3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item Product development training as a tool for empowemennt in crafts: a focus on training in pottery factories in the North West province(2015-08-25) Mahlangu, Isaac BonganiThis dissertation aims to examine how pottery factories in the North West province were conceived and how relevant their functions are, within the confines of craft product development training initiatives, as potential contributors to social empowerment, job creation and economic sustainability today. The dissertation will trace and analyse the impact of specific training initiatives undertaken to empower potters from one of these factories. The focus will be on the methods used to transfer product design and craft manufacturing skills (craftsmanship) as well as evaluating the challenges and success of these methods in promoting self-reliance and sustaining livelihood economically. The impact of these methods will be assessed by the beneficiaries’ ability to integrate concepts, ideas and action as well as their understanding of the markets and ability to follow through orders. The research draws inspiration from the South African National Development Plan: Vision 2030 (NDP, 2011: 10). The plan envisages that by 2030; “the economy should be close to full employment; equip people with the skills they need; ensure that ownership of production is less concentrated and more diverse (where black people and women own a significant share of productive assets); and be able to grow rapidly, providing the resources to pay for investment in human and physical capital”. One of the key sectors anticipated to contribute in achieving the vision of the NDP is the craft sector as suggested by the Department of Trade and Industries (DTI’s) Customised Sector Programme (DTI, 2005). This vision is possible in the craft community if community development efforts are not rushed towards achieving immediate results, but rather focus on the long term of investing in and empowering people with the relevant skills. Writing about applying design to alleviate poverty, Thomas (2006) suggests that sustainable results can only be achieved in the long term because short term initiatives are dependent on single individuals from ‘outside’ organisations for designs and markets. And therefore this research focuses on pottery factories established in the year 2010 by Mintek’s Small Scale Mining Beneficiation Programme, particularly the Timbita Ceramic Incubator. According to the Minister of Arts and Culture the honourable Mr Paul Mashatile, the cultural and creative industries have the potential to be an important driver of economic growth and job creation (Business report, 5 April 2011, 17). Perceiving the creative sector beyond aesthetic and human development dimensions, and more as a sector with the potential to contribute to economic growth and job creation stimulated the assumption of more responsibility for stakeholders and government to invest in both financial and skills development. It is important then, to analyse whether the training methods implemented are efficient and effective in empowering these communities and whether or not they yield sustainable results. It is, therefore, anticipated that this study will contribute toward, at least within the South African context, the limited literature in craft development as an economic industry from the context of crafts product development and craftsmanship skills transfer. Applied research looking at practical cases will be combined with various literature engagements, and supported by semi-structured in-depth interviews used as tools to obtain information for this research.Item An exploratory study on the performance of business incubators in South Africa(2014-07-11) Chirambo, Francine Mambwe ChamaThis study explores the worth of state sponsored Business Incubators to the South African economy in respect of job creation and enterprise development. Using The Innovation Hub Management Company (TIHMC)‟s Maxum Business Incubator as a case study, and employing mixed methods, this non experimental longitudinal research undertakes to interrogate the quality of service rendered by one of South Africa‟s premier enterprise development facilities and its contribution to employment generation since its formation in 2000. The study surveys Pre - Incubatees, Incubatees and Post - Incubatees and interviews key informants in the TIHMC management to unravel this relatively under-researched area. The results show that the TIHMC Maxum Business Incubator has nurtured up to 81 firms which in turn have provided a combined total of 821 jobs between 2000 and 2011 - constituting 0.10% of the 800,000 employment opportunities generated by the Gauteng Provincial Government within the same period. However, the results also indicate that a range of services, particularly business skills, planning, financial management and book-keeping training require vastly improved technical expertise to sustain the incubated firms‟ market potentials. Further, the TIHMC needs to develop accessible information management systems and evaluative tools to enable regular performance appraisals, beneficiary feed-back and tracking of success stories in order to improve its strategic visions. The study‟s ambitions were to inform the TIHMC management‟s future plans and to contribute more generally to informed national discourses, policy making and academic inquiry into the efficacy of the novel notion of Business Incubation and its value to developing world contexts.Item South Africa's embrace of the social economy.(2012-09-04) Moss, Michalya SchonwaldIn this Masters Research Report I explore how South Africa, in reaction to the global economic crisis’s impact on national unemployment statistics, has embraced the social economy. As this is a recent undertaking of the state, this research covers the timeline of events pertinent to what I determine to be the tipping point of the social economy in South Africa between 2009-‐2011. Based on documentary analysis and in-‐depth interviews with key actors determined to be ‘experts’ in the field, this research attempts to gain an understanding of how the concept of the social economy and its organizations of social entrepreneurship and social enterprise are being transposed onto the South African landscape, specifically in the Gauteng province. By examining the trend of the social economy and how it is being conceptualized in the country, this research aims to understand the implications for the future of South Africa’s socioeconomic development path.