Women in Namibia

Author(s):  
Heike Becker

Women have had a significant role throughout Namibian history. Prior to colonization men were generally dominant, but certain women of high rank attained powerful positions. Namibian societies and politics became thoroughly gendered during the German and South African colonial periods. After independence the postcolonial Namibian state drew on the intensive involvement of women in the liberation struggle and adopted a legal framework and policies that emphasized gender equality. Nonetheless, little real improvement has been achieved for the majority of women in postcolonial Namibia. The country’s high level of social inequality continues to be profoundly gendered. Namibia’s independence in 1990 followed prolonged colonial rule by South Africa, which ruled the country, named “South West Africa,” as a de facto fifth province. Post–World War II South Africa retained the full range of apartheid legislation and policy in Namibia until about 1980, when the apartheid state’s colony became a laboratory for social engineering geared toward limited change. Namibia was divided into two distinct zones in 1907 and throughout the South African colonial period. Southern and central Namibia were governed similar to South Africa and the northern regions experienced colonial rule more akin to the British doctrine of indirect rule. Both colonial projects were profoundly gendered. Thus anticolonial resistance was both varied and gendered, including its defiance of apartheid.

1998 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-31
Author(s):  
N.P. du Preez ◽  
P. van Eldik ◽  
M. Möhr ◽  
H.H. van der Watt

In a two-part analysis (see pp 17–26 for Part 1), the authors discuss the key results of a South African project conducted during 1996 which focused on the factors relating to the development and establishment of technology in a country. The study investigated through a detailed questionnaire survey and a literature survey the various factors that promote the development and establishment of technology by comparing their perceived importance with the actual role they currently play in South Africa. This paper, Part 2, concentrates on the role of industry. The study showed that the availability of high-level technological people dominated the top (at 90%) of the list of factors relating to individual organizations and the role they play in the development of technology. Other prominent factors were the existence of a corporate technology strategy (88.4%), the need to improve manufacturing efficiency and processes (88.4%), the ability of top management to understand new technologies (87.9%), and the availability of funds for research and development (86.2%). The survey clearly indicated that South African organizations were not performing well with respect to these and other factors evaluated. All of them have been rated below 50%, indicating the seriousness of the problem. The corresponding recommendations made are of importance to younger countries with developing economies.


Author(s):  
R.D. Bigalke

With only two students in the final year, the class of 1930 was the 2nd smallest in the history of the Onderstepoort Faculty. Noteworthy is that the class photograph is composed of individual shots of the graduates and that 1 photograph was taken several years after qualification. The photograph of the Class of 1931 is the more customary composite one. The Dean, Prof. P J du Toit, does not feature in either. Concise descriptions are given of the life histories of the 8 graduates. Again their careers show considerable variation. Two devoted their entire pre-retirement careers to South Africa's Division of Veterinary Services as state veterinarians, both reaching very senior positions. A third died shortly after leaving government service for private practice. None made a career out of research at Onderstepoort, although 2 had short stints at the Institute. One, said to have been the youngest veterinarian in the British Empire, spent the latter part of his relatively short life in a large Johannesburg practice as a specialist surgeon. Another was in military service for virtually his entire career. One had a very varied career, which included government service, private practice, research, public health and the pharmaceutical industry. One spent most of his impressive career in the Colonial Service in Swaziland and Tanganyika (now Tanzania) but eventually returned to private practice in South Africa, whereas another was similarly, but less conscientiously, involved in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia) and Swaziland. Two saw military service during World War II, one as Commanding Officer of a Regiment in the South African Artillery and the other in the South African Veterinary Corps.


1985 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 161-170
Author(s):  
F. E. Botha ◽  
J. H. Owens

The objective of this research was to establish the current image of training and development consultancy in South Africa in relation to the ideal as perceived by their clients. In view of the critical shortage of high-level manpower it was considered important to establish whether this service sector is effectively assisting organizations in developing their management to the required skill levels. Based on a survey of the literature on previous image studies, the research methodology combined the measurement of image by using a structured questionnaire with unstructured, subjective comment to arrive at a conclusion. The Repertory Grid technique was used to generate constructs for the semantic differential scale used in the questionnaire. This questionnaire was administered to training/personnel officials of a sample of manufacturing companies in the PWV area The responses to the questionnaire were analysed by means of basic descriptive statistics, factor analysis and t tests. Certain image dimensions were highlighted, and the results showed that numerous discrepancies existed between the image of training and development consultants and the perceived ideal. It was concluded that in order to effectively assist in alleviating the shortage of high-level manpower, training and development consultants should strive towards improving their analysis of problems, the correct identification of training needs and the customization of the training programmes to match specific South African corporate and cultural needs.


