Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Socio-economic transformation has been a central point on the agenda of the South African government since 1994. The deeply embedded inequality that is portrayed by socio-economic statistics of the time, justifies this mandate. The Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) strategy is meant to play a key role as an integrated legislative approach towards transformation. However, BEE is an emotionally laden subject that, as a strategy for transformation, attracts criticism from many different sources. The complexities surrounding BEE warrant us to ask whether the current approach towards socio-economic transformation (through BEE) is a legitimate way to address the problems of inequality, unemployment and poverty that the country face. Jürgen Habermas’s theory of democratic law provides us with a theoretical framework that we can use to understand the dynamics of BEE as instrument for transformation. According to Habermas, law can work as a mechanism of social integration in a democratic country like South Africa. Habermas argues that social integration can only take place through law if it is factual and normative at the same time. This also applies to BEE as a law in South Africa. For a law to be accepted as normative, it needs to be seen as legitimate, thus morally and ethically acceptable. These are all prerequisites for the legislated BEE strategy in order to enable social integration. The linkage of Habermas’s theory of democratic law and the practical example of BEE legislation in South Africa, leads to a better understanding of the complexities that surrounds the issue of institutionalised and legislated socio-economic transformation. It does not necessarily provide infallible solutions, but important insight into the current problems. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Sedert 1994 is sosio-ekonomiese transformasie ‘n sentrale punt op die agenda van die Suid-Afrikaanse regering. Hierdie mandaat word geregverdig deur die diepliggende ongelykheid wat sigbaar is in die ontwikkelingstatistiek van die tyd. Die Swart Ekonomiese Bemagtiging (SEB) –strategie is veronderstel om ‘n sleutelrol te speel as ‘n geïntegreerde wetlike benadering tot transformasie. SEB is egter ‘n emosioneel-belaaide onderwerp wat as strategie vir transformasie kritiek ontlok van baie verskillende oorde. Die kompleksiteite rondom SEB regverdig ons om te vra of die huidige benadering tot sosio-ekonomiese transformasie (deur SEB) die mees legitieme manier is om die probleme van ongelykheid, werkloosheid en armoede aan te spreek wat die land in die gesig staar. Jürgen Habermas se teorie vir demokratiese regspraak dien as ‘n teoretiese raamwerk wat ons kan inspan om die dinamika van SEB as instrument vir transformasie te verstaan. Na aanleiding van Habermas kan wet werk as ‘n meganisme vir sosiale integrasie in ‘n demokratiese land soos Suid-Afrika. Habermas verduidelik verder dat sosiale integrasie net kan plaasvind deur ‘n wet as die wet terselftertyd feitelik en normatief is. Dit is ook van toepassing op SEB, as ‘n wet in Suid-Afrika. Vir ‘n wet om normatief te wees, moet dit gesien word as legitiem, dus moreel en eties aanvaarbaar. Hierdie is alles voorvereistes waaraan die wetlike SEB strategie moet voldoen om sosiale integrasie te kan bewerkstellig. Die analogie tussen Habermas se teorie vir ‘n demokratiese regstelsel en die praktiese voorbeeld van SEB in Suid-Afrika, lei tot beter begrip vir die kompleksiteite rondom die kwessie van geïnstitusionaliseerde en wetlike sosio-ekonomiese transformasie. Onfeilbare oplossings word nie noodwendig verskaf nie, maar wel insig in die huidige probleme.

