Electronic Theses and Dissertations (Masters/MBA)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10539/37942

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    Woman to woman empowerment in the corporate environment of Eswatini
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Sikiti, Nomahlubi Nontsikelelo; Sieff, Grant
    This study was pursued to find and establish characteristics of woman-to-woman empowerment in the corporate world of Eswatini and how these characteristics may contribute to economic redevelopment and business growth. Women empowerment has been the conversation for a while but there have been little said about women empowering each other and how that benefits an organisation. With women having been the marginalised group in society, this study sought to find what women are doing to empower each other, what hinderances they face in the journey, and what benefit they bring to business by empowering each other. The research was conducted based on transformational leadership theory and behavioural leadership theory, linking it to the shine theory. The research followed the qualitative research design with a focus on interpretivism and the narrative type of research study, data was collected through interviews from a sample of 15 women who occupy different levels of authority within their organisations. The data collected was then coded utilising thematic analysis and to develop the overarching themes of the study. The key findings were that there were still a few women represented in positions of power in the country which in effect led to the difficulty in evaluating woman-to-woman empowerment and the benefits it has yielded for organisations. The women that were found to be involved in empowering activities, were involved in such outside of their organisations mostly directed to young girls and then a few to women in professional groupings. The study concluded that because women are still underrepresented in leadership, it is important for company executives, men included, to advocate for and foster beneficial relationship amongst the women at all levels of their organisations by encouraging fellow female empowerment as the inclusion of women in leadership brings about diversity in decision making which benefits the organisation
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    A renewable energy solution for small to large businesses in the Kingdom of Eswatin
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Manana, Cusilakhe; Mondi, Lumkile
    The Kingdom of Eswatini’s electricity supply is not self-sufficient and relies on the import of electricity to meet its local demand. This has resulted in the country importing 73% of its electricity from foreign suppliers including South Africa, Mozambique, and the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP). This heavy reliance on imports means the country cannot guarantee future supply nor have full control of the tariffs charged to customers for electricity. Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology installations have seen a steady increase worldwide due to improved efficiency in technology performance and a decrease in the cost of the technology. These advancements have resulted in solar technology becoming cheaper than traditional sources of energy available to consumers. The business venture investigates the viability of using solar technology as a solution to the high electricity costs being paid by small to large businesses within Eswatini. The venture aims to install, own, operate, and maintain solar PV plants at the customer’s property and sell the generated power to the customer. The venture does not seek to replace the utility supply but aims to provide an alternative cheaper solution as an input into operations. The business venture proposal targeted small to large businesses from varying industries across the country as respondents for the study. In the study, the market perception towards solar technology as well as consumer behavior analyzed to assist in formulating a business model for the venture which would ensure uptake of the value offering. Furthermore, the business venture investigated the viability of the project by evaluating performance parameters which included the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of the solar plants, cash flows, Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and the Net Present Value (NPV)