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Plante, Mathieu. "Extratropical cyclone climatology for eastern Canadian cities." Thesis, McGill University, 2014. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=121563.
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In this study, a Lagrangian tracking algorithm is applied to the 850-hPa relative vorticity field to characterize extratropical cyclone tracks across eastern Canada. Seasonal cycles are examined in terms of overall cyclone frequency, intensity, regions of development and decay. We found that cyclones tend to develop over the Rockies, the Great Lakes or the Western Atlantic. They are most intense over Newfoundland and North Atlantic, and decay over Greenland. Cyclones tracking across Toronto, Montreal, Halifax and St-John's are further analyzed, with typical cyclone tracks, origin, frequency, mean local growth rate, and mean intensity. Among others, we found that cyclone activities at east coast cities (Halifax, St-John's) are dominated by Atlantic cyclones, more frequent in winter, while Montreal's and Toronto's cyclones travel primarily from the Great Lakes, frequent and intense in spring and autumn. Cyclones from the Gulf of Mexico are not frequent, but extreme. The relationship between winter cyclone tracks and modes of atmospheric variability are also examined with an emphasis on the El Niño - Southern Oscillation (ENSO), North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and Pacific North American pattern (PNA). An ENSO and PNA-related oscillation between continental and coastal cyclones is confirmed. The inter-annual variability of winter cyclones cross eastern Canadian cities are quantified. Cyclone activities in Toronto and Montreal shown to be modulated by ENSO and PNA, while NAO dominates the cyclone variability in Halifax and St-John's. The local cyclone variability is found to be small in terms of overall cyclone statistics, but important in terms of changes in the origins of the local cyclones.Un algorithme est appliqué sur le tourbillon relatif à 850-hPa afin de calculer la trajectoire des cyclones affectant l'Est du Canada. Les variations saisonnières de ces trajectoires sont approfondies par l'étude de plusieurs paramètres, tels que la fréquence, l'intensité, l'origine, le taux de développement et le taux de dissipation des cyclones. L'étude démontre que les cyclones se développent principalement au dessus des Rocheuse, des Grands Lacs et de la côte Est des États-Unis, et se dissipent près des côtes Est et Ouest du Groendland. Les plus intenses se trouvent à Terre Neuve et au Nord de l'Atlantique. Ces statistiques de cyclones sont ensuite évaluées plus spécifiquement pour les cyclones atteignant Toronto, Montréal, Halifax et St-John's. Entre autre, il est démontré que les villes côtières sont pricipalement affectées par les cyclones en provenance de la côte Est Américaine, fréquents en hiver, tandis que Toronto et Montréal sont principalement affectés par les cyclones en provenance des Grands Lacs, plutôt fréquents au printemps et à l'automne. Les cyclones en provenance du Golf du Mexique sont moins fréquents, mais constituent une grande partie des extrêmes. La variation inter-annuelle de l'activité cyclonique est ensuite évaluée selon différents régimes de variabilité climatiques, tels qu'ENSO (El Nino-Southern Oscillation), le NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation) et le PNA (Pacific-North America). Les résultats consolident la présence d'une oscillation entre cyclones continentaux et cyclones côtiers pendant ENSO. L'étude démontre que la variabilité cyclonique inter-annuelle à Toronto et Montréal est dominée par ENSO et le PNA, tandis que le NAO a un plus grand impact à Halifax et à St-John's.
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Gomez-Jacobo, Mercedes Lissette. "ASSESSING EQUIVALENT TEMPERATURE TRENDS IN MAJOR EASTERN US CITIES." OpenSIUC, 2017. https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/theses/2236.
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Summer (JJA) temperature (T) and equivalent temperature (TE) for 18 of the largest cities in the eastern United States are investigated for two time periods: 1948-2014 and 1973-2014. Because temperature provides an incomplete description of lower tropospheric heat content, we supplement with TE, which also accounts for the energy associated with moisture. An auxiliary investigation using air mass data from the Spatial Synoptic Classification (SSC) augments the investigation of T and TE trends. The trend analysis revealed significant trends in Tmin at all stations over the 67-year time period and over most stations for the shorter (41-year) period. Minimum TE likewise increases nearly everywhere in the longer series, but at only around half of the stations in the shorter series. Stations with increasing TE in the shorter period are primarily coastal or located in the southern and upper Midwest, where there has also been a noticeable lack of warming. Our results also exhibit a decrease in the diurnal TE range that accompanies the documented decrease in diurnal temperature range over the same period. Trends in T and TE are evaluated in the context of changes in air mass frequency. A heat wave analysis was also conducted to identify changes in intensity and frequency using T and TE Overall, our findings suggest that TE provides a more comprehensive perspective on recent climate change than T alone. With heat wave frequency and intensity projected to increase, we recommend adoption of TE to account for changes in total surface heat content.
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Al-Alwani, Mustafa. "Towards sustainable Middle Eastern cities : a local sustainability assessment framework." Thesis, University of Plymouth, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/3010.
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The construction of a guiding methodological framework for local sustainability assessment is a key to achieving a sustainable future. This study develops an approach to local sustainability assessment (ALSA), a methodological framework that facilitates the formulation, selection and prioritisation of key indicators to guide the assessment of city sustainability at a local level in Middle Eastern cities. Based on a literature review, this research devised a methodological framework, ALSA, which is a combination of the Commission on Sustainable Development’s (CSD)Theme Indicator Framework (2001) (themes, sub themes and indicators) and a Goal-Based Framework (indicators that most directly reflect the issues of a case study and its local communities and stakeholders). This combination framework is shown to be more appropriate in this instance than other types of frameworks, in terms of overcoming some inherent weaknesses, leading to the adoption of a top-down / bottom-up approach. Such an approach is shown to be the best way of developing indicators which are (top-down) scientifically valid and generic with (bottom-up) stakeholder and local communities needs. The ALSA methodological framework involves four steps, which are: issue identification, objective formulation, indicator formulation and indicator selecting and ranking. The first set of proposed indicators contained 98 indicators. This set of proposed indicators was revised and analysed by means of a series of shared ideas from literature and through consultation with experts from specific areas, using a workshop format. This revision stage was used to reformulate and select valid and useful indicators (comparable, measurable, and sensitive). The second set of valid and useful indicators (after the first revisions) contains 57 indicators. The indicators were ranked on the basis of priority to identify a final set of indicators that cover the four dimensions of sustainability, which are defined within this work as environmental, social, economic and institutional. The evaluation (SWOT analysis) of this framework was examined during this study. The city of Hilla, Iraq, was selected as a case study to prove the applicability of the ALSA methodological framework in a real world case study. It is argued that this study is pioneering in adding knowledge and understanding of the development of a methodological framework to provide local sustainability indicators in a post-conflict, Middle Eastern city in an oil-rich country. It is concluded that the ALSA methodological framework provides an efficient and rigorous approach for the formulation, selection and prioritization of key indicators that will measure and encapsulate the essence of a sustainable city and could help Middle Eastern cities achieve higher levels of progress towards sustainability in practice.
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Lam, Han. "Minibus transport in Far Eastern cities, with special reference to Beijing." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 1992. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/1337/.
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Transport systems employing small sized vehicles and operated under an informal institutional structure are the essence of unconventional wisdom of urban transport planning in the Third World. The minibus is one of the many types of unconventional passenger carriers which primarily originate from indigenous technology. In the Far East, minibuses play a crucial role in moving commuters in large urban areas. Using minibuses in urban passenger transport services is interesting phenomena in urban transport planning in both developed and developing countries. Being small the minibus can ply along narrow streets often seen in crowded residential quarters and thus provide users with a high level of accessibility to trip ends. Furthermore, providers of minibus transport services are profitable, associated with small scale business and informal organizational structure and, more interestingly, often under private ownership. The minibus system in Beijing is one of the most recent public transport systems established in the Far East. It is distinctive in that the providers can be financially viable under state ownership and in large fleets. This study examines the system's service style, ownership pattern and organizational structure which are thought to have influenced the undertakings' financial performance. The findings suggest that neither ownership nor institutional structure contributes directly to profitability. The main factors for financial viability rest upon the self-reliance and entrepreneurship within the industry, which stimulates labour efficiency of the crews. Besides, the 'near-monopolistic' market and the limited total supply serving a huge population, also create opportunities for providers to charge high fares. On the basis of the findings, the study recommends that, in order to encourage the passenger transport business, a competitive market mechanism should be developed within the industry, with the participation of all sectors. The major outcome of this study is the building of a model of transport planning for developing cities. The essence of the model is that in low-income countries, cheap labour is an important resource which should be utilized fully in substitution for expensive imported technology, and that the use of modern technology should follow the affordability of the citizens and the condition of economic development. In conclusion, the study confirms that the unconventional transport wisdom is an appropriate approach that should be given proper weight, especially in the developing world.
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Mänd, Anu. "Urban Carnival : festive culture in the hanseatic cities of the eastern Baltic, 1350-1550 /." Turnhout : Brepols, 2005. http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb39949275m.
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Texte fondé sur: Dissertation--Medieval studies department--Budapest--Central european university, 2000. Titre de soutenance : The urban festival in late medieval Livonia : norm, practice, perception.Bibliogr. p. 335-357. Index.
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Rizos, Efthymios. "Cities, architecture and society in the Eastern and Central Balkans during Late Antiquity( c.AD 250-600." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2010. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.540175.
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Mohamed, Tarek Abdelsalam. "Architectural identity in eastern Arab cities : developing an assessment method with particular reference to the Aga Khan awards." Thesis, University of Huddersfield, 2002. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.270437.
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Liao, Pei-Ling. "The adaptation of the cultural and creative industries cluster policy in Eastern Asian cities : the case studies in Taiwan." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2014. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/5229/.
