4. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - Faculties submissions

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    Policy-making and institutional crisis: Formalizing artisanal gold mining in Zimbabwe from 2005 to 2017
    (Policy-making and institutional crisis: Formalizing artisanal gold mining in Zimbabwe from 2005 to 2017, 2024) Mukonoweshuro, Tonderai Fadzai; https://orcid.org/ 0009-0000-6395-4758
    Artisanal gold mining is a crucial economic activity in Zimbabwe that gained prominence in the post-2000 period when there was a defined shifting interest from agricultural activity by many people to artisanal gold mining, with over a million people engaged in the sector. Artisanal gold mining became a part of a large and complex informal economy, with the potential to address some of the economic challenges by providing the much-needed foreign currency for the ailing economy. However, like most countries, Zimbabwe struggled to regulate the sector to make it more efficient, economical, safe and environmentally friendly. Much existing research seems to suggest that policy on artisanal mining, while being a function of the state, is an instrument or arena of contestation among powerful groups within the state and society. Thus, the study answers the question, “In what ways did politics, power and institutional dynamics influence policy trajectories on artisanal gold mining in Zimbabwe between 2005 and 2017?” It further investigated the complex reality of politics and policymaking for informal (artisanal) gold mining in Zimbabwe, seeking to dissect underlying politics, power and institutional dynamics and how these influenced policy trajectories in this growing informal gold mining sector between 2005 and 2017. Through a case study approach, I collected qualitative data through in-depth individual interviews with key informants both nationally and at two mining sites in the District of Chegutu, in Mashonaland, Zimbabwe. By situating the study's findings within theories of informal economies, institutionalism, street-level bureaucracy and human securities, this thesis contributes to the consequences of informality as they relate to production and the miners 6 wellbeing and policy development for ASM. The other is the complex and non-linear reality of politics and policy-making concerning ASM and law enforcement agencies. The local case study demonstrates the struggles between networked actors in amplifying how informal gold mining policy has evolved and the particular effects on policy outcomes for informal gold mining in Zimbabwe. The study concluded that although politics had a bearing on the continued informalisation of ASM during the crisis period, the state actors occupying critical positions in shadow networks drove policy to maximize self-interest. At a local level, policy implementation met the agency of transitional actors, including small-scale artisanal miners, gold dealers, and traders. These networked actors also operated within their own unwritten rules and shaped their policies as they extracted or traded the gold. Therefore, a policy framework for formalizing ASM must be based on enforceable legal systems that provide accountability, transparency, and human rights.
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    The Role of Climate Change Governance in Community Adaptation in Kwazulu-Natal: A Study of uMkhanyakude District Municipality
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Sibiya, Nomfundo Patricia; Simatele, Mulala Danny
    It can be argued that, although South Africa has developed good climate change initiatives, policies, and strategies, the implementation of these policies seems to present difficulties, as those for whom they have been developed do not seem to have any knowledge of their effectiveness in helping them build resilience against extreme weather events. Additionally, the findings demonstrate the existence of structures tasked with coordinating climate change matters across all government sectors affected, comprising inter-departmental arrangements, departmental arrangements, other institutions, and stakeholders. The inter-departmental arrangements consist of forums whose purpose is to ensure inter-sectoral coordination of climate change matters. The national Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment assumes leadership and coordination responsibilities in developing and implementing responses to climate change adaptation in South Africa. The findings also revealed that government officials employed at the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment unanimously believe that the institutional arrangement of climate change at the national level effectively drives the climate change agenda. Conversely, government officials at the provincial and local levels exhibit diverse perspectives regarding the effectiveness of the institutional arrangements. Consequently, one can posit that there is inadequate coordination of climate change adaptation horizontally among national government departments and sectors affected by climate change impacts, as well as vertically between national, provincial, and municipal governments. This study divulged various barriers to climate change adaptation in South Africa, including insufficient financial resources, inadequate human capacity at provincial and local levels, limited political resolve at the local level, deficient comprehension of climate change adaptation issues among communities, insufficient coordination across government levels and sectors, absence of legal mandate at the local level, absence of climate change units at the district and local levels, lack of knowledge among certain staff members entrusted with environmental responsibilities at the local level, inadequate climate change plans in place at the local level, and utilisation of outdated climate change information in the Integrated Development Plans (IDPs). This study proposes that policies should be jointly designed and implemented with vulnerable groups, based on local knowledge, and tailored to the specific needs of those most affected by climate change (e.g., women, the impoverished). There is a necessity to establish operational institutions that are dedicated to fulfilling their mandate, supporting communities, and fostering robust partnerships among civil society, the public sector, and the private secto
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    Fostering Inclusive Entrepreneurship in South African Townships: A Contextual Analysis
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Felix-Faure, Palesa Charlotte; Soumonni, Diran; Fayolle, Alain
    Research has revealed a persistently low level of entrepreneurial activity among the Black South Africans, the majority of whom live in the townships. And the government has a major concern regarding the level of unemployment and poverty faced by this population group. It has therefore put into place a number of programs to foster entrepreneurship in order to develop the economy and employment. Despite these efforts, the level of entrepreneurshipamong Black South Africans, who constitute the majority of the population, has consistently remained low. This qualitative study, applying critical realism ontology, examines how a historical institution like apartheid through its racial discrimination policies may still affect current entrepreneurial behaviour. The outcome demonstrates the presence of active apartheid social mechanisms, and the effects of their underlying institutional logics on entrepreneurial behaviour. This knowledge may be useful in designing more efficient programmes to foster entrepreneurship within the township spatial context. The study contributes to the areas of entrepreneurship context, entrepreneurial motives, and entrepreneurial behaviour in relation to the understudied micro level effects of legacies of previously dominant institutional logics
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    The effects of politics, institutions and corporate governance on South Africa’s FDI flows
    (2021) Mokgashi, Moshibudi
    This paper explores the linkage between political risk, corporate governance, institutions and foreign direct investment inflows in the context of South Africa. The study was prompted the by the ever-changing political stability of the country, corporate governance and corruption challenges and their impact on doing business in SA. It is conducted using secondary data for World Governance Indicators (WGI) collected from World Bank’s online database and World Competitiveness from the World Economic Forum (WEF). The relationship was estimated using the Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) econometric technique for the period of 1996 to 2019. For political risk and institutions, governance variables were used. These are rule of law, political stability, control of corruption, voice and accountability, government effectiveness, and regulatory quality. For corporate governance, Ethical Behaviour of Firms and Efficacy of Corporate Boards competitiveness variables were used. Trade Openness, Inflation Rate and Gross Domestic Product growth were used as control variables. The findings of this report indicate that weak governance impacts FDI inflows negatively. The econometric estimates show that tolerance for corruption, government ineffectiveness, lack of rule of law, political instability, poor regulatory quality and accountability have negative impact on FDI inflows. Whilst all six variables indicated significant impact on FDI, rule of law and lack of control of corruption show the most impact. The implication is that this should be an area of focus to improve and therefor positively impact FDI. Overall, the government should reduce political instability and policy makers should employ policies and strategies to improve doing business in South Africa to attract and maintain investors