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Now showing 1 - 5 of 19

Recent Submissions

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    Air pollution prediction with satellite imagery: deep learning approach
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-09) Mulondo, Khumbelo; Mhangara, Paida
    This study addresses the urgent global concern of climate change, focusing on air pollution as a significant contributor. Human activities, particularly the burning of fossil fuels for transportation and energy generation, release substantial amounts of harmful air pollutants, including greenhouse gases (GHGs). To effectively mitigate air pollution and its environmental impacts, accurate prediction of its spatio-temporal patterns is crucial. This study uses the Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory (ConvLSTM) deep learning model to analyze and forecast air pollution using high-resolution, multi-spectral time-series imagery from the Sentinel-2 satellite and meteorological data. By combining the spatial feature extraction capabilities of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) with the sequential data processing strengths of LSTM networks, ConvLSTMs effectively capture both spectral and temporal characteristics inherent in the satellite data. Additionally, temporal meteorological data from air quality monitoring stations is analyzed using LSTM models to enhance the temporal dimension of the analysis. The strategic combination of ConvLSTM for spatial and spectral analysis and LSTM for temporal analysis offers a comprehensive methodology for environmental monitoring and forecasting, with significant implications for urban planning and public health initiatives. In analyzing nitrogen dioxide spatial distribution, the ConvLSTM model demonstrated consistent improvement in training and validation loss, indicating enhanced generalization capabilities without significant overfitting. However, challenges arise due to the variability in the Structural Similarity Index (SSIM) which was averaging +-0.30 across predicted frames, stemming from the quality variation in the data. The ConvLSTM model performs better with meteorological data, as evidenced by convincing heatmaps and effective avoidance of overfitting where the loss: was 0.1237 and val_loss: of 0.1458 with the 100 epochs. The predicted results are showed in this paper.
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    Managing complexities: The experiences of practitioners and support staff members in working with gender-based violence cases at the University of the Witwatersrand
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2025) Dlamini, Nomthandazo; Ntshongwana, Zintle
    Educational institutions are meant to provide individuals with learning opportunities. However, that is not always the case as there are various issues students enrolled in these institutions face including gender-based violence and harm. The focus of this study is on the experiences of university practitioners and support staff members in working with GBV cases. The specific key focus areas included identifying the challenges they face and how they manage these challenges and exploring resources and interventions to support practitioners and support staff members. The study was conducted by inviting practitioners and support staff members who work under the Gender Equity Office (GEO) and Campus Health at the University of the Witwatersrand and data was collected through one-on-one interviews. This study aimed at exploring and analysing the experiences of university practitioners and support staff members at the University of the Witwatersrand and how they manage the various complexities when working with GBV cases. The population of this study were university practitioners and a support staff member who work at the University of Witwatersrand and who deal with and manage gender-based harm and violence cases at the university. The sampling technique for this study was purposive sampling. The data for this study were collected using one-on-one semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis was a method used to analyse the data. The main finding from this study is that there is a need to have more and accessible debrief and support interventions for practitioners and support staff members. One key recommendation is for the policies in the university to be written in various languages so that they are relatable to every student and staff member and for them to own these polices
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    Determinants of STI-Related Care-Seeking Behaviour among Female Sex Workers in South Africa’s Major Metropolitan Cities
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2025) Ndlovu, Nomawonga Lesedi Bongiwe Sibusisiwe; Mabuto, Tonderai; Mabetha, Khuthala
    Background: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) remain a major global public health concern as they contribute significantly to population morbidity and mortality. Due to their risky sexual behaviours, female sex workers are a key population that has been identified as a group most at risk of acquiring STIs, which is further heightened by their biological susceptibility and other compounding factors. All STIs are manageable, either through curative treatments or long-term management strategies; however, a significant proportion remain untreated. Previous studies have found that only 20.5% of female sex workers who have STIs seek treatment, and 9.2% consult healthcare providers. The disparity in STI-related care-seeking among FSWs persists despite their heightened risk of acquiring and transmitting STIs. The implications are far-reaching, potentially leading to a higher risk of STI transmission and, in extreme cases, fatalities. Though actioned by an individual, care-seeking behaviour is influenced by a complex matrix of factors that operate at the level of the individual, family, and community. There is a paucity of recently published literature that specifically explores the demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related factors associated with FSW STI-related care-seeking behaviour in South Africa in a single study. Part of managing the STI crisis in South Africa entails gaining an understanding, through research, of what factors drive how FSWs behave to either prevent STI acquisition or find a remedy for an STI. Objective: To determine how demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related factors influence STI-related care-seeking behaviour among female sex workers in South Africa’s major metropolitan cities. Methods: This is a quantitative cross-sectional study using secondary unweighted cross- sectional data obtained from the 2018 South African Health