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Cultural and creative industries (CCIs) clusters have been a privileged policy approach to expand urban and economic development in Eastern Asian cities, such as Singapore, Hong-Kong, Shang-Hai and Taipei. Most CCIs clusters examples in Eastern Asian cities, combine both urban planning and economic rationales and take the form of mega-projects and various initiatives. These restricted economic and planning approaches generate debates on the effects of cluster policy on the development of CCIs in Eastern Asian cities because policy-makers emphasize the economic effect of CCIs, but neglect the local contexts in terms of existing and potential markets and consumption levels. The thesis presents a more holistic approach including cultural, economic and planning components to assess the effectiveness of a bottom-up initiative Hua-Shan Cultural Park and a top-down initiative NanKang Software Industrial Park in Taipei. The research is based on a longitudinal approach and discusses the perspectives of the various actors involved in this initiative over time: the cluster operators, the policy makers and the CCIs representatives (including individual workers, companies and NGOs). By contrasting these different perspectives, this article demonstrates the types of issues, conflicts and compromises that can happen during the implementation process of cluster policies as well as potential emerging collaboration and impacts on CCIs actors. This thesis concludes by exploring the implications of taking into account the local contexts when implementing such policies and further suggests ways for policy makers to better do so in Eastern Asian cities.
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White, Richard Charles Crookes. "Small town South Africa: the historical geography of selected Eastern Cape towns and current development initiatives within them." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003288.
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Small towns can be seen as the fundamental building blocks of tbe urban system. Through time, some of these towns have lost the primary reason for their existence. Some towns that have been declining or stagnating include old mining and industrial towns, such as Indwe in the Eastern Cape or Welkom in the Free State. Some towns have also changed the main focus of tbeir economy, for example, from that of mining to that of tourism, as in the case of Utrecht in Kwa-Zulu Natal (Nel, 2002). In light of the above, this thesis seeks to critically evaluate what has happened in selected small towns in the Eastern Cape. The research investigated a number of towns in the Eastern Cape, looking at the history and influence of colonisation, population dynamics, education levels, employment opportunities, migration and the influence of capitalism on the economic and social structure of the town, as well as tbe evolution of its economy. The research sample consisted of interviews witb local historians, community leaders, development agencies and individuals who were benefiting from tbe various development initiatives/project in the towns. These interviews, in conjunction with the literature identified, were conducted in the selected small towns, assessing whether development was succeeding and, in conclusion, identifying witb reference to the study sites, what was learnt. The research process generated a number of lessons that need to be taken into consideration when attempting social and economic upliftment in small towns. These include: the need for leadership, support from the local population and the need for financial assistance to support and uplift the community.KMBT_363
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Abdelhamed, Muna H. "The economic condition of the main Cyrenaican cities (north-eastern Libya) from the Hellenistic to the mid-Roman period : textual analysis." Thesis, University of Leicester, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/2381/43061.
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This thesis investigates cereals, grapes and horses as key examples of Cyrenaica's agro-pastoral economic resources in the Hellenistic and early-mid Roman periods. These have been examined in three case studies to indicate the region's potential for producing annual crops, fruiting plants and animal products. Since cereals and horses are difficult to trace archaeologically and the archaeological data associated with grape cultivation and wine production is quite modest, the main database used in this thesis relates to textual evidence. This includes the literary documents of the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Ottomans, and the first European travellers. The epigraphy and a papyrus relating to the period of study are also significant data used in this project. The epigraphic data collected from the Inscriptions of Greek Cyrenaica (IGCyr), Greek Verse Inscriptions of Cyrenaica (GVCyr) and Inscriptions of Roman Cyrenaica (IRCyr) projects are the principal sources of information. Using textual data required me to implement new approaches to test the region's agro-pastoral capacity. In order to demonstrate the region's connectivity, the thesis investigates some of the imported commodities and highlights things that were perhaps exported in return. It also discusses the reasons why Cyrenaican citizens received honours attested in external and local epigraphic evidence. The research suggests that these people were Cyrenaican cereal traders involved in Mediterranean commercial activities. Additionally, ancient geographical references to Cyrenaican coastal sites including harbours and anchorages receive close attention in this thesis. The 16 maritime points (9 are ports and anchorages) between Cherronesos (Χερρόνησος) and Catabathmus (Κατάβαθμος) mentioned in Stadiasmus, raises a question about the maritime connectivity between Cyrenaica and Egypt in the second century AD. Finally, the results also allow me to draw a clear picture of the economic contribution of Libyan groups to Cyrenaica's prosperity. This includes harvesting silphium, breeding animal and connecting Cyrenaica with the African Sahara.
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Pio, Elizabeth. "An assessment of the experience of small town local economic development in the Eastern Cape Midlands." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015464.
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This thesis is an assessment of the experience of small town local economic development in four towns namely Graaff-Reinet, Somerset East, Aberdeen and Pearston situated in the Eastern Cape Midlands, South Africa. It aims firstly to provide a critical overview of these selected small town economies before evaluating their local responses to the changing economic climate. The study is contextualized within the framework of locality development and emphasizes the heterogeneity of small towns with regards to physical, socio-economic, demographic and historical elements. From this, the original economic reasons for existence of these small towns are ascertained and then the major changes that occurred are identified. Amongst other aspects, the changes in the agricultural sector, the demographic changes particularly with regard to the significant increase in the urban population and the fluctuations in the quantity and types of businesses have all played a part in transforming the small towns' economies. As a result of these changes and many external driving forces such as changes in the regional and national economy, there are many severe challenges facing these small towns especially regarding the high unemployment rate, the associated poverty, HIV/AIDS and the low volume or absence of private investment into these localities. The responses of these small towns to the daunting challenges that they face have been considered in terms of Local Economic Development (LED) strategies that have been implemented. The LED initiatives in each town are examined in the context of their general characteristics, objectives, achievements and challenges. Emphasis is placed on Somerset East as it is the only town in the study area that has a development agency actively promoting various forms of LED. What has ultimately been established is: in all four towns, LED is not making a significant or meaningful difference and that natural market and economic forces play an important role in shaping and dictating the local economy. Somerset East is the only town where the economy could potentially be restructured with the proposed mega market-led approach to tourism and planning in the form of the Boschberg Development node. Four sectors perceived to be required for locality development are considered in this study, namely the export sector, the human resources, the local service sector and the government agencies. It is ascertained that although these sectors need to be part of a symbiotic relationship to promote and enhance economic development, they are not present in all the towns and as a result development, at both a household and a macro town level, is further hindered. Ultimately, these small towns in the Eastern Cape Midlands defy the notion that they are dying. 'Growth' and 'decline' have been two central features throughout this thesis and one of the biggest contradictions and challenges that these small towns face is the population growth with a declining or stagnant economy that cannot accommodate the increased number of people.
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Reynolds, Kian Andrew. "The economic potential of small towns in the Eastern Cape Midlands." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007492.
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Small town economic decline has been experienced in many countries across the globe and can be explained through Geographical Economics, particularly the New Economic Geography, which suggests that agglomeration occurs as a natural outcome of high transportation and transactional costs. Yet despite the economic rationale behind their decline it is not an economic inevitability and there is evidence of towns in the United States, New Zealand and Canada that have reversed their economic fortunes. [n South Africa approximately 5 million people live in the 500 small towns and many more live in their rural hinterlands where povelty levels are extremely high within a national context. Within this context the thesis examines the current economic status and potential growth prospects of small towns in the Eastern Cape Midlands in South Africa in order to identify critical growth dri vers within small town economies. Five small towns were selected for the study via means of a purposive sample and were subjected to two regional modelling techniques, namely Shift-Share Analysis and Economic Base Theory to determine their current economic trends and past growth patterns, while a Social Accounting Matrix was utilised to identify important sectoral linkages, potential avenues for growth and evident leakages within small town economies. The sampled towns experienced negative economic growth trends between 1996 and 200 I, the primary loss in employment being accounted for by regional economic changes as opposed to national or industrial trends. The decline was more severely felt in primary/industrial sectors of the economy; evidence was found that manufacturing activities declined in all of the centres, despite the industry growing nationally. The Social Accounting Matrix highlighted strong links between the agricultural and services sectors within the national economy. Thus, considering that agriculture was identified as the primary economic driver within the region and the services sector the largest employer in all of the towns it is evident that the economic potential of the towns is to a certain extent linked to the success of agriculture in their hinterlands. Seven growth drivers, namely size, local economic development, existing markets, existing industries, infrastructure, municipal leadership and local entrepreneurs and were linked via means of a scoring framework to the sampled towns' economic potential. Whilst the results of actually determining a towns economic potential are not definitive the study does provide useful insights about the impact and potential role played by these drivers. Linked to this scoring framework and to Cook's (1971) hierarchy of places in the Eastern Cape Midlands four categories of towns were identified in the commercial falming areas and recommendations were made about appropriate developmental interventions at a municipal level, such as the need to retain local entrepreneurs and to invest in social amenities. Considering the evident need for development in rural areas the study provides critical insights into how to prioritise development strategies within small rural towns in commercial farming areas. In addition it would enable municipalities to critically reflect on their municipal Local Economic Development strategies and the relevance within the context of small towns.KMBT_363
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Ali, Akeel Ellafi. "Examination of effects of expanding cities on peri-urban agricultural areas : implications on farmers' livelihoods in Qarabulli District in the eastern part of Tripoli, Libya." Thesis, University of Huddersfield, 2017. http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/id/eprint/34004/.