This study investigates the application of conventional marketing tactics of 93 hawkers in the East London Central Business District (CBD). Its focus is on what is being practiced in this informal trading environment from a marketing point of view. To this end the primary objective was to determine the extent of the use of generally accepted principles of common (conventional) marketing in primarily black owned or managed hawker businesses in the East London CBD area. Secondary objectives centred around the degree to which new or unknown marketing tactics were implemented and to identify any influencing factors and the relevance of these to marketing. An in-depth analysis of the marketing environment of the hawker and East London region is depicted and the literature review of the relevant theory relating to the marketing of small businesses is covered and debated thoroughly. A three section questionnaire covering demographic information (Section A), the extent of the use of researcher-identified generally accepted marketing tactics (Section B), and an open ended question identifying which marketing tactics and their ranking the hawkers used in order to achieve marketing success (Section C) was implemented through interviews with 93 hawkers in the East London CBD. Although many of the individual questions results produced interesting statistics, conclusions from analysis of the composite results indicate a fair application of the marketing concept (29%) a slightly higher percentage applying the societal marketing concept (51,6%) and 38,6% of hawkers in the East London CBD applying the marketing mix. The top 3 of 7 marketing tactics identified as being used to achieve good marketing performance were customer service, stall/product presentation and the offering of a discount or discounted pricing. No significant correlations existed between the demographic statistics and the application of any particular marketing tactic. The significant influencing factors noted were the hawkers zero tolerance for competition, the lack of any long term planning, no delayed gratification or building of capital and the strong need to belong to a group or association. It was concluded that much needs to be done to investigate methods of improving the application of marketing tactics but more importantly to analyse the reason for many of their actions. Special attention is recommended to be placed on obtaining further insight and support for the observed influencing factors in order to be able to state them as fact. / Business Management / M.Comm.

According to the Financial Sector (FS) Charter, in August 2002, at the NEDLAC Financial Sector Summit, "the financial sector committed itself to the development of a Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) charter. It made this commitment, noting that: "Despite significant progress since the establishment of a democratic government in 1994, South African society remains characterised by racially based income and social services inequalities. This is not only unjust, but inhibits the country's ability to achieve its full economic potential. BEE is a mechanism aimed at addressing inequalities and mobilising the energies of all South Africans. It will contribute towards sustained economic growth, development and social transformation in South Africa. Inequalities also manifest themselves in the country's financial sector. A positive and proactive response from the sector through the implementation of BEE will further unlock the sector's potential, promote its global competitiveness, and enhance its world class status". Parties of the Financial Sector Charter agreed on the seven pillars below: 1) Human resource management - provide resources to develop skills of black people with the aim of increasing black participation in all levels of management in the sector. 2) Procurement policies - implement a targeted procurement strategy to enhance BEE. 3) Enterprise development - improve the level of support provided to BEE companies in all sectors of the economy. This would be achieved through skills transfer, administration and technical support. 4) Access to financial services - provide affordable financial services to the previously disadvantaged groups and making sure financial services are accessible to these groups. 5) Empowerment financing - work closely with government and government financial institutions to increase resources for empowerment financing. 6) Ownership in the financial sector - 25% of shares in each party of the FS Charter should be owned by black people by 2010. 7) Corporate social investrnent (CSI) - Each financial institution will have to spend 0.5% of their after-tax profit on corporate social investment projects. The projects should be targeted at black groups with a strong focus on transformation. The research evaluates the applicability of Lewin's Force Field Analysis (a change management model) in the implementation of the Financial Sector Charter at Standard Bank of South Africa. It attempts to achieve this by looking at how the Financial Sector Charter is being implemented at Standard Bank. The research looks at three main areas: 1) The "context" of the research problem, by seeking to understand Standard Bank's understanding of the FS Charter, the importance of implementing the FS Charter by the bank, the progress made thus far in the FS Charter implementation and comparison to the BEE scorecards of the other three main bank. 2) The "process", i.e. how the FS Charter is implemented in the bank, the driving and restraining forces of successful implementation of the FS Charter and the lessons learnt. 3) The "outcome" , i.e. benefits of implementing the FS Charter and what could be done to ensure that change management processes are successfully implemented. Personal interviews were used to discover other valuable information which was not available on the bank's published documents, and other related sources such as the Financial Sector Charter document. The sample size for the study was ten Standard Bank employees from different areas of the bank who are either senior managers or directors, in the bank. Internal publications available on the Standard Bank intranet such as the bank's employment equity plans, and the bank's sustainability reports from 2004 to 2011 (Standard Bank, 2004-2011) were analysed for the purpose of the study. The researcher also analysed public documents such as the bank's annual financial reports, bank's equity reports and internal publications on related topics of the research question. Lewin's Forces Field Analysis (FFA) points out that in any environment where change is required; there are both driving and restraining forces that influence the implementation of a change programme. The FFA is a valuable change management tool at trying to transform the behaviour of an individual, and this will lead to transformation of groups and, ultimately the organisation. It also helps to establish the balance between the driving and restraining forces of the change programme. Lewin's (1951) theory put forward the idea that change occurs in three stages: the first stage of change is unfreezing; the second stage is moving and lastly, the third stage is refreezing. In the unfreezing stage, the bank's change management initiatives would need to be directed at giving the individuals a desire and motivation to be ready and open about a planned change initiative. This could be achieved by clearly communicating why change is important, benefits of change and the compelling reasons for change. In moving, the bank would need to give support and confidence to the people affected by change in order to start accepting and buying-in to new perspectives, which enable them to realise that change will improve the current situation. In the refreezing stage, the bank would need to ensure that new patterns of behaviour are reinforced. This will ensure that the changes are applied in everyday business, and this helps create a sense of stability, where those affected by change feel comfortable and confident with the new approach of doing things. The research concludes that managers should recognise the sensitivity around transformation, and should always try to ensure that change management initiatives directed at transformation are unifying, fair and transparent. This should be done to avoid a situation where an employee (or prospective employees) and other stakeholders feel under-appreciated or overlooked because of their gender or race. This demands a carefully crafted and implemented change management programme, whose results will not only unify the bank's employees, but also create a competitive edge for the bank. Lewin's Force Field Analysis (FFA) model is a change management tool that could be used to produce such results.

