2) urban study sites that had on-site laboratories which achieved faster Turn-Around-Time (TAT). The participants indicate that they are aware of POCT and routinely use it, but there are far fewer POCT tests available than laboratory tests. When diagnostic options are scarce, point-of-care testing (POCT) can provide a more accurate diagnosis than traditional methods. The improved health care provision and reduced incidence of health complications is the end result. According to the participants, having access to POCT diagnostic services has shown promise in addressing challenges that sometimes present with laboratory-based methods, particularly in settings with limited access to hospitals or when laboratories cannot be accessed. Further, clinicians argue that errors in the usage of POCT may occur due to the quality of these POCTs and improper documentation of the test results by the clinicians. Therefore, poor utilization of POCT by clinicians can be improved if implemented with pre-set strict selection goals and processes to ensure that the right POCT is selected for the right purpose that would reduce resource expenditure by the hospitals and improve patient experiences and health outcomes. , Thesis (MPH) -- Faculty of Health Sciences, 2022
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Date Issued: 2022-08

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An assessment of the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 as a vehicle for expanding financial inclusion in South Africa

- Wazvaremhaka, Tinashe

Authors: Wazvaremhaka, Tinashe
Date: 2017
Subjects: South Africa. -- National Credit Act, 2005 Credit -- Law and legislation Financial institutions -- Law and legislation -- South Africa
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/9045 , vital:34221
Description: The advancement of financial inclusion is at the top of the international development agenda for policy makers and development institutions. Empirical evidence indicates that households that participate in the mainstream financial services sector can start and grow businesses, manage risk, invest in education, save and absorb financial shocks. National Treasury recently recognised financial inclusion as a policy priority and emphasised the need to enhance it under the new twin peaks system of regulation. This study submits that a conducive legal and regulatory framework is an important key to unlocking the benefits of financial inclusion. More pointedly, it demonstrates that the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 (NCA) plays a central role in promoting financial inclusion since access to unsafe and exploitative credit can lead the poor to pay more, and thereby affecting their ability to access credit and other financial services. Although financial inclusion has been improving in South Africa, over-indebtedness remains pervasive. Access to credit has been exacerbating the financial exclusion of many historically disadvantaged and low income consumers in spite of the NCA. Therefore, this study undertakes a critical assessment of selected aspects of the NCA with a view to determining whether the Act is up to the task of expanding financial inclusion in South Africa. Arguments and suggestions have been made in this study to refine the NCA (and other related laws) such that it promotes access to safe and affordable credit for previously disadvantaged and low income population groups, encourages responsible lending and provides effective debt relief mechanisms.
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Date Issued: 2017

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A study of the prevalence of refractive errors and of patients requring refractive services at 15 eye clinics in the Amathole, Chris Hani, Joe Gqabi and O. R. Tambo districts of the Eastern Cape