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Many countries in the southern hemisphere are still in the process of developing. In North Africa to be specific, the development process is bringing about various degrees of land use and land cover changes which are having various levels of impact on people’s lives both in urban and peri-urban areas among others. The core causes of these changes vary, but literature indicates that the process of urbanization is the main cause since as cities and town areas urbanization, deforestation, soil erosion and the sale of land by rural farmers are encouraged. Implications of land use and land cover changes are broad and vary across geographies. It is the variations of the impact of such changes that motivated this researcher to conduct this research with the aim of analyzing effects of urbanization and expanding cities on the surrounding agricultural area. The research zeroed in on trying to understand how peri urban farmers and their livelihoods are being impacted by various land use and land cover changes that are emerging from the expansion of Tripoli, the capital of Libya. This study examined the impact, both positive and negative, that the expansion of Tripoli has had on the livelihoods of these rural households in Qarabulli. It further sought to identify the way affected farmers and households cope and react to the various changes the expansion of Tripoli is exposing them to. The research also looked at the context in which the poor rural households pursue livelihoods, and discussed factors that make their livelihoods vulnerable. The forms of capitals, named livelihood assets, available to the rural households are also examined. The livelihood outcomes of the farmers, the strategies and the coping measures employed by affected peri urban farmers are identified and discussed. Through the utilization of a mixed methods research approach, a mix of qualitative and quantitative data were collected, and analyzed. Data collection was done in two stages. The first stage looked at land use and land cover changes through a critical analysis of land degradation and this was done using Remote Sensing and GIS techniques. Image Classification, multi-temporal Landsat TM, and ETM+ imagery were used to determine and detect land use and land cover changes during the periods 1986 to 2009. The second stage of the research data collection process, collected qualitative data using Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) methods to explore farmers’ experiences and feelings on how the land use changes are impacting their livelihoods. Through the use of Remote Sensing and GIS techniques, the study area is divided into four categories: urban area, forest land, irrigated farmland and bare land. Land use and land cover changes during the years 1986 and 2009 were noted and analyzed based on satellite images. The study found that throughout 1986 up to 2009, the size of land classified originally as urban area changed from the original size of 4,997 hectares to 9,653 hectares while within the same time span, land originally classified as forest land reduced in size by 1,793 hectares. Further to these changes, land classified as bare land increased in size by 2,353 ha while the original size of land classified as irrigated farmland reduced by nearly 2,204 hectares. These observed changes are significant, hence pose a growing threat to agricultural land in Libya which could impact food production and water quantity and quality thus potentially destabilizing food sufficiency and sustainability of the whole nation. Key findings concerned the identification of water quality and quantity as the main challenges faced the agricultural sector. As a way of managing this problem, the farmers asked for a speedy intervention of the Libyan government through greater regulation and investment in the agricultural sector. Further to the land use and land cover changes that were noted through the use and analysis of the satellite images, the study also noted that livelihoods of rural farmers in the periphery of Tripoli are threatened by the expansion of the city. The expansion, which is the core reason why the images are displaying the various changes noted, confirm that land originally used for agriculture has changed its use and is now used as urban land where urban settlements and associated infrastructure have been constructed thus making farmers lose the land on which rural households activities were being conducted. The study also found that there are both positive and negative outcomes to the rural households when cities like Tripoli expand. The expansion of Tripoli enabled some of the affected households to access new livelihoods through migration and securing of alternative sources of income in the urban area. On the other hand, the loss of land by the farmers means that there is shortage of land for agriculture. Coupled with poor water and soil qualities, the direct consequences of reduced farming activities have been low food production at household level which has negatively affected rural people’s livelihoods. The study is the first of its kind to be conducted in Libya and among others differs from other studies conducted on urbanization and livelihoods area in Libya because of the nature of study methods. No study prior to this has ever employed a combination of Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) strategies, Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) approaches in one study that sought to better understand the impact of land use and land cover changes on livelihoods of peri-urban farmers.
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Keal, Duncan. "An investigation of changing socio-economic conditions, opportunities and development interventions in small Eastern Cape towns in South Africa." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005516.
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Small towns internationally and in South Africa are becoming increasingly marginalised, and they are often experiencing economic downturn, demographic shifts and a rearticulation of their role in the urban hierarchy. In the case of South Africa many of these small towns are also faced with low levels of social development. The urgent need to address such conditions is evident by the fact that a large proportion of the South African population resides in small towns, and their surrounding hinterlands. This said, there are examples of small towns, internationally and in South Africa which, through the use of various Local Economic Development actions, have managed to remain sustainable, and in some cases become economically viable localities once again. In light of the above, the research conducted for this thesis seeks first to establish the socio-economic changes occurring over time in three small towns in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, namely Stutterheim, Bedford and Hamburg. Secondly, the research aims to identify the nature of LED activities in the three small towns, highlighting those factors contributing to the success of LED initiatives as well as those factors inhibiting LED in small towns. This is done with the intention of developing future lessons for LED in small towns. The research was conducted using a mix of qualitative and quantitative data generated through the interviews with key role players in each town, as well as secondary data sources. Findings from the research suggest that the small towns investigated are characterised by low levels of socio-economic development. In addition, it appears that the development opportunities for the towns are limited. Current initiatives are being driven by private role players with local government being largely uninvolved. Such initiatives are limited in nature, with benefits only felt by small groups of the local community. However, examples do exist of where LED has successfully benefited the broader spheres of the local community, thus suggesting that if implemented properly such an approach does have potential to assist in the socio-economic development of small towns. In light of this, a number of lessons are identified for LED in small towns, including the need for strong leadership, community involvement, partnerships between role players, and planning for project sustainability.
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Udono, Ken, and n/a. "Modelling Seawater Desalination With Waste Incineration Energy Using Dynamic Systems Approach." Griffith University. School of Information and Communication Technology, 2006. http://www4.gu.edu.au:8080/adt-root/public/adt-QGU20070110.164750.
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Water shortage issues have been growing concerns in many cities around the world in recent years, especially in Eastern cities of Australia, which is the driest continent on the earth. The aim of this PhD thesis is a development of a model to study the use of waste incineration energy supplemented by alternative energy to power seawater desalination. It is to aid the freshwater supply of a drought stricken city in Eastern Australia. My work contributes to a development of efficient model in a simpler understandable way to reduce efforts required for modelling complex multi domain problems. This research is motivated by the successive severe drought conditions that affected many Australian cities in the past few years, compounded with an additional strain from a fast growing population. While we dump our waste into the Australian landscape, in more densely populated cities in Europe and Asia, the waste is incinerated to obtain thermal energy for various purposes. The waste is used as an energy source while at the same time reducing the amount of space needed for landfill. Seawater desalination has been uccessfully practiced for quite some time particularly in the Middle Eastern countries. To deal with increasing water shortage crisis, many cities around the world have opted or are considering seawater desalination to supplement their freshwater supply. The combination of both - waste incineration and seawater desalination - has rarely been studied. This is a twofold problem that requires modelling the problem of water demand and supply together with waste incineration to find a sustainable solution. This is a complex task. The effort needed for this can be reduced by using a modelling approach that is more efficient than the traditionally used statistical approaches. In this thesis, I present a comprehensive model developed using a dynamic system approach combined with artificial neural networks. It simulates water demand and supply as well as the possible amount of the desalinated water that can be produced using the energy from clean city waste incineration. This is done while taking in various influential factors including population growth and irregular weather patterns. This research comprises a literature review on seawater desalination and waste incineration, the establishment of water demand and supply dynamics of Gold Coast City as my case study and identifying any modelling difficulties that need to be overcome. This is followed by the development of a comprehensive model and its components, model calibration and simulation experiments. It was found that with the energy of waste incineration, up to 60% of the freshwater demand could be fulfilled by seawater desalination in a sustainable way.
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Marshall, Richard Graham. "A social and cultural history of Grahamstown, 1812 to c1845." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002401.
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This thesis examines the development of Grahamstown from its inception in 1812 to the mid-1840s, paying particular attention to the social and cultural life of the town. It traces the economic development of the town from a military outpost to a thriving commercial settlement, noting the essential factor of the town's proximity to the Cape frontier in this process. The economic interaction between diverse groups in the town mirrors the social and cultural interaction which occurred between British settlers, Khoekhoe and Africans. The result of these interactions was the creation of a new, distinctively South African urban society and culture, despite the desire of the white settlers to reproduce a “typical” English environment in their new home. The conflict between attempts to anglicise the urban environment and the realities of Grahamstown's situation on a colonial frontier was reflected in the architecture and layout of the town. Attempts to recreate an English social environment also failed. New classes arose in the town in response to the economic opportunities available on the frontier. Although some settlers prospered, many did not, and the presence of an impoverished white working class undermines settler historians' picture of settler success and affluence. The poorest people in the town, though, were the increasing numbers of Khoekhoe and Africans who migrated from the surrounding countryside, and who were unequally incorporated into the urban community as a colonial labouring class. In response to these unique circumstances, white settlers in Grahamstown developed a powerful political and propaganda machine, which helped lay the foundations of a distinct settler identity in the eastern Cape.
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Munro, Samantha Alanna. "A water footprint assessment of primary citrus production in the Lower Sundays River Valley Citrus Farms, Eastern Cape, South Africa." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017558.
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With the current implementation of the South African National Water Act (NWA) underway, comprehensive tools to assist in the efficient, fair and sustainable management of water resources are needed. Water footprints (WFs) are increasingly being recognised as a meaningful way to represent human appropriation of water resources and provide a framework for assessing the sustainability of water use. The study calculated blue, green and grey WFs for the lower Sundays River Valley (LSRV) citrus sector across dry, humid and long-term average climates for a number of cultivars. The sustainability of both the LSRV and the production process of citrus were examined through the adoption of a number of environmental, social and economic indicators. The study revealed that there was no water scarcity in the area because of an inter-basin transfer and that water pollution levels attributed to citrus production required a more comprehensive indicator than the grey WF. Results showed that navels, despite being the dominant cultivar, had the highest WF and the lowest water productivity and technical efficiency. It also provided lower benefits of income and employment in terms of water use in comparison to other cultivars. Conversely, cultivars such as lemons, which required a greater amount of water and fertiliser, were the most productive cultivar with the lowest blue, green and grey WF. The study demonstrated the complexity of decisions regarding water management and the need to assess accurately the environmental, social and economic implications of strategies to increase efficiency of water. The importance of incorporating local data and verifying WFs was also illustrated. The analysis highlighted that WF assessments could be useful for the South African government and agricultural sectors to assist in future water management decisions and promote increased collaboration between stakeholders. The study found that the adoption of local benchmarks could be useful in aiding the promotion of more efficient water use and could factor in sensitive economic and social attributes. WFs in conjunction with other economic and social indicators could also be used to evaluate the sustainability of current and future allocations pertaining to the implementation of the NWA. It was however noted that this requires vast amounts of accurate data.
