School of Construction, Economics and Management

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Willingness of End Users in Embracing Sustainable Housing in South Africa
(University of the Witwatersrand, 2023-10) Weaich, Malcolm; Simbanegavi, Prisca; Ndlovu, Pride; Rikhotso, Thulisiwe; Ntshangase, Noxolo
Purpose: This study examines South African end-users' willingness to adopt sustainable housing, identifying preferred materials and investment levels. It aims to inform sustainable material adoption to reduce construction-sector carbon emissions. Approach: A quantitative survey collected data on attitudes, knowledge, and willingness to pay for sustainable housing. SPSS was used for data analysis, focusing on socio-economic status, willingness to adopt sustainable homes, and cost comparisons with traditional materials. Findings: Middle and high-income earners are more willing to adopt sustainable housing, despite higher costs. South Africans prefer materials that reduce energy grid dependence and are willing to pay for its full conversion. Regression analysis identified preferred sustainable options across income levels. Based on its findings, the study challenges the notion that affordability is the sole driver for low adoption levels of sustainable living in South Africa, emphasising individual values and the need for inclusivity in sustainable housing. Limitations: The study's small sample size of 88 participants limits its scope. Future research should include longitudinal studies and deeper exploration of sustainable housing stakeholders and explore interventions, through end-user perceptions at a more in-depth level to form a theory of adoption pertaining to sustainable housing practices phenomena. Practical implications: The study establishes a market demand for sustainable housing in South Africa, advocating for government and industry collaboration to boost awareness and adoption. Value of paper: The paper informs policy, guides industry sustainable housing practices, and aids in the development of targeted strategies to promote sustainable housing and reduce its carbon footprint. Keywords: Construction industry, End-user willingness, Green building certification, Sustainable development, Sustainable housing.
Liberal peacebuilding and local ownership: a case study of post-civil war Mozambique
(2022) Hlatshwayo, Shamiso Nomsa
The concept of local ownership and participation emerged as contextually sensitised responses to the criticisms of the liberal peace approach to issues of local legitimacy and the need for context specific peace building solutions. Given that local ownership is often viewed as an afterthought by foreign actors, it continues to be an elusive concept that is widely considered to be a necessary ingredient for durable peace; yet the very same concept has gained wide ranging criticism due to the manner in which it still relies on fundamental liberal concepts. Through a qualitative enquiry, this study explored the dilemma of the two concepts by placing it within the post-Civil War Mozambique context. There appears to be little consensus on the subject due to the role the United Nations Operation in Mozambique (UNOMOZ) played in ending hostilities and ensuring the first multi-party elections. Thus, the mission is regarded as having been successful in those areas by garnering an acceptable level of local buy-in due to the peaceful nature of the first elections and the relative peace that the country has maintained since the UNOMOZ exit. Thus in terms of the research question, it is clear that Mozambique highlights the complexity of the liberal peacebuilding and local ownership debate, thus requiring a nuanced approach where both concepts are approached with a high level of objectivity. The study found that UNOMOZ can be said to have been successful in its ability to secure peace and cultivate equitable governance structures, even though they were isolated to a specific elite. However when taking the local ownership dimension of the debate, UNOMOZ’s limited mandate and time constraints rendered it to be a process that entered the country with a cultural blind spot which by design excluded locals and eventually rendered them as essentially disempowered pawns in the reproduction of power structures that continue to limit wide spread, equitable civic participation.

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