scholarly journals Mentorship Programmes within the Small and Medium Sized Contractor Development Programme: A Case Study of the Free State Province, South Africa

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (12) ◽  
pp. 712-722
Author(s):  
Godfrey Mofokeng
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
South African ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Development Programme ◽  
Free State ◽  
African Government ◽  
Free State Province ◽  
Construction Firms

The South African government has been implementing various small and medium sized contractor development programmes in an effort to redress the legacy created by apartheid government. The programmes fulfil such an objective through awarding construction projects to the historically disadvantaged Black contractors to enable them develop competent skills, build viable construction firms, create jobs and redistribute wealth. A mentorship programme was put in place to assist the contractors with technical, managerial, contractual and business impediments they might be encountered in the project execution and in running the construction business. The main aim of the paper was to conduct an evaluation of the contractor development mentorship programme in South Africa using the Free State Province as a case study. Questionnaires were distributed to 120 small and medium contractors in the Free State Province, and a review of literature was undertaken. Financial factors were found to be amongst the leading causes of contractors’ failures. It was also established that educational qualification and experience in the construction industry have an effect in a contractor’s failure or success. A lot of contractors revealed that they were not exposed to the Contractor Development Programmes like in other provinces hence 74% did not participate in any contractor development programmes and only 26% did participate. The paper concluded with recommendations on how mentorship within the contractor development programme can be improved.

scholarly journals A practical theological approach to the challenge of poverty in post-1994 South Africa: Apostolic Faith Mission as a case study

2017 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mookgo S. Kgatle
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
National Development ◽  
Development Plan ◽  
African Government ◽  
Reconstruction Strategy ◽  
Apostolic Faith Mission ◽  
Growth Initiative ◽  
Practical Theological

This article demonstrates a practical theological approach to the challenge of poverty in post-1994 South Africa by using Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) as a case study. It argues that while the Reconstruction Development Plan, the Growth Employment and Reconstruction strategy, Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa, New Growth Path and the National Development Plan have achieved some level of economic growth, the majority of people in South Africa still live in poverty. To establish this argument, the article starts first by describing the challenge of poverty in post-1994 South Africa. The different economic approaches to the challenge of poverty in post-1994 South Africa are also explained in detail. Lastly, the article elaborates on the ways in which the AFM through its local assemblies can alleviate poverty. The article concludes that the AFM is a collaborator to the post-1994 South African government.

scholarly journals Diversity of bartonellae associated with small mammals inhabiting Free State province, South Africa

2004 ◽  
Vol 54 (6) ◽  
pp. 1959-1967 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Marié Pretorius ◽  
Lorenza Beati ◽  
Richard J. Birtles
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Citrate Synthase ◽  
Free State ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Free State Province ◽  
Protein Encoding ◽  
Encoding Genes

The prevalence and diversity of bartonellae infecting the blood of 10 small mammal species inhabiting nine Nature Reserves of the Free State province, South Africa, was assessed using phenotypic, genotypic and phylogenetic methods. Of 86 small mammals sampled, 38 animals belonging to five different species yielded putative bartonellae. Thirty-two isolates were confirmed as bartonellae and were characterized by comparison of partial citrate synthase gene (gltA) sequences. Phylogenetic reconstructions derived from alignment of these sequences with those available for other bartonellae indicated that the South African rodent-associated isolates formed two distinct clades within the radius of the genus Bartonella. One of these clades also included recognized Bartonella species associated with rodents native to Eurasia but not to the New World, whereas the second clade contained exclusively isolates associated with South African rodents. Comparison of gltA sequences delineated the isolates into a number of ecologically distinct populations and provided an indication that a combination of phylogenetics and the identification of sequence clusters in housekeeping protein-encoding genes could be developed as a key criterion in the classification of bartonellae. This study is the first to investigate wildlife-associated bartonellae in Africa, adding support to their ubiquity and broad diversity and to the paradigm that the phylogenetic positions of the Bartonella species encountered today have been influenced by the geographical distribution of their hosts.

scholarly journals The Impact Of Business Support Services To SMMEs In South Africa

2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Motshedisi S. Mathibe ◽  
Johan H. Van Zyl
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Free State ◽  
South African Government ◽  
The South ◽  
African Government ◽  
Business Support ◽  
The Government ◽  
Support Programmes

Small Medium and Micro Enterprises in South Africa were operating in the era of the apartheid regime but were not given enough support and were not a priority in the government of those days. Before democratic transition, the South African government was mainly giving attention to large businesses as well as state-owned enterprises. It was only in the late 1970s and the early 1980s that the South African government realised the importance of the small enterprise sector and its contribution to the countrys economy. The democratic regime of the early 1990s gave SMMEs an opportunity to participate in the South African economy. A White Paper of 1995 introduced the strategy to promote and develop SMMEs in South Africa and to design an SMME policy framework that will focus its attention on supporting and developing SMMEs. The aim was to enable SMMEs to grow as a way of creating a balance in the economy (away from state-owned and large enterprises) As a result, different support mechanisms have been implemented to support and develop SMMEs in the country since the democratic government took over in 1994. This paper evaluates the business support programmes that have been implemented in South Africa since 1994, specifically in the Free State Province for the development and support of SMMEs. In this respect, the paper compares and evaluates the ability of the business support programmes that have been put in place to develop and support SMMEs in order to grow and become sustainable. This is done by means of a brief overview of the international business support services and an assessment of the South African SMME policy environment. The study also conducted five structured interviews with the management representative of the five different business support programmes in the Free State Province. Some of the key findings indicate that not many SMMEs are aware of business support programmes in the Free State and are even less informed as to where to access finances. At the same time, it was found that staff responsible for business support programmes appears to be incompetent, and therefore, deliver poor quality services. From this study it can be concluded that of all the programmes the government-driven initiatives to develop and support SMMEs struggle the most to become operational. The business support programmes focused on markets to some degree, but seldom made it an inherent requirement. This paper recommends that there should be monitoring and evaluation systems available to document the quality of the service delivery to SMMEs in the Province, and to train the staff of the business support programmes to deliver high-quality services to entrepreneurs. The study compared five business support programmes in the Free State with regards to developing and supporting SMMEs in the province. As a result, the value of the findings might well be considered in terms of future provincial planning documents and policy.