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Ngamlana, Nontando Christine Zintle. "Public participation in local governance : a case study of two local municipalities." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1375.
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In South Africa there is an extensive legislative framework supporting public participation in local government; however, participation which is genuinely empowering, and not token consultation or manipulation, is still lacking in most local municipalities. This study seeks to explore and explain public participation approaches adopted by local municipalities in South Africa by looking at a comparative study of two local municipalities. The study will further evaluate international effective practices in public participation and drawing on those, make recommendations on how to strengthen public participation in South Africa.
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Mzitshi, Zoleka Alice Florence. "Citrus, labour and gender in the Eastern Cape: the case of the Kat River area." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/379.
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Agriculture plays a significant role in South Africa’s export earning and in providing employment opportunities. Amongst the major agricultural crops is citrus. Within the context of postmodern and feminist geographies and utilizing the intensive research design, this thesis discusses citrus production with a focus on growers and black women workers in the Kat River Valley area in Fort Beaufort, Eastern Cape. The thesis also explores the challenges and implications of restructuring within agriculture for growers, cooperatives and labour within the citrus industry. It is argued that whilst legislation related to labour and tenure within agriculture has changed since the mid-1990s, power relations in the citrus industry have remained firmly entrenched. Consequently, the flexible labour strategies that the citrus farmers adopted have had serious consequences for women worker
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Peter, Bantu Desmond. "The impact of post-apartheid agricultural changes on citrus farmers in the Peddie area." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/5380.
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This study explores the impact of post-apartheid agricultural changes on citrus farmers in the Peddie area. The case study focused on the Craighead Citrus Farm at Kwatho as well as the Naudeshoek Citrus Farm, Ripplemead Citrus Farm and Siyamila Citrus Farm in the Balteni area. The study considered the effect of agricultural changes on citrus production, productivity of the farms in question, as well as the impact on poverty alleviation in Peddie District. In the study, the challenges encountered by both farmers and communities due to the agricultural changes in the new democratic dispensation were also considered. The study further considered the role played by the Department of Agriculture and Ngqushwa Local Municipality in assisting these farmers to increase citrus production in order to create employment opportunities. To achieve these objectives, a review of literature and collection of evidence in the form of interviews, and observations were conducted in the research areas. The research findings indicated that the Craighead Citrus Farms is state owned land, which belonged to Ulimocor, a parastatal under the former homeland government (Ciskei). This farm is no longer operational and is abandoned. During the period of this study the Naudeshoek Citrus Farm, Ripplemead Citrus Farm and Siyamila Citrus Farm were operational and progressing. Citrus farming in this area has potential to boost the economy, which would only be possible with the establishment of partnerships between the emerging farmers, government, commercial farmers and Ngqushwa Local Municipality.
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Arends, Darrin. "An assessment of the effectiveness of public consultation: the case study of selected ward committees in the Northern Bay Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1535.
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Since 1994, the South African local government has been obligated to consult with its citizenry in respect of the processes of relating to service delivery. The South African Government has developed a wide range of legislation that ensures that communities are consulted on a continuous basis with regard to how services need to be rendered. Communities have a right to be consulted and to give input into issues affecting them. Public consultation as envisaged in the South African legislation has, however, not yielded the desired results which is evident in the spate of service delivery protests over poor or non service delivery. Therefore, this study seeks to analyse the effectiveness and efficiency of pubic consultation in the Northern Areas of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. The researcher used qualitative research methods since it would provide the reader with more insight into how public consultation is implemented in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. The communities, senior municipal officials, and councillors have been interviewed in a structured manner and a content analysis has been made of the minutes of the ward committees in the Northern Areas, the annual reports of the Municipality’s Oversight Committee and a range of other reading material. A number of findings has been made during this research project with the most pertinent being the non-compliance to certain sections of legislation by the Municipality. The communities in the Northern Areas generally felt that efficient and effective public consultation would reduce the number of service delivery protests in that part of the Municipality. A number of interventions need to be made by the political leadership with regard to public consultation and more resources need to be committed towards those processes.
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Bolden, Natascha. "MAKING A CASE FOR CITIZEN VALUE: DO FLUID INTELLIGENCE AND ADAPTIVE GOVERNANCE PROMOTE STABILITY IN THE MIDDLE EAST?" CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2018. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd/762.
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Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are changing the way people learn, do business, build relationships, and manage their lives. ICT allow easy and continuous access to open source intelligence (OSINT) that acts as force multipliers, enabling civilians to find new and more effective ways to participate in civil society and address disempowering strategies implemented by governments around the world to maintain stability. ICT and OSINT cultivate fluid intelligence and adaptive governance and can act as a catalyst to cultivate these capacities to transform conflict. The research question sought to determine whether fluid intelligence (cognitive ability to adapt and innovate) and adaptive governance (leadership and systems that work together with the governed to create favorable outcomes) are correlated with stability in gulf monarchies in the Middle East. This thesis examined the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the State of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Kingdom of Bahrain, the State of Kuwait, and the Sultanate of Oman using a complex adaptive systems analytic framework that drew upon the theories of adaptive governance and fluid and crystallized intelligence. Group grievance often indicates levels of stability in civilian populations. This study revealed a strong correlation between adaptive regimes with fluid populations and stability. Populations high in fluid intelligence in adaptive monarchical regimes had lower group grievance, but populations high in fluid intelligence in non-adaptive monarchical regimes had higher group grievance.
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Gómez, Camilo Tamayo. "Memory, recognition and solidarity : the victims of eastern Antioquia as communicative citizens." Thesis, University of Huddersfield, 2015. http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/id/eprint/27006/.
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This doctoral research focuses on the relationship between civil society, collective action and the victims’ social movements of the Colombian armed conflict. It analyses the communicative and expressive dimensions of victims’ collective action as a mechanism to restore a sense of citizenship. It shows how collective belonging is constructed through processes of memory, recognition and solidarity in the midst of armed conflicts. It introduces the concept of communicative citizenship field in which emotions and affection act as a catalyst to generate collective actions for counterpublic groups in armed conflict societies transforming their victim status into an active citizenship condition. The case study of this research is Eastern Antioquia in Colombia, particularly the victims’ social movement of this Colombian region, and through a participative action research approach and developing a set of qualitative strategies, this research explores (together with the studied groups) the communicative and expressive resources they can access to obtain symbolic, cultural and political power and to act effectively within fragile public spheres. A key objective here is to understand what kind of citizen processes these collective communicative actions and strategies can open up within contexts of armed conflict and how these practices have been affecting the structure and shape of the regional and local public spheres of Eastern Antioquia in the last seventeen years. Furthermore, this doctoral research aims to present non-official narratives about the Colombian armed conflict, using the victims’ perspective to understand the dynamics of contestation in the construction of memory, recognition and solidarity during the conflict, as well as in the claiming of public and conflict‐related spaces and the construction of victims’ collective identity as civilians before the cessation of violence. This study finally argues that the communicative citizenship field is part of a new research agenda to better understand, analyse and describe contemporary processes of collective action of victims’ social movements in armed conflicts and post-armed conflict societies.
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Gopeni, Amanda. "A feedback loop model to facilitate communication between citizens and local government in a smart city." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/2205.
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In recent years, an increasing number of people move into cities to search for better opportunities for themselves and their families. This movement is known as urbanisation and makes it difficult for the local government to fully understand citizens’ needs particularly pertaining to public safety matters. During the first phase of the Public Safety Smart City project, it was identified that there is a need for feedback loop to facilitate effective communication of public safety issues between citizens and local government. This means that EL citizens do not have a better channel in place to address their public safety issues to the local government. This could lead to the decisions made by the local government in public safety not fully communicated back to the citizens. The primary objective of the study is to develop a feedback loop model that will assist in more effective reporting of public safety issues between citizens and the local government. The study followed an interpretivism paradigm and the research methodology employed is the qualitative approach. This was influenced by the existing De Fleur model of communication, secondary data and also semi-structured interviews. The interviews were conducted with eleven citizens and four managers from the Department of Public Safety. It was ascertained that the lack of a feedback loop about public safety issues between citizens and local government is likely to increase public safety issues. Findings revealed that this is because citizens are not continuously updated about their reports and also about the state of public safety matters. Furthermore, the methods of communication utilised lead to poor communication of public safety issues. The study concludes that the introduction of an Information and Communication Technology enabled feedback loop between citizens and local government can help in reducing public safety issues and make public safety officials proactive rather than reactive.
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Fuku, Mzwamadoda. "An evaluation of public participation on service delivery at Lukhanji Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1016495.