This study endeavoured to uncover the trust experiences of individuals involved in business alliances between traditional companies (TCs) and historically disadvantaged institutions (HDIs) with a view to constructing a model that would facilitate a better understanding of organisational trust within these institutions. The theoretical study proposed a theoretical model of trust in the alliances between TCs and HDIs within an economic empowerment domain. The empirical study employed Q methodology to investigate the trust experiences of the participants. The 25 individuals who participated in the study were selected by means of both non-probability purposive and snowball sampling The participants were presented with the Q sample containing 50 items which they had to sort in accordance with the instruction given. The post-Q sorting interview was conducted to give the participants a chance to expound on their reasoning for the sorting of the Q sample. Data were analysed using Pearson product-moment correlation and factor analysis. Six factors revealed participants’ experiences of trust in the alliances: Factor A (Sincerity trust alliances), Factor B (Values trust alliances), Factor C (Duped trust alliances), Factor D (Vigilant trust alliances), Factor E (Deceitful trust alliances) and Factor F (Inclination to trust alliances). The trust experiences of the six groups were used to theorise about the association between the participants’ trust experiences and their performance on the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). In the main, the study found that groups that had pleasant trust experiences with their partner organisations exhibited have high positive affect (PA) and low negative affect (NA). Although exploratory in nature, the study contributed an empirically derived theoretical framework of cognitive and affective trust within business alliances that may be further investigated in future research endeavours. In this was it identified and proposed a modus operandi for closing the trust gap. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / D. Com. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Bibliography: leaves 116-138 / Bibliography: leaves 116-138 / The purpose of this research study was to examine the impact of institutional constraints, management competencies, strategic and structural constraints on the performance of black-owned small, medium and micro-sized enterprises (SMMEs) in City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality (CTMM). A quantitative survey was conducted using the probability sampling (N=353) of the black-owned SMMEs in CTMM. The Pearson’s correlational analysis was used to determine the relationship between institutional constraints, management competencies (as composite sets of human resources, financial resources and information resources), strategic and structural constraints, and the performance of the business (as composite sets of financial growth and organizational growth). The results indicated a negative relationship between the dependent variables and independent variables. The item analysis, dimensionality analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling were performed to determine the factor structure of all the independent and dependent variables, the results yielded a good fit of all the measurement models. These findings may provide new practical knowledge for the financial and non-financial institutions to consider the position of black-owned SMMEs when they design policies, which add to the theoretical knowledge in the SMMEs sector. / Business Management / M. Comm. (Business Management (Finance))

The Steel Merchant offers a service of stocking and distributing steel products and value added services throughout Africa. The company is the largest steel merchant in Africa employing over 5500 employees. The South African government implemented the Employment Equity Act, No 55, (1998) and Broad-Based Black Economic Act, No 53, (2003) to readdress the discrimination of the past and create fair opportunities for Previously Disadvantaged Individuals (PDI) in the workplace. The Steel Merchant's business environment is severely affected by these legislations and is required to comply with the provisions of the Act or will receive fines and penalties. Since the Acts inception the merchant continues to struggle in recruiting and retaining PDIs in professionally qualified and management positions. The organization has experienced strategic