scholarly journals ENERGY DEMAND AND RACE EXPLAINED IN SOUTH AFRICA: A CASE OF ELECTRICITY

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 191-204
Author(s):  
David Mhlanga ◽  
◽  
Rufaro Garidzirai ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Inequality ◽  
Household Head ◽  
Black Population ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
African Government ◽  
Alternative Sources

The study investigated the influence of race in the demand for energy in South Africa using electricity as a case study. The driving force behind the study was to establish whether race still plays a role in access to energy in the country, 26 years into democracy. The study’s contribution is premised on influencing the development of policy that addresses energy inequality in South Africa and the world at large. Using the logistic regression analysis, the study found that race still plays a role in the demand for energy in South Africa. The odds of demand for electricity for the White population was 46.748 per cent higher than that of Blacks, Colored, and Indians combined. Other significant variables were gender, age of household head, net household income per month in Rand and household size. Despite constituting much of the populace in South Africa, the demand for electricity of the Black population was third compared to other races. Such findings reflect the reality that many of the Black households are suffering from energy poverty. Given these results, it is recommended that the South African government invests more in energy and alternative sources of clean energy such as solar and wind which can cater for much of the population.

scholarly journals Selection of procurement systems in the South African construction industry: An exploratory study

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
W. D. Thwala ◽  
M. D. Mathonsi
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Information Technology ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
South African ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Market Competition ◽  
The South ◽  
Client Characteristics ◽  
Project Characteristics ◽  
Selection Of

Purpose of this paper: Procurement systems are vital in ensuring the successful implementation of construction projects precisely in all the phases of any particular project. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate in a systematic manner the factors that influence the selection of a procurement system in the South African construction industry. Research methodology: An extensive theory and literature review of procurement systems was conducted. The literature reviewed included a sample of case studies of procurement systems successfully implemented in completed building and civil engineering projects in South Africa. A questionnaire using a four-round Delphi survey method was used to conduct the empirical study in order to obtain participants' opinions about factors influencing the selection of procurement systems as well as the utility value of various procurement systems on each factor as identified. Finally, data analysis of both qualitative and quantitative techniques was performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Findings: After qualitative analysis, findings of the literature reviewed suggest that factors that influence the selection of procurement systems cut across all the phases of the project as identified in this paper. Therefore, these factors are categorically classified into internal and external factors. Factors from the internal environment were further classified into client characteristics and project characteristics, with client characteristics comprising of variables such as clients' level of knowledge and control, political and social consideration, familiarity of procurement systems, competition, funding arrangement, government public/private sector projects and risk allocation whereas project characteristics comprise of factors (variables) such as size and technical complexity of the project, influence of the project life cycle, expedited project delivery, time, quality and price certainty. Factors from the external environment include variables such as market competition, information technology, regulatory environment, natural causes and globalisation. Research limitations: In terms of its scope this study focused on both national and international literature reviews and the empirical survey of this study was conducted within South Africa. Its target participants were limited to civil engineers, quantity surveyors, construction/project managers, architects and contractors located in three provinces of South Africa, namely Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Limpopo Provinces. Value: This study investigates factors that influence the selection of procurement systems in South Africa for the purpose of assisting and guiding construction practitioners in selecting suitable procurement systems for their planned projects. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that due to changes in the construction industry both factors from the internal and external environments such as size and complexity of construction projects, macro and micro economic conditions, political and social and information technology prevailing, traditional procurement method need to be supplemented with contemporary procurement systems in order to meet the new demands of the industry.

The Socio-Economic Challenges of South African Indigenous Musicians: A Case Study of Venda-Based Vho-Ntshengedzeni Mamphodo

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
N G Mugovhani ◽  
Lebogang Lance Nawa
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Cultural Policy ◽  
Qualitative Case Study ◽  
Arts Management ◽  
Black South African ◽  
Indigenous Music ◽  
Entire Country

This article discusses and raises awareness about the socio-economic plight of indigenous musicians in South Africa. Through a qualitative case study of the Venda musician, Vho-Talelani Andries Ntshengedzeni Mamphodo, dubbed the “Father of mbila music,” the article highlights the fact that the welfare of Black South African artists, particularly indigenous musicians in South Africa, is generally a precarious affair. Their popularity, at the height of their careers, sometimes masks shocking details of exploitation, neglect, and the poverty they are subjected to, which are exposed only after they have died. Empirical data identifies this as a symptom of, among other things, cultural policy and arts management deficiencies in the promotion of indigenous music. The article aims to find ways to redress this unfortunate situation, which is partially a product of general apathy and scant regard that these artists have perennially been subjected to, even by their own governments, as well as some members of their societies. All these factors mentioned are compounded by ignorance on the part of South African artists. Part of the objective of this study was to establish whether the exposition of the Vhavenda musicians is a typical example of all Black South African indigenous musicians and, if this is the case, whether the suggested ways to redress this unfortunate situation could contribute to or play a role in alleviating the plight of such artists in the entire country.

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