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After 1994, the democratic South Africa passed a number of legislations in order to address the imbalances of the previous apartheid regime. The new South African government had a special mandate to provide appropriate services to all the citizens of the country. In 1995 the government formulated the White Paper on the Transformation of the Public Service. The aim was to transform the South African public service, which is the indication of the importance of service delivery, as the key machinery of the government to equalize service delivery to all citizens. In 1996, the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa anchored the Bill of Rights as the cornerstone of democracy that enshrines the rights of all people and affirms the democratic values of human dignity, equality and freedom. Chapter ten of the Constitution stipulates the basic values and principles governing public administration. The South African Government has developed a wide range of legislation that ensures that communities are consulted on a continuous basis with regard to how services need to be rendered. Communities have a right to be consulted and to give input into issues affecting them. Public consultation as envisaged in the South African legislation has, however, not yielded the desired results which is evident in the spate of service delivery protests over poor or non-service delivery. Section 152(1) (e) of the constitution stipulates amongst others, promotes involvement of communities and community organisations in the matters of local government. Section 73 of the Municipal Structures Act (no.117 of 1998) also requires municipalities to establish ward committees in a manner that seeks to enhance participatory democracy at the local level. The study therefore is to check that decision-makers at the Chris Hani Municipality understand the consequences of their decisions before they act and people affected get the opportunity to participate in designing their future.
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Radsch, Courtney C. "Digitial dissidence and political change| Cyberactivism and citizen journalism in Egypt." Thesis, American University, 2014. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=3604576.
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This dissertation analyses how a youth-led, technologically driven social movement led a collective political struggle for change in Egypt that revolved around the legitimacy of the existing system and demanded rights to expression and participation. It seeks to understand the political impact of new ICTs, namely blogs and networked social media, in authoritarian contexts through the use of Egypt as a case study and by employing new methods of ethnographic inquiry that link the online and the off-line in recognition that they are mutually constituted.
I propose that focusing on the micropolitics of practices and discourse, with due consideration of structural and institutional dynamics, reveals how epistemological and ontological changes take place when a distributional shift in the primary modes of communication occurs, and thus helps us better understand how ICTs are implicated in processes of political change.
I argue that Egypt's young cyberactivists, and particularly citizen journalists, radically shifted the informational status quo by witnessing, putting on record and imbuing political meaning to symbolic struggles to define quotidian struggles against social injustice, harassment and censorship as part of a broader movement for political reform. A central contention in this dissertation, therefore, is that blogging and social media reconfigure the potentiality for expression and participation, but that it is the particular concatenations of technologically-inflected repertoires of contention that transform potentiality into actuality. This analysis reveals the mechanisms by which the potentiality of the Internet and social media is transformed into concrete instantiations of political struggle through activism, news making practices, and collective action. Throughout the dissertation I analyze specific episodes of contention to explain how ICTs facilitated collective identity formation, organization, mobilization and advocacy, with far fewer organizational and logistical barriers, rendering the dynamics of contentious politics in this case distinctive from other revolutionary periods. This new youth movement created innovative repertoires of contention, which they developed and adapted very quickly, constrained less by structural factors such as economics and distance, which the properties of ICTs help overcome, than they would have been in the past.
I argue that it is not sufficient to explore only moments of collective action, because this does not explain how the "maker of claims" came to identify themselves as such, nor how they build consensus around their claims. This is of particular interest in the new communications environment of the post-millennial period, and therefore I also focus on the phenomenological lifeworlds of these cyberactivists to show how networked social media gave opposition and subaltern groups, such as liberal secularists or the Muslim Brotherhood, new tools for individual and collective identity creation and enabled freedom of expression and opinion.
The empirical focus of the article is Egypt but I argue that the mechanisms and dynamics identified have a much wider domain of application. I propose several new mechanisms including asabiyah, ijma' , and isnad to explain movement dynamics and to account for the technological aspect of cyberactivists' repertoires of contention, and propose revising the concept of amplification and certification to account for the fact that the algorithmic properties of ICTs now play a role in contentious repertoires.
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Scott, Mfundo Shakes. "Investigation and development of an e judiciary service for a citizen oriented judiciary system for rural communities." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/275.
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One of the factors that contribute towards slow rural development is the presence of the digital divide. An area where the digital divide is still prevalent is the administration of justice within traditional contexts. One of the areas affected by this problem is the Dwesa rural community, situated on the Wild Coast of the former homeland of Transkei, in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. To address this problem for the Dwesa community, a research project on developing and implementing an e-Judiciary service was undertaken. The primary objective of this project was to develop a web application to support traditional justice administration in the Dwesa community. Due to the lack of a proper legal environment in this community, the e-Judiciary service acts as a portal for safe-keeping of judicial information. Such a system also serves as a platform for the administration of minor offences that are solved by the traditional courts. Furthermore, it provides a better working environment for traditional judicial leaders and eliminates the difficulty of accessing legal information by the rest of the community. Through the availability and use of the service, community members are provided with understanding and knowledge about judiciary operations and services in their community.
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Falk, Barbara J. "Citizen intellectuals and philosopher-kings the dilemmas of dissidence in East-Central Europe, 1968-1989 /." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1999. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk1/tape9/PQDD_0025/NQ39264.pdf.
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FitzGerald, Véronique Chartier. "Screening of entomopathogenic fungi against citrus mealybug (Planococcus citri (Risso)) and citrus thrips (Scirtothrips aurantii (Faure))." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020887.
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Mealybugs (Planococcus citri) and thrips (Scirtothrips aurantii) are common and extremely damaging citrus crop pests which have proven difficult to control via conventional methods, such as chemical pesticides and insect growth regulators. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of entomopathogenic fungi against these pests in laboratory bioassays. Isolates of Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana from citrus orchards in the Eastern Cape, South Africa were maintained on Sabouraud Dextrose 4% Agar supplemented with Dodine, chloramphenicol and rifampicin at 25°C. Infectivity of the fungal isolates was initially assessed using 5th instar false codling moth, Thaumatotibia leucotreta, larvae. Mealybug bioassays were performed in 24 well plates using 1 x 107 ml-1 conidial suspensions and kept at 26°C for 5 days with a photoperiod of 12 L:12 D. A Beauveria commercial product and an un-inoculated control were also screened for comparison. Isolates GAR 17 B3 (B. bassiana) and FCM AR 23 B3 (M. anisopliae) both resulted in 67.5% mealybug crawler mortality and GB AR 23 13 3 (B. bassiana) resulted in 64% crawler mortality. These 3 isolates were further tested in dose-dependent assays. Probit analyses were conducted on the dose-dependent assays data using PROBAN to determine LC₅₀ values. For both the mealybug adult and crawlers FCM AR 23 B3 required the lowest concentration to achieve LC₅₀ at 4.96 x 10⁶ conidia ml-1 and 5.29 x 10⁵ conidia ml-1, respectively. Bioassays on adult thrips were conducted in munger cells with leaf buds inoculated with the conidial suspensions. Isolate GAR 17 B3 had the highest mortality rate at 70% on thrips while FCM AR 23 B3 resulted in 60% mortality. Identification of the isolates, FCM AR 23 B3, GAR 17 B3 and GB AR 23 13 3, were confirmed to be correct using both microscopic and molecularly techniques. ITS sequences were compared to other sequences from GenBank and confirmed phylogenetically using MEGA6. Mealybug infection was investigated using scanning electron microscopy, mycosis was confirmed but the infection process could not be followed due to the extensive waxy cuticle. These results indicate that there is potential for the isolates FCM AR 23 B3 and GAR 17 B3 to be developed as biological control agents for the control of citrus mealybug and thrips. Further research would be required to determine their ability to perform under field conditions.
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Chirara, Malon Tinotenda. "Perceived undersupply of local labour in the presence of unemployment: a case of selected Sundays River Valley citrus farms, 2013." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020367.
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While skilled labour shortages are common in many countries, including South Africa, mainly due to a skills mismatch, the undersupply of unskilled labour was less expected, especially in developing countries with high unemployment. The thesis utilises data on perceived worker undersupply on selected citrus farms in the Sundays River Valley (SRV), located in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, collected in 2013, to analyse why unemployed residents, surprisingly, do not fill up vacancies on farms. In contrast to other labour markets, farm employment is not restricted by educational levels and as workers reported, with little training the various job tasks and skills required are easy and quick to grasp. At a time the government is trying to find ways of reducing unemployment, and the SRV Municipality (2012:29) reported approximately 42% unemployment, the question arises as to why the relatively low educated residents do not take advantage of the employment opportunities on farms. According to local workers and unemployed residents, the farm job was unattractive largely because of a combination of two factors: perceived relatively low salaries partly caused by the availability of migrant seasonal workers accepting lower remuneration and poor non-wage working conditions. The survey also found that farmers preferred migrant workers because they were more productive compared to their local counterparts who were, reportedly, characterised by high absenteeism and laziness, caused mainly by a reliance on social grants and alcohol abuse. Other reasons given for the unattractiveness of the farm job included the seasonal nature of farm employment, which left workers with no source of income in the offseason, the redundancy associated with farm tasks, perceived poor treatment of workers and lack of information on UIF and Provident funds to farm workers. To address problems associated with the dislike of farm work, seasonality of on-farm employment and the reportedly relatively low income, farm managers, the local municipality and the Labour Department could possibly be involved in creating more communal agricultural projects and help provide local community members to venture into supporting alternative careers within the Hospitality, Ecotourism and Conservation Industries through training programmes. Farm managers may need to consider improving their working relationship with workers in communication and when assigning tasks. Farmers and the local municipality could also consider investing in training programmes for the unemployed residents to equip them with technical skills that can improve their chances of finding jobs.
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Nqwemeshe, Nomvuyo. "The structural arrangements in local government and their role in promoting community participation in basic service delivery: a case study of Emalahleni and Intsika Yethu local municipalities in the Chris Hani District Municipality area." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003103.