drift by falling from a Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) Procurement Recognition/Status Level of 5 down to level 6. The research identified various factors within the organization that are hindering its overall ability to adapt and progress in terms of Employment Equity (EE) and BEE. The study is focused on identifying the internal and external barriers that prevent the effective implementation of BEE and EE strategies in order to recruit and retain previously disadvantaged professionals at the Steel Merchant. The Research Objectives are: • To evaluate the effect of organizational culture and climate on the implementation of Employment Equity, Affirmative Action (AA) and BEE Strategies • To analyze the importance of Human Resource Management (HRM) in the development of recruitment and retention strategies of previously disadvantaged professionals • To investigate the differences in gender and race leadership qualities and behavior • To identify and assess the barriers in implementing employment equity recruitment and retention strategies • To determine how government legislation will influence the Steel Organizations' competitiveness internationally Internal secondary data was used to analyze the Merchant's Human Resource Management, EE and BEE performance. External secondary data from the South African government departments was used to analyze the legislative Acts and how the company performs compared to the industry standards. A quantitative research approach was followed in the investigation. A questionnaire was developed using closed-ended questions to obtain information related to the respondent's demographical background as well as their opinion on each objective. The questionnaire was distributed by email to 1 00 employees and weighted according to racial group (Black, White, Coloured and Asian) and gender (Male and Female). The method allowed the researcher to receive and analyze the information quickly at no financial cost. Descriptive statistics were used to interpret the results and describe the behaviour of each racial and gender group contained in the sample. The data methods used were: • Percentages • The mean, mode and median • Standard Deviation The conclusions from the sample were used to generalize about the steel merchant population whilst research from recognized academics was utilized to authenticate and substantiate the research findings improving the accuracy and reliability of the research. The results of the study identified the following factors have contributed to the merchant's inability to recruit and retain PDI at professionally qualified and management levels: • The Steel Merchant has a white male dominated organizational culture and ineffective HRM strategies • Black shareholders have contributed little towards previously disadvantaged development creating resentment by employees • Employment Equity, Black Economic Empowerment and Affirmative action has created racial divides, a lack of trust and will negatively influence the company's competitiveness internationally. The research identified various problems that hinder the implementation of EE and BEE policy at the steel merchant which makes it difficult to recruit and retain talented PDI. The following recommendations have been made to minimize resistance and integrate EE and BEE policies to improve recruitment and retention in the organization: • Define and communicate the BEE/EE vision and strategy • Delayer hierarchal levels • National Culture Training • Implement Performance Management Systems • lncentivize Knowledge Sharing • Re-evaluate the recruitment policies • Train, develop and mentor PDI • Develop career paths and succession plans • Create a leadership development program • Create a shared understanding of EE • Address white fears through empowerment • Black shareholders should be actively involved with the development of PO employees • Harness African culture to succeed internationally. EE and BEE is obligatory and will inevitably influence the company's performance. The Steel Merchant has the resources and capabilities to eliminate resistance and implement effective HRM strategies to recruit and retain talented POl in professional and management positions. By achieving this objective, the company's Broad Based Black Employment Equity (BBBEE) rating will advance resulting in a sustainable competitive advantage and more business opportunities in the future. / Graduate School of Business Leadership / M.B.A.