- Webber, Fiona

Authors: Webber, Fiona
Date: 2012
Subjects: Eye -- Refractive errors -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Cataract -- Surgery -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Refractive keratoplasty -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Community health services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Eye -- Diseases -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Optometry -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Eyeglasses -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Nurses -- In-service training -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc (Nursing Science)
Identifier: vital:11900 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1001100 , Eye -- Refractive errors -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Cataract -- Surgery -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Refractive keratoplasty -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Community health services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Eye -- Diseases -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Optometry -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Eyeglasses -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Nurses -- In-service training -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
Description: This is a study on the prevalence of refractive errors and patients requiring refractive services at 15 eye clinics in the Amathole, Chris Hani, Joe Gqabi and OR Tambo District Municipalities of the Eastern Cape. This is an area characterised by extreme poverty where the cost of an eye examination and prescription spectacles remains financially unobtainable for most. Optometry services are provided mainly by private optometrists who service the small proportion of the population that can afford them. Adults and children remain house bound or are labelled as dull and unproductive simply because they don’t have access to an eye examination and a pair of spectacles. Purpose The purpose of the study is to identify patients with refractive errors and those requiring refractive services at the 15 eye clinics in the Eastern Cape. Another purpose is to describe the refractive services that are available to patients attending health facilities, where the eye clinics are conducted. Lastly, the purpose is to explore the possibility of nurses providing refractive services independently or under the supervision of optometrists to supplement the lack to refracting and dispensing services. Study Method A quantitative and qualitative non-experimental descriptive design was used. Research involved the analysis of Vision Care’s eye clinic records collected from 15 eye clinics from January 2010-June 2010. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 nurses working at the 15 health facilities where the eye clinics were conducted using purposive sampling. The quantitative data was analysed using excel spreadsheets and graphs and qualitative data was analysed using coding and categorizing methods. Conclusion According to Vision Care’s data of the patients assessed, 19.2 percent had a refractive error and 54 percent of the patients required refractive services. It is estimated that 71.41 percent of the patients had a refractive error according to the optometrist. Although there were some organisations active in the eradication of cataracts, there was little healthcare available in the form of refraction services. xiv Patients needed to travel an average of 63.8kms to access refraction services against the backdrop of poor roads, poverty and unemployment. 28 out of 30 nurses either ‘strongly agreed’ or ‘agreed’ that nurses could be trained to perform refractions and dispense spectacles. 29 out of 30 nurses thought that this would have a positive impact on eye care. Further research is necessary to assess the feasibility of implementing a nurse operated refractive program and whether it should be within their scope of practice to refract and dispense spectacles.
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Date Issued: 2012

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The teachers’ perceptions of female principal leadership: a case study of two primary schools in the East London district

- Webu, Kiki Corrina

Authors: Webu, Kiki Corrina
Date: 2014
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , M Ed
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/1399 , vital:26552
Description: In the South African context, the leadership positions in both public and private sectors are dominated by males. After 1994, there was an improvement in the employment of females in leadership positions, particularly in the Department of Education. But the female principals are still facing challenges that emanate from them, as well as extrinsic challenges. Studies highlighted leadership traits, leadership styles, the teachers‟ attitudes, prejudice and gender stereotypes that contribute towards female principalship challenges.This study focused on the perceptions of teachers of female principal leadership in two primary schools. Furthermore, it highlighted limitations as well as successes of female principal leader as perceived by the teachers. The qualitative research approach was used to investigate the perceptions of teachers in terms of the limitations and successes of female principal leaders. A case study of two primary schools with six Post Level One teachers across the phases and two Heads of Department (HODs) was conducted. One-to-one semi-structured interviews were used as qualitative research tools to collect data from the teachers. The findings of this study revealed that the female principals demonstrated two sides in their leadership, the positive side and the negative side. The respondents had expectations that the female principals would be more nurturing in character when they encountered personal problems. The respondents became happy when the female principals demonstrate the motherly traits such as warmth, care and love to them when they had personal problems. The female principal demonstrates sympathy and humanity by being there when the teacher is experiencing personal problems and shows interest in how the teacher is feeling. On the other hand, the respondents claimed that they did not feel that quality of motherhood when the female principal was not protecting them against angry parents. The respondents also perceived the female principals as being competent in solving the personal problems of teachers while, on the other hand, they were not able to solve the school problems. The respondents felt that the female principals showed little interest in the learners‟ wellbeing with regard to issues such as bursaries and involvement of social workers.
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Date Issued: 2014

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Developing a framework for achieving a clean audit outcome in the Eastern legislature