Monitoring Study, which was the second round of Biological and Behavioural Surveys among female sex workers in South Africa. Ethical clearance was obtained from the University of the Witwatersrand Humanities Research Ethics Committee, and data access was approved by The Aurum Institute’s Data Sharing Governance Committee. The outcome variable in this study was STI-related care- seeking behaviour (sought advice or treatment for self-reported STI symptoms – abnormal discharge or sore/ulcer near or on the vagina). Binary logistic regression was used to determine xii the association between STI-related care-seeking behaviour and selected demographic, socio- economic, and health-related explanatory variables. Results: Of the 745 FSWs who reported STI symptoms, 88% (n = 657) sought treatment. The demographic factors associated with STI-related care-seeking were the city of Durban (reference category: Cape Town) (AOR = 2.99, p= 0.002, 95% CI: 1.51-5.89) and being single (reference category: married) (AOR = 2.59, p= 0.018, 95% CI: 1.18-5.67). All socio-economic factors namely, personal income, household income, and level of education, were not associated with STI-related care-seeking behaviour. The health-related factor associated with STI-related care-seeking behaviour was knowledge of STIs other than HIV (reference category: no knowledge) (AOR = 9.09, p= 0.003, 95% CI: 2.12-38.96). Conclusion: STI-related care-seeking among FSWs in the three metropolitan cities was high. Living in Durban and being single were positively associated with seeking care, likely due to better service access and greater autonomy. Knowledge of STIs other than HIV was positively associated with STI-related care-seeking behaviour, suggesting that peer-led interventions may be effective in boosting STI awareness and care-seeking behaviours. These findings highlight the need for tailored, context-specific interventions to sustain and enhance STI service uptake. However, recent funding cuts threaten to erode current successes. The people-centred framework, aligning resources with the specific needs of FSWs, may offer a sustainable approach to improve sexual and reproductive health outcomes.
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    The Role of Comprehensive Sexual Education in the Prevention and Management of Learner Pregnancy: Experiences of Learners and Educators in Secondary Schools in Soweto, South Africa
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2025) Ntuli, Nokulunga Sinenhlahla; Malatji, Hlologelo
    Globally, studies have shown that learner pregnancy and childbirth can have health and social consequences. Female learners who conceive at a tender age often drop out of school, which limits their learning opportunities and employment prospects. Comprehensive Sexual Education (CSE) is instrumental in reducing learner pregnancy rates by providing female learners with information about the consequences of unprotected sex and pregnancy, transferring knowledge about methods of contraception, encouraging condom use, and reducing early sexual debut. However, studies have shown barriers to implementing the CSE, such as sociocultural norms, parental attitudes, educator-related challenges, and economic constraints. The study explored the role of CSE offered as part of the Life Orientation (LO) subject in secondary schools in Soweto, South Africa. The research adopted a qualitative approach using the phenomenological research design. The purposive sampling technique was used to recruit female learners and educators from two (N = 2) public secondary schools located in Soweto. In each secondary school, the researcher recruited ten (N = 10) female learners and three (N = 3) educators who were teaching and coordinating the LO subject. An interview guide was used as the research instrument, and the data was collected through semi-structured one- on-one interviews. Thematic analysis was used as the method of data analysis. Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory was used to understand the impact of the contexts in which the learners live, especially regarding female learners’ experiences of sexual education and experiences of learner pregnancy. The key findings reveal that CSE improves learners' knowledge of contraceptives and pregnancy prevention. However, cultural and religious practices and educators’ discomfort hindered educators from openly talking about sex and its consequences during the LO lessons. As a result, the learners reported to often rely on peers or online sources for sexual health information, leading to the spread of misinformation. The recommendations include expanding teacher training, enhancing the CSE curriculum, and increasing collaboration with health professionals to provide resources within schools.
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    Exploration of Perceptions of the Inclusion of the Boy Child in GBV Awareness Programmes: A Case Study of Gauteng North
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2025) Svova, Newlane; Petersen, Laetitia
    Gender-based violence (GBV) is one of the most prevalent human rights violations that transcend socio-cultural, class and economic boundaries. The study aimed to explore the perceptions of the inclusion of the boy child in awareness programmes in the hope of making a small contribution to educating the boy child in Bronkhornspruit on Gender- Based Violence in South Africa. The study was guided by the need to: explore how the boy child who formed part of a GBV programme, understand and view gender-based violence, explore the boy child’s opinion on the inclusion in the fight against gender-based violence, and to analyse the effects of gender-based violence awareness directed at the boy child. A qualitative approach and intrinsic case study research design was used. The researcher facilitated face-to-face interviews to gather information relevant to the study. Purposive sampling was used to l to select 28 secondary school learners and four educators as participants. An interview guide was used as a research instrument. Thematic analysis was used for data analysis. The findings indicate how the boy child views their inclusion in the fight against gender-based violence and how they view gender-based violence. The results showed how gender-based violence education and awareness need to be rolled out in schools to continue educating the boy child of their role in addressing gender-based violence issues. It also showed the role the community plays in informal education of gender-based violence and how “men” are expected to treat women. Also, GBV awareness programmes increase the boy learners understanding of GBV and reveals the dangers of GBV in their communities and it instils the desire to change in learners.