The Steel Merchant offers a service of stocking and distributing steel products and value added services throughout Africa. The company is the largest steel merchant in Africa employing over 5500 employees. The South African government implemented the Employment Equity Act, No 55, (1998) and Broad-Based Black Economic Act, No 53, (2003) to readdress the discrimination of the past and create fair opportunities for Previously Disadvantaged Individuals (PDI) in the workplace. The Steel Merchant's business environment is severely affected by these legislations and is required to comply with the provisions of the Act or will receive fines and penalties. Since the Acts inception the merchant continues to struggle in recruiting and retaining PDIs in professionally qualified and management positions. The organization has experienced strategic drift by falling from a Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) Procurement Recognition/Status Level of 5 down to level 6. The research identified various factors within the organization that are hindering its overall ability to adapt and progress in terms of Employment Equity (EE) and BEE. The study is focused on identifying the internal and external barriers that prevent the effective implementation of BEE and EE strategies in order to recruit and retain previously disadvantaged professionals at the Steel Merchant. The Research Objectives are: • To evaluate the effect of organizational culture and climate on the implementation of Employment Equity, Affirmative Action (AA) and BEE Strategies • To analyze the importance of Human Resource Management (HRM) in the development of recruitment and retention strategies of previously disadvantaged professionals • To investigate the differences in gender and race leadership qualities and behavior • To identify and assess the barriers in implementing employment equity recruitment and retention strategies • To determine how government legislation will influence the Steel Organizations' competitiveness internationally Internal secondary data was used to analyze the Merchant's Human Resource Management, EE and BEE performance. External secondary data from the South African government departments was used to analyze the legislative Acts and how the company performs compared to the industry standards. A quantitative research approach was followed in the investigation. A questionnaire was developed using closed-ended questions to obtain information related to the respondent's demographical background as well as their opinion on each objective. The questionnaire was distributed by email to 1 00 employees and weighted according to racial group (Black, White, Coloured and Asian) and gender (Male and Female). The method allowed the researcher to receive and analyze the information quickly at no financial cost. Descriptive statistics were used to interpret the results and describe the behaviour of each racial and gender group contained in the sample. The data methods used were: • Percentages • The mean, mode and median • Standard Deviation The conclusions from the sample were used to generalize about the steel merchant population whilst research from recognized academics was utilized to authenticate and substantiate the research findings improving the accuracy and reliability of the research. The results of the study identified the following factors have contributed to the merchant's inability to recruit and retain PDI at professionally qualified and management levels: • The Steel Merchant has a white male dominated organizational culture and ineffective HRM strategies • Black shareholders have contributed little towards previously disadvantaged development creating resentment by employees • Employment Equity, Black Economic Empowerment and Affirmative action has created racial divides, a lack of trust and will negatively influence the company's competitiveness internationally. The research identified various problems that hinder the implementation of EE and BEE policy at the steel merchant which makes it difficult to recruit and retain talented PDI. The following recommendations have been made to minimize resistance and integrate EE and BEE policies to improve recruitment and retention in the organization: • Define and communicate the BEE/EE vision and strategy • Delayer hierarchal levels • National Culture Training • Implement Performance Management Systems • lncentivize Knowledge Sharing • Re-evaluate the recruitment policies • Train, develop and mentor PDI • Develop career paths and succession plans • Create a leadership development program • Create a shared understanding of EE • Address white fears through empowerment • Black shareholders should be actively involved with the development of PO employees • Harness African culture to succeed internationally. EE and BEE is obligatory and will inevitably influence the company's performance. The Steel Merchant has the resources and capabilities to eliminate resistance and implement effective HRM strategies to recruit and retain talented POl in professional and management positions. By achieving this objective, the company's Broad Based Black Employment Equity (BBBEE) rating will advance resulting in a sustainable competitive advantage and more business opportunities in the future. / Graduate School of Business Leadership / M.B.A.