- Wellem, Chuma

Authors: Wellem, Chuma
Date: 2014-01
Subjects: Political corruption -- South Africa , Social accounting , Public administration
Language: English
Type: text
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/25732 , vital:64474
Description: Public sector reform in South Africa became a reality with the change in political dispensation in 1994 in South Africa the transformation of the public sector became critical in order to provide for a better life for all. This required regulatory frameworks that could establish good governance and a holistic transformation of the Public Sector. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act 108 of 1996 states as its basic principles governing public administration that Public administration must be accountable and transparent to the South African Public its. The South African Constitution serves as the basis for the governance of all government departments. An external independent audit is an important element of a good governance framework. This dissertation examines the role of auditing in supporting effective and good governance in the public sector and it seeks to develop a framework that will be used as a tool towards achieving and maintaining a clean audit outcome that is in line with good governance. The importance of auditing is outlined coupled with an interpretation of what the different audit outcomes mean for the public sector. The case of The Eastern Cape Legislature is used to assist in drawing up a framework that will assist the public sector to achieve and maintain a clean favorable audit outcome. This paper clearly links effective governance with internal control and ultimately audit outcomes. It also makes the point that risk management, effective audit committees and internal audit functions are key elements of the governance process. Furthermore, conclusions are drawn in the form of guidelines for all departments to follow in preparing for an audit as well as a turnaround strategy towards clean governance. , Thesis (MPA) -- Faculty of Management and Commerce, 2014
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Date Issued: 2014-01

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A P2P middleware design for digital access nodes in marginalised rural areas

- Wertlen, Ronald

Authors: Wertlen, Ronald
Date: 2010
Subjects: Software design , Rural development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Rural development projects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Sustainable development -- Simulation methods , Computer networks , Data transmission systems , Electronic data processing -- Distributed processing , Middleware -- Development , Computer software
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc (Computer Science)
Identifier: vital:11391 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/254 , Software design , Rural development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Rural development projects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Sustainable development -- Simulation methods , Computer networks , Data transmission systems , Electronic data processing -- Distributed processing , Middleware -- Development , Computer software
Description: This thesis addresses software design within the field of Information and Communications Technology for Development (ICTD). Specifically, it makes a case for the design and development of software which is custom-made for the context of marginalised rural areas (MRAs). One of the main aims of any ICTD project is sustainability and such sustainability is particularly difficult in MRAs because of the high costs of projects located there. Most literature on ICTD projects focuses on other factors, such as management, regulations, social and community issues when discussing this issue. Technical matters are often down-played or ignored entirely. This thesis argues that MRAs exhibit unique technical characteristics and that by understanding these characteristics, one can possibly design more cost-effective software. One specific characteristic is described and addressed in this thesis – a characteristic we describe here for the first time and call a network island. Further analysis of the literature generates a picture of a distributed network of access nodes (DANs) within such network islands, which are connected by high speed networks and are able to share resources and stimulate usage of technology by offering a wide range of services. This thesis attempts to design a fitting middleware platform for such a context, which would achieve the following aims: i) allow software developers to create solutions for the context more efficiently (correctly, rapidly); ii) stimulate product managers and business owners to create innovative software products more easily (cost-effectively). A given in the context of this thesis is that the software should use free/libre open source software (FLOSS) – good arguments do also exist for the use of FLOSS. A review of useful FLOSS frameworks is undertaken and several of these are examined in an applied part of the thesis, to see how useful they may be. They form the basis for a walking skeleton implementation of the proposed middleware. The Spring framework is the basis for experiments, along with Spring-Webservices, JMX and PHP 5’s web service capabilities. This thesis builds on three years of work at the Siyakhula Living Lab (SLL), an experimental testbed in a MRA in the Mbashe district of the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Several existing products are deployed at the SLL in the fields of eCommerce, eGovernment and eLearning. Requirements specifications are engineered from a variety of sources, including interviews, mailing lists, the author’s experience as a supervisor at the SLL, and a review of the existing SLL products. Future products are also investigated, as the thesis considers current trends in ICTD. Use cases are also derived and listed. Most of the use cases are concerned with management functions of DANs that can be automated, so that operators of DANs can focus on their core business and not on technology. Using the UML Components methodology, the thesis then proceeds to design a middleware component architecture that is derived from the requirements specification. The process proceeds step-by-step, so that the reader can follow how business rules, operations and interfaces are derived from the use cases. Ultimately, the business rules, interfaces and operations are related to business logic, system interfaces and operations that are situated in specific components. The components in turn are derived from the business information model, that is derived from the business concepts that were initially used to describe the context for the requirements engineering. In this way, a logical method for software design is applied to the problem domain to methodically derive a software design for a middleware solution. The thesis tests the design by considering possible weaknesses in the design. The network aspect is tested by interpolating from formal assumptions about the nature of the context. The data access layer is also identified as a possible bottleneck. We suggest the use of fast indexing methods instead of relational databases to maintain flexibility and efficiency of the data layer. Lessons learned from the exercise are discussed, within the context of the author’s experience in software development teams, as well as in ICTD projects. This synthesis of information leads to warnings about the psychology of middleware development. We note that the ICTD domain is a particularly difficult one with regards to software development as business requirements are not usually clearly formulated and developers do not have the requisite domain knowledge. In conclusion, the core arguments of the thesis are recounted in a bullet form, to lay bare the reasoning behind this work. Novel aspects of the work are also highlighted. They include the description of a network island, and aspects of the DAN middleware requirements engineering and design. Future steps for work based on this thesis are mapped out and open problems relating to this research are touched upon.
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Date Issued: 2010