1998 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-26
Author(s):  
N.P. du Preez ◽  
P. van Eldik ◽  
M. Möhr ◽  
H.H. van der Watt

In a two-part analysis (Part 2 follows on pp 27–31), the authors discuss the key results of a South African project conducted during 1996 which focused on the factors relating to the development and establishment of technology in a country. The study investigated through a detailed questionnaire survey and a literature survey the various factors that promote the development and establishment of technology by comparing their perceived importance with the actual role they currently play in South Africa. This paper, Part 1, concentrates on the role of higher education. The importance of academic institutions in supplying high-level human resources was rated very highly (90.47%) but the role it is currently playing in reality was rated at 52.8%. Closely connected with this, the availability of high-level skilled technological people was given an importance of 89% while the current reality was rated at only 43%. This clearly shows that the South African higher education system is performing poorly in addressing these vital needs. The availability of entrepreneurs with innovative and creative skills to participate in the development and diffusion of technology was given an importance rating of 84.3% against a current situation of 42.2%, again indicating South Africa's weak performance. The results of the survey and the consequent recommendations are important to all developing countries with newly industrial economies.


2003 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAN-BART GEWALD

Namibian politics and society are today dominated by people who trace their descent from the settlements and homesteads of Ovamboland in southern Angola and northern Namibia. Yet, prior to 1915, and the defeat by South Africa of the German colonial army in German South-West Africa, very few Ovambo had settled in areas to the south of the Etosha Pan. In 1915, a Portuguese expeditionary army defeated Kwanyama forces in southern Angola, and unleashed a flood of refugees into northern Namibia. These refugees entered an area that was already overstretched. Since 1912 the rains had failed and, on account of the First World War, trade and migration had come to a standstill. As a result the area was experiencing its most devastating famine ever. Unable to find sanctuary in Ovamboland, thousands of people trekked southwards into central Namibia, an area which had only just come under the control of South Africa. The famine allowed for the easy entrance of South African military administrators and labour recruiters into Ovamboland and heralded the demise of Ovambo independence. By focusing on developments in the central Namibian town of Karibib between 1915 to 1916, the article explores the move of the Ovambo into central and southern Namibia. It traces the impact of war and drought on Ovambo societies, and follows Ovambo famine migrants on their route south into areas administered by the South African military administration. Discussion also concentrates on the reception and treatment of Ovambo famine migrants in the Karibib settlement, and argues that the refugee crisis heralded the establishment of Ovambo in modern central and southern Namibia.


2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Novoa ◽  
Haylee Kaplan ◽  
Sabrina Kumschick ◽  
John R. U. Wilson ◽  
David M. Richardson

AbstractThe rate of transportation, introduction, dissemination, and spread of nonnative species is increasing despite growing global awareness of the extent and impact of biological invasions. Effective policies are needed to prevent an increase in the significant negative environmental and economic impacts caused by invasive species. Here we explore this issue in the context of the history of invasion and subsequent regulation of cacti introduced to South Africa. We consider seven approaches to restricting trade by banning the following: (1) species already invasive in the region, (2) species invasive anywhere in the world, (3) species invasive anywhere in the world with a climate similar to the target region, (4) genera containing invasive species, (5) growth forms associated with invasiveness, (6) cacti with seed characteristics associated with invasiveness, and (7) the whole family. We evaluate each approach on the basis of the availability and complexity of information required for implementation, including the cost of the research needed to acquire such information, the likely numbers of false positives and false negatives, the likely degree of public acceptance, and the costs of implementation. Following a consultative process, we provide recommendations for how to regulate nonnative cacti in South Africa. The simplest option would be to ban all cacti, but available evidence suggests that most species pose negligible risk of becoming invasive, making this option unreasonable. The other extreme—reactively regulating species once they are invasive—would incur significant control costs, likely result in significant environmental and economic impacts, and limit management goals (e.g., eradication might be unfeasible). We recommended an intermediate option—the banning of all genera containing invasive species. This recommendation has been partly incorporated in South African regulations. Our study emphasizes the importance of scientific research, a legal framework, and participation of stakeholders in assessments. This approach builds awareness, trust, and support, and ensures that all interests are reflected in final regulations, making them easier to implement and enforce.