Investments in productive assets by broad-based black economic empowerment (BEE) enterprises in South Africa (SA) during the 1990s have been constrained, in part, by a lack of access to capital. Even if capital can be sourced, BEE businesses often face a liquidity problem, as conventional, equally amortized loan repayment plans do not take into account the size and timing of investment returns, or there are lags in the adjustment of management to such new investments. The aim of this dissertation, therefore, is to compare five alternative loan products to the conventional fixed repayment (equally amortized) loan (FRL) that lenders could offer to finance BEE investments in productive assets that are faced with liquidity stress, namely: the single payment non-amortized loan (SPL); the decreasing payment loan (DP); the partial payment loan (PPL); the graduated payment loan (GPL); and the deferred payment loan (DEFPLO-2). This is done firstly by comparing loan repayment schedules for the six loans using a loan principal of R200 000, repaid over 20 years at a nominal contractual annual interest rate of 10%. Secondly, data from five actual BEE loan applications to ABSA Bank and Ithala in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) during 2003 are used to compare how the FRL, SPL, DP, GPL, and DEFPLO-l, affect investment profitability, and both the borrower's and the lender's cash-flows, assuming that the lender sources funds from a development finance wholesaler. Results for the first part of the study show that the SPL has smaller initial annual repayments than the FRL (R20 000 versus R23 492) that ease liquidity stress in the early years after asset purchase, but requires a nominal balloon repayment of both interest and principal in year 20 of R220 000. The SPL is also the most costly loan, with total nominal and real repayments that are R130 162 and R43 821, respectively, more than the FRL. The PPL has the lowest total nominal and real repayments assuming that the borrower can make the nominal balloon repayment in year 5 of R202 173. If not, the ending balance of the loan in year 4 would have to be refinanced at current market interest rates. In this situation, the PPL uses very similar financing terms to that of the variable rate long-term loans already used in SA, and thus may not be a useful option to consider for BEE investments facing a liquidity problem. Interest rates may have risen over the last four years of the loan, encouraging lenders to add a premium into the interest rate for the refinanced loan, which could worsen the liquidity position of the BEE enterprise. The DP requires higher initial nominal annual loan repayments (R6 508 more than the FRL) that do not ease the liquidity problem in the early years of operation. The DP loan, however, has total nominal and real repayments that are R59 838 and R23 118, respectively, less than the FRL. A GPL with diminishing, finite interest-rate subsidy seems to have the most potential to ease the BEE investment's liquidity stress. The 17YRGPL used to buy land had total nominal and real repayments that were R84 634 and R67 726 (after subsidy), respectively, less than the FRL. If the GPL was used to purchase machinery-type assets, then the 6YRGPL would have required total nominal and real repayments of R13 957 and R12 596, respectively, less than the FRL. Finally, the DEFPLO-2 loan required a total nominal repayment of R531 128 (R61 290 more than the FRL) and a total real repayment of R345 358 (R26 095 more than the FRL). Clearly, the GPL and DEFPLO-2 loan repayment schedules can partly resolve the liquidity problem in the early years (assuming no major income shocks), although the DEFPLO-2 plan requires higher total repayments than the FRL. The question remains whether lenders would be prepared to implement these two financing plans for BEE investments in productive assets, where the funds to finance the diminishing, finite interest-rate subsidy or the deferment would be sourced, and how the interest-rate subsidy would affect asset values. In the second part of the study, the profitability of the five proposed BEE investments in KZN during 2003 was compared for the five loan products using the Net Present Value (NPV) and the Internal Rateof- return (lRR) capital budgeting procedures. The loan terms, interest rates, principal and characteristics of each BEE firm are different with current rates of return on equity varying by business type. Companies A (five-year loan) and C (10-year loan) are agribusinesses with a higher expected current rate of return of 8% on machinery investments, while companies B (eight-year loan), D (15-year loan), and E (20-year loan) invest in farmland with a lower expected current annual rate of return of 5%. The five business plans may not be representative in a statistical sense of all BEE firms in KZN, but were used because they were readily available. Initially it was assumed that donor/grant funds from a development finance wholesaler were lent to an intermediary (like a commercial bank), which in turn, could finance the five investments using any of the five alternative loans, with the lender's repayment to the wholesaler being via a FRL. It was then assumed that the lender could repay its borrowed funds using the same loans, or combinations of them, that it had granted to these companies. Results show that GPLs and DEFPLs can resolve the liquidity problem associated with investments like land in the early years after purchase provided that projected business performance is adequate, while the SPL and GPL are preferred for BEE projects with stronger initial cash-flows like machinery investments. The study also shows that the loan product that best improves the borrower's liquidity is not always best suited to the lender. In most cases, the GPL suited the borrower, but in four of the five cases, the lender would prefer the SPL and to repay the wholesaler using the SPL. The SPL, however, is unlikely to be used, given the large negative real net cash-flows that it generates when the final payments are due. Recent SA experience with the GPLs (interest rate subsidies funded by private sector sugar millers