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Bare life in the Bantustans (of the Eastern Cape): re-membering the centinnial South African nation-state

- Westaway, Ashley

Authors: Westaway, Ashley
Date: 2009
Subjects: Democracy -- South Africa , Homelands (South Africa) , Apartheid -- South Africa , Right of property -- South Africa
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD (History)
Identifier: vital:11535 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/149 , Democracy -- South Africa , Homelands (South Africa) , Apartheid -- South Africa , Right of property -- South Africa
Description: This thesis argues that 1994 did not mark a point of absolute discontinuity in the history of South Africa. More specifically, it asserts that 1994 did not signal the end of segregationism; instead of democracy leading to national integration, the Bantustans are still governed and managed differently from the rest of the country. Consequently, it is no surprise that they remain mired in pervasive, debilitating poverty fifteen years after 1994. In insisting that contemporary South Africa is old (rather than new), the thesis seeks to make a contribution to political struggles that aim to bring to an end the segregationist past-in-the-present. The thesis is arranged in seven chapters. The first chapter considers the crisis that has engulfed South Africa historiography since 1994. It traces the roots of the crisis back to some of the fundamentals of the discipline of history, such as empiricism, neutrality and historicism. It suggests that the way to end the crisis, to re-assert the relevance of history, is for historians to re-invoke the practice of producing histories of the present, in an interested, deliberate manner. Chapter 2 narrows down the focus of the thesis to (past and present) property. It suggests that instead of understanding the constitutional protection of property rights and installation of a restitution process as the product of a compromise between adversarial negotiators, these outcomes are more correctly understood as emanating from consensus. The third chapter outlines the implementation of the restitution programme from 1994 to 2008. The productive value of restitution over this period is found not in what it has delivered to the claimants (supposedly the beneficiaries of the programme), but rather in its discursive effects related to citizenship in the new South Africa. Chapter 4 considers the exclusion of dispossession that was implemented in the Bantustans from the restitution programme. It argues that this decision was not an oversight on the part of the post-1994 government. Instead it was consistent with all other key policy decisions taken in the recent period. The Bantustans have been treated differently from the rest of South Africa; they have been deliberately under-developed, fabricated as welfare zones, and subjected to arbitrary customary rule. Whereas Chapters 2 to 4 look at the production of historical truth on the side of domination, Chapter 6 and 7 consider production on the side of resistance. Specifically, they describe and analyse the attempts of an NGO to establish the truths of betterment as dispossession, and post-1994 prejudice against the victims of betterment dispossession. They serve as case studies of third party-led processes that seek to produce truth-effects from within a prevailing truth regime. The final chapter attempts to bring many of the threads that weave through the thesis together, by means of a critical consideration of human rights discourse. The chapter calls on intellectuals to establish truths in relation to the history of ongoing human wrongs in South Africa (as opposed to the rainbow narrative of human rights) Finally, the thesis includes a postscript, comprising technical summaries of each of the chapters.
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Date Issued: 2009

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