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This study analyses the effectiveness of community participation in service delivery. The area of study, the Chris Ham District Municipality (CHDM), is a Water Services Authority, responsible for ensuring access to water services (water and sanitation) by all communities within its jurisdiction. There are eight local municipalities within the CHDM. The objective of this study is to determine whether systems are in place in local government to promote participation by communities in service delivery projects and whether these systems are being utilised efficiently by the role-players concerned. The role-players in this research are people who are involved in community development programmes of the municipality (municipal staff in the relevant departments of the municipalities under study, the social facilitators, civil society organisations, ward committees, ward councillors, traditional authorities as well as the representatives of communities (Project Steering Committees) who are beneficiaries of the projects under study). The projects that are under study were selected from a readily available list of CHDM capital projects that appear in the 2003/2004 financial year funding plan and are running. The findings of the study at both levels (local and district) show that the municipal environment is not conducive to promoting community participation. This is linked to factors such as the structural arrangements, whereby the offices relevant for promoting community participation are not fully occupied, which provided evidence that community participation is not prioritised. There is lack of coordination of programmes within the local government spheres as well within departments of the DM and strategies for community participation have been found to be non-effective. At project level lack of community participation is linked to the utilisation of ward committees as the only mechanism for community participation regardless of its un-equal and party biased representation. This study therefore concludes that although the systems to promote community participation are in place, they are not effective.
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Tiwana, Sebenzile Wilbert. "Developmental dynamics in land reform projects : comparative studies of two different land reform projects, farm-worker equity schemes and beneficiary-owned and run citrus projects." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/5047.
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In this study, a comparison was made between two different land reform models in the Sarah Baartman District of the Eastern Cape to, firstly; evaluate and identify factors that influence long-term sustainability and prosperity of farms owned and run by beneficiaries, and farms jointly owned by beneficiaries and former farmer / mentor in a share equity scheme, referred to as Farmworkers Equity Share Schemes (FWES), and secondly; to identify forms of government support in each of the two models. Mixed methods were used to collect data for the study. It involved the administration of structured interviews to beneficiaries, and semi-structured interviews with the mentor and government officials. The study found that the equity share scheme improved the livelihood of the beneficiaries in terms of getting annual dividends and acquiring new properties, empowered beneficiaries in decision-making in terms of having a say in financial expenditure on farm operations and the structuring of dividend pay-outs, and the project showed great potential of long-term sustainability and prosperity. Conversely, the beneficiary-owned and run project did not improve the lives of beneficiaries, was prone to infighting and fraught with organisational and management problems with no prospects of long-term sustainability and economic viability.
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Dywili, Siyanda. "The role of public participation in the integrated development planning process: Chris Hani District Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/14983.
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Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, in Chapter 7, requires all municipalities to encourage members of the public to participate in the matters of local government. Public participation is the process by which public concerns, needs, and values are integrated into governmental and corporate decision making. The Integrated Development Plan is an example of local government instruments which seek public participation in order to address community needs through service delivery. Consequently, this study was to explore the role of public participation in the Integrated Development Planning process of the Chris Hani District Municipality. The main objectives of this study were to understand the IDP making process, establish the importance of public participation, understand the role played by the municipality to encourage public participation in the IDP processes, understand the influence of IDP in service delivery and to make recommendations based on the findings presented. To conduct this study, qualitative research methodology was employed. The population sample comprised of councillors and municipal officials. Structured interviews were conducted with the councillors, while semi-structured interviews were held with municipal officials. The findings of the study revealed that the Chris Hani District Municipality views public participation as an integral part of the IDP making process. Measures and strategies are taken by the municipality to enhance public involvement in all matters of the municipality, including the IDP process. To achieve this the municipality partners with a number of stakeholders such as the local municipalities, government departments and organised groups. However, this is not enough hence recommendations are presented to improve this situation. Recommendations proposed include introducing capacity building programmes for councillors, establishment of a public participation unit, availing budget for public participation and educating members of the public about public participation and the IDP process.
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Yekani, Babalo. "Enhancing public participation in the integrated development planning process: a case of Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/8989.
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The aim of the study is to investigate effective strategies and processes for public participation in the IDP process in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. A qualitative study was undertaken and literature review on public participation in terms of the Integrated Development Planning was conducted. Relevant secondary data was sourced and structured interviews were conducted with three (3) ward councillors in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipal. Focus group interviews were also conducted with ward committee members from three (3) wards in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. The findings of this research indicate that ward councilors have limited information on administrative processes. This could lead to ward councillors not be able to provide feedback on various service delivery issues and the progress of the municipal projects. Also ward councillors may not be able to influence public participation if they do not understand their role in administrative processes such as monitoring implementation of council decisions and policies. Ward councillors have no influence on the Integrated Development Planning especially the cost and budget estimates for municipal projects which are intended to benefit the members of the community. On the basis of the key findings, recommendations were made that ward committees should be empowered to deal with the complex developments in the Integrated Development Planning process and ward councillors should play a leading role in the Integrated Development Planning process.
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Bownes, Angela. "The structure of ant communities and their impact on soil-pupating pests in citrus orchards in the Grahamstown area of the Eastern Cape." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005463.
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Two ant species, Pheidole megacephala (Fabricius) and Anoplolepis custodiens (Smith) reach pest status in citrus orchards through precipitating outbreaks of homopterous pests. However, predacious ants, including these two ant species, play an important role in pest suppression in agroecosystems and are therefore beneficial to these systems. If A. custodiens and P. megacephala are important natural control agents in citrus, using ant bands to break the mutualism between the ants and the Homoptera as a method of ant control is preferable to poisoning. Ant communities were sampled by pitfall trapping in three experimental subunits of 2-, 4-, 15- and 30-year-old citrus orchards, in the Grahamstown area of the Eastern Cape. In one subunit in each orchard, populations of P. megacephala and A. custodiens were suppressed by poison applications. In a second subunit, trees were banded with trunk barriers so that ants were prevented from foraging in the trees and a third subunit served as the untreated control. Bait pupae of bollworm, false codling moth and fruit fly were planted in bait trays in all of the subunits to investigate predation on these citrus pests in the relative absence of predacious ants and where they were excluded from the trees. Pheidole megacephala dominated exclusively in all of the plots. Community composition did not change dramatically with increasing age of the trees, but species diversity and species abundance did. Rank-abundance curves showed that community diversity was highest in the 2-year-old plots and lowest in the 30-year-old plots. The Simpson and Shannon-Wiener diversity indices and their evenness measures indicated that diversity and equitability were highest in the poisoned subunits and lowest in the banded subunits. Principle component analysis revealed that the poisoned subunits were similar and distinct in species composition, that there was significant monthly variation in species composition and that community stability increases with an increase in orchard age. The presence of P. megacephala was significantly negatively correlated (rs = -0.293; p < 0.001) with pest pupal survival. Pupal survival was significantly higher for bollworm (p < 0.001), FCM (p < 0.001) and fruit fly (p < 0.001) in the poisoned subunits, than in the banded and control subunits. There was a general trend for survivorship to increase with an increase in the age of the trees. A significant difference (p < 0.001) was found between the months in which the trials were carried out. Pupal survival was significantly lower (p < 0.001) for FCM than for bollworm and fruit fly. In citrus orchards, ant communities are organised by ecological processes and interactions and are influenced by methods of ant control. Ant bands are preferable to poisoning as a method of ant control, so that beneficial species are left on the ground to prey on pests that pupate in the soil. Maintaining high ant species diversity in citrus orchards would be beneficial as predation on the pupae was more effective where ant species diversity was higher.
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Mugabe, T. C. "Fair trade in the Eastern Cape: an examination of its socio-economic impact and challenges among emerging Black farmers." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/441.
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This study examines the socio-economic impact of fair trade on black emerging citrus fruit farmers in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is a comparative analysis of farmers involved in fair trade and those who are not. Farmers from Riverside Enterprise and Sundays River Citrus Cooperative were examined to evaluate the impact of fair trade. Such impact was analyzed through looking at access farmers have to foreign markets and their ability to receive high income returns from these markets. The study also discusses the influence fair trade has on the social and economic development of the farmers’ communities. The findings of the study indicate how most fair trade communities have benefited financially and through public infrastructure such as crèches, learning centers and access to computers for both farmers and workers. Such public developments are funded through the fair trade social dividend which is a premium farmers receive for selling their fruit under fair trade. However, the study findings also indicate the limitations of fair trade; farmers have to incur high costs to become fair trade accredited. The study also examines the commodity value chains (hereinafter referred to as CVC) for citrus fair trade farmers and non fair trade farmers. This analysis reveals the procedure of value chains, their benefits and constraints.
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Stoycheff, Elizabeth L. "Free media consolidation in Eastern Europe: Citizen attitudes about political, legal, and economic media freedom." The Ohio State University, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1373925072.
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Pule, Banguxolo. "An examination of public participation in decision-making within the IDP processes with reference to Mhlontlo Local Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1019746.
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Public Participation is widely accepted as a way to strengthen the pillars of democratic and accountable governance. In South Africa, public participation is receiving prominence and increasing attention especially at local government level as this level is regarded as the sphere of government closest to the people. The new democratic government in South Africa regards public participation as a cornerstone of democracy. Ackerman (2004:448) asserts that the opening up of the core activities of the state to societal participation is one of the most effective ways to improve accountability and governance. Such accountability and involvement can be better achieved when communities are part of decision making processes in their communities. In South Africa, public participation was heralded by various pieces of legislations which obligated the public to participate and have a say in the decisions taken by their communities. Section 152 of the constitution: Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act No 108 of 1996) requires local authority to “encourage the involvement of local communities and community organizations in matters of local government” Informed by the broad principles of the Constitution, the White Paper on Local Government 1998 introduced the notion of developmental local government. According to this Paper, “developmental local government is defined as local government that is committed to working with citizens and groups within the community to find sustainable ways to meet their social, economic and material needs and improve the quality of their lives”. It is through the process of public participation that citizens are given the opportunity to provide input and partake in decision making on service delivery and governance matters of their municipalities. It is widely acknowledged that active public participation is evidence of deepened democracy and can assist municipalities in i) enhancing service delivery ii) making government and officials more effective and accountable and most importantly involve the communities in decisions affecting their lives and communities. By and large, community involvement through public participatory systems ensures that municipalities incorporate the developmental needs of the people. Theseneeds are expressed and consolidated in municipal integrated development plans. To realise the above, the White Paper on Local Government 1998 suggests that “municipalities should develop mechanisms to ensure citizen participation in policy initiation and formulation, and the 3 monitoring and evaluation of decision-making and implementation”. As outlined above various laws gave a new meaning and a legitimised mandate to the role of local communities in the development of their communities. Informed by the above, this study examines the extent to which public participation influences decision making within the IDP processes and by association its impact on service delivery. This study is premised on the widely accepted view that public participation is a process involving the community or the public to gather opinions, investigate the needs, desires and wishes of the local community and to ensure that they as the community are involved in the decision making processes of their municipality. The study is of the view that the IDP processes represent a structured vehicle to enable citizens and groups to influence decision making through institutionalised municipal participatory structures. By so doing, the public and the government form a pact/partnership to ensure that the needs and aspirations of the community receive priority in the IDP processes.