1993 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 116-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Duckitt

Obvious and transparent measures of traditional racism no longer appear to adequately assess anti-black prejudice in more sophisticated samples. This, together with a growing tendency for traditional measures to elicit antagonistic responses from subjects, led in an earlier study to the development and preliminary validation of a South African subtle racism (SR) scale. The current research used a new sample, in which the use of traditional measures of anti-black racism would have been very difficult, to cross-validate the SR scale. It also extended the validation of the SR scale by investigating its association with self-reports of actual interracial behaviour. The findings from 303 white students at the University of the Witwatersrand showed a high level of internal consistency on the SR scale, and a strong correlation with an interracial behavioural intention scale. These findings as well as significant correlations with self-reported interracial behaviour support the validity of the SR scale. Contrary to earlier thinking, the findings also indicate a very powerful relationship between anti-black prejudice and authoritarianism.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele van Eck

South Africa has, like many other African countries, inherited a foreign legal system. The democratic Constitution of 1996 altered the country’s legal framework such that it became reflective of societal change, while recognising plurality in South African legal culture(s). Owing to the 2015‒2016 #FeesMustFall student protests, another ideological shift in legal education is being precipitated by the changing socio‒political landscape of the country. This shift is framed as decolonisation, which entails shedding the colonial yoke of exclusive western ideologies and thinking, thereby requiring an inclusive educational approach. Such a transformed education would incorporate local African traditions, customs and ideologies that existed prior to colonial imposition. Legal thinking and culture is dependent on legal education, and legal education is consequently reliant on the legal framework. Considering this chain of influences, I argue that decolonisation cannot be achieved merely as a change in legal education alone: it requires an ideological shift in the country’s legal framework.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie Claire Van Hout ◽  
Jakkie Wessels

Purpose The purpose of the paper was to conduct a legal-realist assessment of the South African prison system response to COVID-19. Severely congested and ill-resourced prison systems in Africa face unprecedented challenges amplified by COVID-19. South Africa has recorded the highest COVID-19 positivity rate in Africa and, on March 15th 2020, declared a national state of disaster. The first prison system case was notified on April 6th 2020. Design/methodology/approach A legal-realist assessment of the South African prison system response to COVID-19 in the 12 months following initial case notification focused on the minimum State obligations to comply with human rights norms, and the extent to which human, health and occupational health rights of prisoners and staff were upheld during disaster measures. Findings A legal-realist account was developed, which revealed the indeterminate nature of application of South African COVID-19 government directives, ill-resourced COVID-19 mitigation measures, alarming occupational health and prison conditions and inadequate standards of health care in prisons when evaluated against the rule of law during State declaration of disaster. Originality/value This legal-realist assessment is original by virtue of its unique evaluation of the South African prison system approach to tackling COVID-19. It acknowledged State efforts, policymaking processes and outcomes and how these operated within the prison system itself. By moving beyond the deleterious impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the already precarious South African prison system, the authors argue for rights assurance for those who live and work in its prisons, improved infrastructure and greater substantive equality of all deprived of their liberty in South Africa.


Author(s):  
Valencia Vuyisile Ndlangamandla ◽  
Nontuthuko Rosemary Ntuli

Abstract Key message The morpho-agronomic and genetic studies recorded variations in vegetative and reproductive traits, and in molecular information through population structure and clustering approaches among South African Phaseolus vulgaris landraces. Abstract Phaseolus vulgaris L., commonly known as common beans, is widely used for its edible leaves, immature pods, and dry seeds. Studies on variation in morphology and genetics among P. vulgaris landraces are limited in South Africa. Therefore, the current study aimed to determine the morpho-agronomic and genetic variations among P. vulgaris landraces. Thirty-eight landraces from different agro-ecological origins, planted in a randomized complete block design, had their variation in vegetative and reproductive traits determined. These landraces were studied for their genetic diversity using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. The landraces were clustered in a biplot and dendrogram based on their seed coats, shape, similar morpho-agronomic traits, and their areas of origin. A total of 57 alleles were produced with a mean of 3.64 per SSR locus. The polymorphism information content ranged from 0.00 to 0.58. The population structure had the highest delta value K = 2, thus the 38 landraces were divided into two subpopulations based on the Bayesian approach. The population structure showed an overlap among the landraces as several from the Mesoamerican carried some seed traits or genes from the Andean gene pool, and showed a high level of admixtures. The principal coordinate analysis and the dendrogram had a similar clustering pattern as the population structure. This study revealed the potential markers with high diversity that can be used to determine genetically homogenous/heterogeneous landraces. Therefore, the use of PV-ctt001, PV-ag001, and PV-at003 could be beneficial in future breeding, conservation, and marker-assisted selection studies.


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