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Entrepreneurship through the Junior Achievement Botswana Programme : realities and perceptions.Kenosi, Precious Queen. January 2006 (has links)
Though Botswana is regarded as one of the richer countries in Africa, it is faced with
challenges experienced by other developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa such as
poverty, unemployment and HIV/AIDS. Recession in the mining and agriculture sectors,
which have been the pillars of the country's wealth, has caused the economy to decline.
The National Development Plan 9 (NDP 9 2003/4-2008/9) is a five year national
development plan for Botswana that states that 36.7% of the populace have incomes
below the poverty datum line. Entrenched in the nation's Vision 2016 statement are two
development goals aimed at poverty reduction; to create sustainable jobs and to develop
human resources. The Botswana government has thus earmarked the promotion of small,
medium and micro-enterprises as one of the measures to reduce poverty. This shift to
self-employment would help create much needed jobs, contribute to the economy and
improve the quality of life of the Batswana. The government's efforts alone will not
suffice in this predicament. It needs the assistance of all stakeholders including the
private sector and the general public.
The purpose of the study was to investigate whether the Junior Achievement Botswana
Programme is an effective programme for equipping the youth in Botswana with business
skills with the hope that they would in turn establish businesses in their communities. The
study focused on exploring the perceptions of the trainees/learners in the programme to
establish if they felt that the training gave them the necessary knowledge and skills to
boost their confidence and motivation to plan, start up and sustain business ventures. The
perceptions of teachers and trainers involved in the delivery of the programme were also
sought to establish the programme's strengths and challenges and to suggest how the
programme could be improved. The study also employed an entrepreneurial test to
determine whether the programme attracted teachers and students who have the desired
characteristics for business. At the heart of this study was an attempt to articulate the role
of education and training in preparing the youth for self-employment. Data was collected
using both quantitative and qualitative data collection strategies. The data was analysed
descriptively as well deriving themes and meanings.
The study found out that the JAB is a good and informative programme that inspires the
youth and instils confidence in them to believe that they have gained knowledge and
skills required to be engaged in viable business ventures. They felt particularly confident
about market research, production and marketing components of running businesses.
However, the study also found out that the programme has deficiencies such as
insufficient preparation of its trainees to access and manage finances, inability to develop
networks for support especially once the students have left schools and are no longer
under the comforting guidance of the programme facilitators. In addition, the study
realised that the programme seems to overlook the role of monitoring, follow up,
evaluation, networking and mentoring in training for entrepreneurship. Issues pertaining
to partnerships and public relations also surfaced in the study. On the whole, the
respondents in the study found the programme enjoyable and worthwhile and wished it
could be extended to many others.
The study also found that the desired characteristics for business as identified by the
entrepreneurship test administered were possessed by fewer than 20 percent of the
students and teachers. This may also have contributed to the low numbers of people who
went on to start their own businesses. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2006.
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Effects of governance on the sustainability and continuity of family businesses in BotswanaTadu, Ruramayi 04 1900 (has links)
Family businesses have become a topic of growing interest among scholars and policy makers
at both international and local levels, particularly given the sector’s contribution to the world
economies. The increasingly volatile employment climate that prevails in many African
settings today has increased the focus on small and medium enterprises as engines of
economic growth and employment creation, and Botswana is no exception. The majority of
family businesses are small to medium enterprises.
The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of governance structures and
systems on the sustainability and continuity of family-owned and controlled businesses in
Botswana. A study of this nature was important in view that some key sectors of the Botswana
economy are dominated by small and medium family businesses. Of concern is the lack of
continuity from one generation to the other among family businesses. Therefore, an
understanding of the family dynamics and family business governance systems is important
for managing the success and survival of the family business. Studies on small and medium
enterprises have been carried out in Botswana mostly focusing on their problems, but not on
their governance and sustainability. This was done using a cross-sectional research survey
design. The target population for the study comprised small and medium family-owned
businesses drawn from the manufacturing and professional services sectors and registered with
the Business Botswana and Local Enterprises Authority in 2017. A sample of 144 familyowned
businesses based in Gaborone and Francistown was polled.
Quantitative data for the research was collected using a questionnaire. The quantitative
research methodology adopted applied correlation and regression analysis, utilised Pearson
correlation tests and Levene’s independent sample tests were performed to measure the
relationships between five independent variables and the sustainability and continuity of
family businesses in Botswana. This research empirically tested five hypotheses relating to
governance factors that affect the sustainability and continuity of family businesses in
Botswana. The research findings support the notion that the presence of governance structures,
effective communication, decision-making, succession planning, and a vision, mission and
strategy have a positive effect on the sustainability and continuity of family businesses. This
research also established that small and medium family businesses face the same challenges as any other formation by ownership of non-family small and medium enterprises. Evidence is
also provided that the challenges faced by family businesses in Botswana do not differ
significantly with challenges faced by small and medium family businesses, with most
respondents citing a lack of funding as the major challenge. For small and medium enterprises
to continue playing their critical role in the economic development of Botswana, they need to
formalise and adopt systematic approaches to strategy formulation and implementation,
succession planning, governance structures and compliance. It is recommended that future
studies focus on developing systematic generic models and assist small and medium familyowned
businesses to implement and improve on their sustainability and continuity of
businesses in Botswana. / Business Management / D. Admin.
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Role of knowledge management enablers in facilitating knowledge management practices in selected private higher education institutions in BotswanaMakambe, Ushe 02 1900 (has links)
This research was set out to investigate the role of knowledge management as a coping strategy for PHE institutions in Botswana, especially given that they operate in a highly regulated environment. One of the major drivers of volatility in the educational sector is
intensely volatile regulatory environment in which the institutions operate. Further, a large portion of the stakeholder community of these institutions hold a strong believe that these institutions offer poor quality education to maximise profit. The primary objective of this
study is therefore to determine the role of knowledge management (KM) enablers in facilitating KM practices in selected PHE institutions in Botswana that operate in this highly regulated environment and to develop a model for effective KM in these institutions. The study adopted a survey research design and collected quantitative data through a structured self-administered questionnaire and document reviews. The subjects comprised all five degree-awarding PHE institutions, which were strictly regulated by the Tertiary
Education Council (TEC). The population surveyed came to 670 and sample size was 350. Data was analysed through various statistical measures such as Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) in the form of Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), multiple regression analysis, and Chi-square test. The results of the study revealed that KM enablers were playing an insignificant role in facilitating KM practices in selected PHE institutions in Botswana. Results of the study can be generalised to similar institutions elsewhere operating in similar environments. In order to enhance KM practices in PHE institutions, it is recommended that the institutions adopt a systematic approach to KM, establish an organisational culture and structure that promote KM practices, and enhance the quality of their human capital including leadership. It should be noted that the state of KM in organisations operating in an uncertain environment can be enhanced if the leadership carefully controls the family-owned setting and organisational culture as these factors can detract from the organisation’s effective practising of KM. However, strategic leadership, organisational structure, and the role played by stakeholders played positive deterministic factors in ensuring an enhanced KM drive. / Business Management / D.Admin. (Business Management)
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