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Ned, Samora. "An assessment of community participation in strategic decision-making: the case of Amothole District Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/5742.
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The South African Constitution of 1996, as amended, provides for three spheres of Government, namely National, Provincial and Local Government. The local sphere of government is mandated to provide developmental and accountable local government and to ensure the provision of basic services to communities in a sustainable manner. The Department of Provincial and Local Government Community-Based Workbook and Guide provided that local government legislation has been put in a place to enable South Africa to constructively work towards providing basic services and improving the social and economic lives of citizens. As local government is the sphere of government where delivery takes place at community level, it is important to ensure and secure the support and participation of communities. It is critical to mention that local government faces many challenges in providing services that will contribute to developing a peaceful, stable and healthy environment. In adherence to Local Government legislation, which includes, inter alia, the Municipal Systems Act and the Municipal Finance Management Act, the local authorities are required to provide systems and processes to enable public participation processes in the affairs of the municipalities. This requirement is mandatory to ensure that citizens contribute by making input in the planning of the municipality. Amathole District Municipality adopted a Public Participation and Petitions Policy to ensure that citizens participate in the activities of the municipality. The main purpose of this study was to establish whether those structures are effective and whether the municipality, in its planning processes, considered the views and input of the communities. The study investigated the extent of community participation in municipal planning and performance and also investigated the effectiveness of ADM community participation strategies. Quantitative research methods were used to collect data for the study. The research questionnaire covered a wide range of council related activities ranging from knowledge of local government legislation relating to public participation, understanding of public participation processes by councillors, compliance of the municipality with public participation processes and related legislation and feedback to communities on the input they make to the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and the Budget planning processes. The questionnaires were administered to all Councillors within the municipality to ensure that all municipal programmes were covered, and the Executive Mayor, Council Speaker who ensures that council resolutions are implemented and the Chief Whip of Council, who is responsible for the welfare of all political parties in Council. There was also the inclusion of the Chairperson of the Municipal Public Accounts Committee who is responsible for oversight and monitoring the performance of the Executive. The sample group was carefully chosen to represent a wide range of councillors who serve in the ADM Council. The positive response rate therefore provided an acceptable scientific basis for analysis and objectivity to the study.
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Sondaba, Nomakhaya Princess. "An assessment of community consultation and participation: a case study of the Umhlontlo Local Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/14389.
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South African municipalities have often been labelled as failing in the provision of services to local communities. These allegations include poor governance, mal administration, corruption and poor delivery of services to where they are needed most. Certain municipalities, however, are unable to deliver sufficient services to the communities of their geographic areas due to mal administration, political interference and corruption. This study is about the analysis of Community Participation and Consultation in Local Government, using the Umhlontlo Local Municipality as a case study. The focus of the study was on the participation of communities in the decision making processes of their local municipalities. The issue of community participation in decision making has been receiving attention in South Africa, from both government and civil society sectors. Only 50% of the areas are receiving running water, enjoying electricity and living in RDP houses. Government in many parts of the world has begun to take a fresh look at the need for public participation in the decision making process. The main problem that will be addressed in this study, is the extent to which communities can be involved in the decision making process in the Umhlontlo Local Municipality. To address this research problem and to achieve the aim of this study, an in-depth review of the literature on decision making was conducted. The empirical research was done by distributing self-administered questionnaires to the participants in Umhlontlo Local Municipality. The research findings will reveal that there is poor community consultation. This report presents the findings of a study conducted to identify the strategies and consultation structures used in the participation of communities in the decision making processes. Measures of effectiveness of these strategies are also indicated in the report. A key indicator of the need for this study was triggered by the non-attendance of the communities in the IDP (Define IDP – Integrated Development Plan) road shows and also by the complaints of a serious lack in service delivery. It was also noted that there was little understanding of the IDP concept & documentation. The results of this study also show that the communities do not fully participate in the development planning processes. The researcher hopes that this study will sensitize the communities to participate in the affairs of their development so as to accelerate progress in communities, which will further improve the quality of their lives.
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Mbane, Masibulele. "Community participation in the decision-making process in Mnquma Local Municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1018501.
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The study investigates community participation in the decision-making processes in Mnquma Local Municipality. The issue of community participation in decision making is receiving attention in South Africa, from both government and civil society sectors. Governments in many parts of the world have begun to take a fresh look at the need for public participation in decision-making processes. The main problem to be addressed in this study is the extent to which the community can be involved in decision making processes in Mnquma Local Municipality. To address the research problem and to achieve the aims of this study, an in depth review of the literature on decision making was done. The empirical search was done by distributing self-administered questionnaires to the participants in Mnquma Local Municipality. The research findings revealed that in Mnquma Local Municipality community participation in decision-making is not effective. Consequently, the delivery of services in this municipality is poor. Another factor that inhibits community participation in the decision making processes in the municipality is that most of the municipal documents are written in English a language in which the majority of the members of the community are not competent in because they are Xhosa speaking people. Recommendations for improved satisfaction in service delivery, communication, consultation, regular meetings, and language were made with regard to community participation in decision making. If these recommendations are implemented, they will assist Mnquma Local Municipality in the area of decision making.
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Pule, Banguxolo. "An evaluation of the ward committee system as a mechanism for enhancing service delivery in Nkonkobe Local Municipality : a case study of Middledrift." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/857.
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The South African local sphere of government has been mandated to provide a developmental and accountable local government and to ensure provision of services to communities in a sustainable manner. As a key developmental agent, local government is obliged by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1996 to develop a culture of municipal governance that encourage and create conditions for the local community to participate in the affairs of the municipality. In this regard, ward committees have been introduced to municipalities as community structures to play a critical role in linking and informing the municipalities about the needs, aspirations and problems of their communities. In adherence to national legislation, such as the Local Government: Municipal Structures Act 117 (Act117 of 1998) and the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act 2000 (Act 32 of 2000) Nkonkobe Local Municipality established advisory structures in the form of ward committees throughout its area of jurisdiction to advise the municipal council on any matter within the council’s competence. As a representative structure of the community the ward committee is expected to serve as a link between the council and the community and for this purpose articulates community needs and aspirations to better the living standards of the community. Despite the stated objectives of ward committees, the Middledrift area has been identified by Nkonkobe Local Municipality IDP: 2007-2012 as the poorest area in Nkonkobe municipality with backlogs in infrastructure and service delivery. This study evaluates the extent at which the Middledrift ward committee (Ward 16) is enhancing service delivery in its area of jurisdiction.
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Tessendorf, Samantha Millicent. "An analysis of the development model for ex-farmworkers and adjacent communities in the Indalo association of private game reserves in the Eastern Cape." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018547.
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Over the past fifteen years there has been an extensive conversion of land use from traditional farming practices to conservation and private game reserves. It has been suggested by Langholz and Kerley (2006:2) that privately owned preserved areas can engage in ecotourism initiatives by protecting biodiversity, succeeding financially and contributing to social upliftment. However, ecotourism has to operate within the context of historical land dispossession of the majority black population and current land reform initiatives to address this problem. In view of the economic, social and environmental importance of ecotourism based private game reserves (PGRs) in South Africa, particularly the Eastern Cape, the main goal of this research is to examine the Indalo association of private game reserves in the Eastern Cape Province’s development model for ex-farmworkers and adjacent communities. This was done through a literature survey and analysis of existing studies and by interviewing the managers of the Indalo PGRs and a few farmworkers to get their opinions of the tension between what they are doing and the imperatives of land reform. This involved an exploration of their community development work, particularly around issues of job creation, participation in decision-making, capacity building and sustainability. The thesis comes to the following conclusions. The first is that the establishment of PGRs have a significant positive impact on the local areas in which they are established. As a land-use, ecotourism based game reserves are an economically and ecologically desirable alternative to other land uses. Therefore the ecotourism based private game reserve industry with its extensive community development focus for farmworkers and local communities is a viable and sustainable alternative to conventional land reform. The second is that the Indalo PGRs development work has built capacity in the communities it has served. However, community participation, particularly in decision-making is limited and needs more attention if productive and sustainable development is to be achieved. Lastly, communities rely heavily on external support for their development and upliftment. However, the majority of the PGRs have/or are putting measures in place to ensure the continuation of community development projects to ensure the long-term sustainability of projects.
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Wu, Di. "The review of empirical research in influential factors affecting citizen trust in police :western and eastern." Thesis, University of Macau, 2018. http://umaclib3.umac.mo/record=b3953606.
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Nsabimana, Emmanuel. "The extent of community involvement in tourism development and conservation activities in Eastern Rwanda." Thesis, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11838/1604.