via Ithala) and the DEFPLs (via the Land Reform Empowerment Facility (LREF) which is a wholesaler of funds in SA) suggests that there is scope to alleviate the liquidity problem if a wholesaler of funds can offer such terms to private banks and venture capital investors who then on-lend to finance BEE asset investments that are otherwise considered relatively high credit risks. This would shift the liquidity problem away from the client to the wholesaler of the funds, but requires access to capital at favourable interest rates. Such capital could be sourced from dedicated empowerment funds earmarked by the private sector, donors and the SA government. The lesson for policymakers is that broad-based BEE could be promoted in other farm and non-farm sectors in SA using similar innovative loan products to complement cash grant funds via financial intermediaries, bearing in mind the limitations of the GPL and DEFPL - such as how to finance the subsidy or deferment, and the impact of income shocks. Donor and National Empowerment Fund capital could be used to allocate grants to provide previously disadvantaged individuals with own equity and also to fund finite, diminishing interest-rate subsidies via GPLs, or to fund DEFPLs (many LREF loans have been leveraged by a cash grant component). This could create an incentive for public/private partnerships, as public/donor funds could be then used to attract private sector funds to finance broadbased BEE investments in SA that satisfy empowerment criteria. The five case studies did not show how the GPLs and DEFPLs could make all profitable (positive net present value) but financially infeasible (returns do not match the size and timing of the lender's financing plan) BEE investments in productive assets under the FRL feasible, except for Company E that showed a positive NPV and IRR when the 19YRGPL was used. They did, however, show how the alternative loans could improve liquidity for investments with either strong or poor cash-flows. The financiers consulted to source case studies in KZN in 2003 at the time of the study could not provide the researcher with any profitable, but financially infeasible, BEE business plans. This raises some concern about how effective these empowerment loan products could be in the future as there is uncertainty over how many potential BEE investments in productive assets in SA are likely to be profitable but financially infeasible. Further research is thus needed to assess the impact of these alternative loans on a wider range of broad-based BEE investments, particularly non-farm projects, than considered in this dissertation. / Thesis (M.Agric.Mgt.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

Broad-based black economic empowerment (BBEE) is a policy objective in South Africa. Farmworker equity-share schemes (FWES) satisfy several of the empowerment goals specified by the proposed AgriBEE Scorecard. Information about the costs and benefits of subscribing to an empowerment label will help managers to make more informed decisions about empowerment and could therefore promote BBEE. The Thandi label is an initiative to market fruit and wines originating from FWES and farms operated by previously disadvantaged farmers. A case study of the Thandi label was undertaken to determine whether or not the accredited empowerment attribute adds value to Thandi products. An exploratory-explanatory case study was adopted basing questions largely on the theoretical propositions of asymmetric information, the benefits of product labelling and the preconditions for a successful label. Primary data were collected via in-depth interviews with managers of Capespan, The Company of Wine People and empowerment farms participating in the Thandi label. The study made use of in-depth interviews with key informants to investigate issues considered (on theoretical grounds) to be critical in establishing a successful label. Responses were subsequently tabulated and compared, where relevant, across respondents in order to check for consensus views. Results indicate that the Thandi label had not succeeded in differentiating fruit, whereas the Thandi wine label had increased sales revenue and was covering accreditation costs incurred by farms as well as the recurring costs of maintaining and marketing the label. Thandi fruit had not grown its share of the domestic or export markets and did not command a price premium, Capespan subsequently discontinued the Thandi fruit label. Thandi wine, on the other hand, had grown its export market and consumers were prepared to pay a premium for Thandi wine products. The data indicate that empowerment attributes were useful in finding shelf space for products, but that quality is essential to grow market share and to earn price premiums. In short, accredited empowerment attributes can add value to quality products sold to discerning consumers who lack information about empowerment and quality attributes at the point of sale. Empowerment labels must include quality attributes. Government should at least absorb some of the transaction costs confronting producers and marketing agencies in negotiating standards for farms and firms participating in generic empowerment labels. It could also offer auditing services to local accreditation agencies to improve their credibility. Further research estimating consumers' willingness-to-pay for products branded with empowerment labels is necessary to estimate the size of premiums that different products may command. / Thesis (M.Ag.Man.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007.

Text in English / The aim of this research is to assess the impact social capital has had on Somali businesses. It argues against the perception that Somali business expertise is derived solely from the principles of economics. It argues that social capital plays a pivotal role in shaping the Somali spirit of entrepreneurship. The role of social capital in the creation of Somali human and financial capital is examined. This thesis, being a qualitative study, used semi-structured, unstructured interviews and direct observation as data collection methods. / Sociology / M.A. (Sociology)