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Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010This study investigated the extent of local community involvement in tourism development and conservation activities in eastern Rwanda by using Akagera National Park as a case study. The study used a structured questionnaire to collect data from local residents, while face-to-face interviews were conducted with key informants from Rwanda National Tourism and Conservation Agency and local government officials as means to obtain deeper insights. Tosun (2000:626) contends that community involvement in tourism can be considered from at least two viewpoints, namely the decision-making process that would involve community participation and the benefits of tourism development such as employment and business opportunities. Results of this research suggest that community participation in Akagera National Park has been recognised by Rwanda National Tourism and Conservation Agency and the government of Rwanda only in the sense of helping local people to obtain economic benefits via employing them as workers within industry [though, still at a low rate], whilst encouraging them to operate small scale businesses such as curio shops, rather than create opportunities for them to have a say in the process of decision making of tourism management and conservation policies. Although Rwanda has opted for a decentralised system in its rural development plans, it is evident that it has failed to do so in the areas of tourism and conservation - at least in Akagera National Park. The researcher believes that in the light of the research results, the decision making system for Akagera National Park tourism and conservation development plans is still highly centralised, which, conversely, work against participatory development approach. The study recommends that local communities in the Akagera area should be consulted and involved in development programmes within their villages from the start, as this process will present a significant step towards ensuring more adequate participation in conservation and tourism. Finally, the researcher recommends that further studies should be conducted to engage in evaluation of impacts and successes of governmental policy of 5% revenue sharing, which should be implemented in communities around Akagera National Park.
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Halam, Khanyiswa. "Exploring the role of education, income and standard of living in determining food security amongst Mhlontlo Local Municipality citizens in the Eastern Cape." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/4802.
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The aim of this study was to explore the relationship that exists between education, income, standard of living and food security amongst Mhlontlo local municipality citizens. For this purpose, data was collected from citizens of the Mhlontlo municipality in the Eastern Cape. A sample of 101municipality citizens was drawn from the population. Results of the study indicated that the study variables are significantly negatively correlated with one another. The findings of this study are helpful in providing support to policy makers and social security agencies to have a better understanding of food security and indicate one important avenue to reduce food insecurity in Mhlontlo municipality and the Eastern Cape at large.
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Tyekela, Pumla. "Stakeholder perceptions of participatory process in community development projects in Mdantsane." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/20670.
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Understanding stakeholders’ perception on the participation process is imperative so that strategies that foster people’s participation in community projects are implemented. This will facilitate that community members take part and contribute in their own development projects. In most projects perceptions can influence and impede participation. Most often the challenges experienced include acts of inequalities, lack of financial resources and informal and formal barriers that limit decision making and the capacity of people to participate effectively. As a consequence, authentic participation in community development projects intended to enhance and encourage more people to participate is not possible. The focus of the study was to explore and analyse perceptions of community stakeholders towards participation in community development activities in Mdantsane, a township situated between East London and King William’s Town. The research asked the following question: What are the perceptions of community stakeholders regarding the participation process in community development projects. This study was conducted using the qualitative approach to explore and gain an understanding of the underlying reasons, opinions and motivation for data gathered. The sample groups were the project staff and the government officials that had a better knowledge of the projects. Data was collected through the use of in-depth structured and semi structured interviews. The data showed that a large number of participants believed that participation involvement in project activities was motivated by regular meetings and material and financial incentives. The data further revealed that poor planning, lack of resources, constrained decision-making processes, selective reporting on the project progress were among the limitations of participation. Restraining these participation impediments will enhance and expand participation in community development projects. It is the author’s hope that recommendations made by this study, if implemented will improve participation in community projects in Mdantsane development projects to understand the concept and significance of community participation.
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Bassey-Duke, Elizabeth Misan. "An ergonomics intervention study into the physiological, perceptual and productivity effects of three citrus harvesting bag designs in the Eastern Cape of South Africa : a combined laboratory and field approach." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018908.
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Background: Agriculture plays a vital role in the economy of any industrially developing country, including South Africa. In the Eastern Cape of South Africa citrus farming is a significant contributor to the local economy (Johnson et al., 2005). The harvesting phase of citrus farming is performed manually and exposes workers to physical risks, which can lead to the development of musculoskeletal disorders. In particular, the standard harvesting bag comprises of a single shoulder strap and promotes asymmetrical load carriage which results in shoulder and lower back pain complaints. The current study compared the physiological (EMG), perceptual (RPE), usability (PUEU) and productivity effects of two new harvesting bag designs (a hip belt and a backpack bag design) to the standard harvesting bag design. This was performed in a laboratory as well as a field setting. Methods (Laboratory phase): 36 participants (12 males and 24 females) were assigned to one worker group. The “tall ladder worker” group was comprised of only males and the “step ladder worker” and “ground worker” group of females. Each participant was required to simulate a citrus harvesting task while utilizing each of the bag designs on different days. On each day/test session, participants performed three harvesting cycles. Muscle activity was measured throughout the entire testing session and RPE were recorded at the end of each cycle. Results (Laboratory phase): The EMG and RPE results indicate that the backpack design was the most ideal design to reduce asymmetry, while the standard harvesting bag design was the worst. Although not significant, there was greater muscle asymmetry (p=0.109) and a significantly higher perceived exertion when using the standard bag (p=0.0004), in comparison to using the backpack. Methods (Field phase): 17 Xhosa-speaking citrus harvesters (6 females and 11 males) participated in this study. Each harvester worked with one of the three bag designs on a different day. Productivity of each worker was assessed every hour by recording the number of bags filled with fruit and at the end of the shift. A Perceived Usefulness & Ease of Use questionnaire was presented to each participant to obtain feedback on worker acceptance to the new bag designs. Results (Field phase): A general trend in support of the hip belt bag design over the other two bag designs were found, even within the different worker demographic groups (age, sex and worker experience). The workers perceived less exertion (7.98 ± 1.86) and were more productive (9.90 ± 2.11 bags/hour) when using the hip belt design; they also found this bag the most useful (1.02 ± 0.09) and easy to use (1.07 ± 0.25). In contrast, the backpack bag design had significantly poorer responses when compared to the other two bag designs and this was evident in all the dependent variables assessed (RPE, productivity and PUEU). Conclusion: The results from the laboratory phase supported the expectation that the backpack bag design reduces asymmetry and hence, is more suitable than the standard harvesting bag. However, results from the field show that the hip belt bag design was the most preferred and the backpack was the least preferred. Bao & Shahnavaz (1989) highlight the need for ergonomics researcher to convey laboratory findings into the field context. However, as shown by the current study, there are numerous challenges associated with field work, making it difficult for laboratory findings to be successfully conveyed to the field. Limitations and Recommendations: For the laboratory phase of the project, no biomechanical and cardiovascular responses were assessed. However, for a holistic approach, these variables should be considered in future studies. Due to high variability from one harvesting cycle to another, more than three harvesting cycles should also be performed to accurately replicate the harvesting process as done in the field over extended durations of time. For the field phase, data should be collected from more than one citrus farm and thus a larger sample size could be obtained. This would improve the validity of the study. In addition to this, data should be collected for a full working day, especially if environmental conditions are not a hindrance, as well as for a whole season, since workloads vary, depending on the time of the harvesting season.Name on Graduation Programme: Bassey-Duke, Elizabeth Missan
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Msutu, Ntombethemba Lungisa. "Evaluation of community participation in a rural development project." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1665.
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People have their own different understanding of the meaning of participation. Thus cannot put one meaning to participation. As a woman who grew up in the rural areas for most of my life, I have witnessed the problems in most of the rural development projects. I have first ‐ hand experience of how the unavailability of these projects has affected the rural communities at large, at the same time, I have witnessed how those who have managed to get some of these projects started have benefitted more ways than one way in these rural development projects. Some of these projects have become a success and some have failed dismally. What contributed to the success or failure of these very important projects needs to be examined. More importantly, the level of community participation needs to be evaluated. Relatively few studies have been conducted to evaluate community participation in rural development projects. Some, if not most of the remote villages in the Eastern Cape Province are still without those basic necessities the government has promised, such as the building of houses and provision of clean water. Another sad story is that not enough is done to educate and empower rural communities about their basic rights and needs. Hence, one of the focal points to the study is to scrutinize the level of participation of the community, as some may be suffering from ignorance, apathy and lack of motivation. to scrutinize their level of participation (community participation). As some may be suffering from ignorance, apathy and lack of motivation.
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Ssekibuule, Henry Jacob Festus. "An evaluation of citizen participation in low-income housing settlement in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa: the case of the Tyutyu Housing Project in Buffalo City Municipality (1985-2010)." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/337.
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The provision of housing is a developmental practice and development cannot prevail without public participation. This is echoed in the Manila Declaration on People‟s Participation and Sustainable Development, 1989 as follows, “Public participation is an essential part of human growth that is the development of self-confidence, pride, initiative, responsibility, cooperation. Without such development within the people themselves, all efforts to alleviate their poverty will be immensely more difficult, if not impossible” (Burkey, 1993:56). Housing provision plays a vital role in meeting basic needs; dwellings provide the security required for basic functioning and are thus essential for both human development and the alleviation of poverty. South Africa has one of the most progressive constitutions in the world. It includes the municipal legislative framework that provides for community participation in decision-making at municipal level. However, in practice, citizens have had little experience of this, which is particularly relevant in contexts of severe poverty and failure by the state to provide basic services. This case study demonstrates the challenges faced by the Centre for Public Participation (CPP), a national NGO, when working to influence central government policy on citizen participation. It also explores the role and influence of international donors in promoting this agenda. From the literature review, it was evident that service delivery is essential in the communities, and, as such, government departments and municipalities have a critical role to play. In order to achieve this goal, an interview was conducted with various interviewees. The participants ranged from the youth to the elderly citizens in the community as well as government officials. The main patterns that emerged from the collected data related to the dissatisfaction of the community about the lack of consultation. It would be advisable for government, especially municipalities, to take cognizance of the results and concerns, in an effort to improve and ensure the effective service delivery, as stipulated in the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) document.