Purpose - Transport is a common constant variable found in just about every aspect of our lives as well as commercial activities; this is so because transport enables accessibility to people, places and goods. The effective management of public passenger transport operations is a more complex and all-embracing concept than what it may appear at first glance. Wider dispersed work place locations and urban sprawl is on the rise driven by among other factors the increased rate of globalisation. A unique opportunity is then presented in a developing country like South Africa for effective planning and management of public passenger bus operations. In the main, the purpose of this case study research was to develop a more sustainable public passenger transport bus operation to better connect people, places and goods. The organisation that will be studied is Blunden Coach Tours a luxury and semi-lux coach Tour operator, operating from the Nelson Mandela Bay. Design / Methodology / Approach – This study employed the case study research approach which was based on the qualitative research paradigm as such allowed for in-depth description and analysis of the case as well as related phenomena in real world context. The researcher focused only on the public passenger bus transport operations in Nelson Mandela Bay thus assuming a single context focus with a single case namely the development of a more sustainable public passenger transport operations in Nelson Mandela Bay. An embedded multiple unit of analysis strategy was employed selecting a sample of key persons responsible for strategic operational areas at Blunden Coach tours, sub-contractors and suppliers. The case study employed an in-depth probing interview process in an effort to better comprehend occurrences within the actual context of the events observed. The secondary sources of information gathered were used to structure and backup the interview questions. Practical implications – The case study enabled thought provoking insight which by virtue of South Africa’s historical socio-economic landscape offered an unusual perspective of the South African bus transport scene with a particular focus on environmental, regulatory and socio-economic sustainability considerations. A limitation to the study – The lack of responses to the interview questions from some of the key role players in the bus industry who were contacted as well as some of the respondents interviewed. The lack of responses to some of the interview questions could be perceived as a limitation to validating the Summary drawn from the study.

Available statistics on growth trends in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are wanting, particularly net per capita growth rates. The analysis of available data from 1970 to 2012 by this study, for instance, shows that the net real GDP growth rate for the ECOWAS is 0.52%. Only four countries had net growth rates above 1% per annum mean growth rate of ECOWAS region. At the estimated growth rate, the prospect of accelerated growth in ECOWAS is very weak. The Barro endogenous growth model states that government provision of services can generate externalities to the private productive activities. Government’s provision of productive services in ECOWAS can ensure long-run per capita output growth without the per capita growth rate running into steady state growth. However, there are divergent views as to whether government provision of services induces long run economic growth. These views are based on different schools of thought. For instance, the economic freedom school argues for minimum government involvement (small governments) to ensure economic and political freedom to induce private investors invest and encourage economic growth. The optimal government school of thought (medium size governments) argues that government spending enhances private productivity growth through the provision of infrastructure, spending on research and development, public education, sewage, other public goods and protection through functional law and order systems. The optimal school of thought also acknowledges that government expenditure can also reduce economic growth through increases in taxation. An increase in taxation reduces the returns on investment of physical and human capital and in research and development (R&D) of private firms. This thesis investigates the impact of government expenditure on the provision of public services on economic growth in ECOWAS. To assess the impact of government expenditure on the provision of services on economic growth of ECOWAS, this thesis assesses whether the size of government, government expenditure and economic institutions promoted economic growth in ECOWAS. The thesis also determines whether per capita government capital expenditure, per capita government consumption expenditure, per capita private capital stock, per capita manufacturing output, per capita services output and per capita agricultural output have any impact on per capita real GDP growth in ECOWAS. To carry out this study, data were collected from United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) database and Transparency International (TI) database. The data used covered the period of 1970 – 2013. The statistical research methods applied are the time-series methods of panel unit root test, panel co-integration test, and panel regression analysis, using both panel OLS regression models and estimation and inferences in co-integrated panel data regression methods. The panel OLS regression models applied are the panel OLS regression; panel fixed effect model (FEM) regression and the panel random effect model (REM) regression. The estimation and inferences in co-integrated panel data regression models applied are panel VEC regression model, panel DOLS regression and panel FMOLS regression. The panel DOLS regression and panel FMOLS regression models do not have an intercept, unlike their pure time-series models, which have intercepted. To ensure that the parameters estimated are reliable, this thesis conducted diagnostic tests to subject the regression result to scrutiny. The estimated panel data regression using panel OLS regression, panel FEM regression and panel REM regression indicate that the results of the estimated parameters were spurious having both autocorrelations and heteroscedasticity. High values of adjusted R-squares that were approaching one and high significant values of t statistics but very low values of Durbin-Watson Statistics demonstrated the existence of heteroscedasticity and autocorrelation in residuals. The results of the diagnostic tests also show that the DOLS estimated regression model out-performed both VEC and FMOLS regression models based on both aggregate data and per capita data estimated parameters. The results of the parameter estimated using panel VEC and panel FMOLS regression models showed that both panel VEC and panel FMOLS regression models had the problems of their residuals having not only autocorrelations but heteroscedasticity. The panel DOLS regression results were satisfactory, having no multicollinearity, autocorrelations and heteroscedasticity. The estimated panel DOLS regression results were applied to test hypotheses formulated to guide this thesis. Results from panel DOLS estimated parameters show that the existing government size in ECOWAS stimulated economic growth. The results also showed that the government expenditure exhibited an inverted U-shape with respect to economic growth. The thesis also showed that existing government size in ECOWAS significantly stimulated economic growth in the region. The results of regression indicate that economic institutions contribute negatively to the economic growth of the ECOWAS. The results also established that government capital expenditure per capita has significantly engendered economic growth. Government consumption expenditure per capita stimulated economic growth. However, private capital stock per capita has not stimulated economic growth in ECOWAS. Service sector output per capita, agricultural output per capita and manufacturing output per capita stimulated significantly economic growth in the ECOWAS sub-region.

Technology enables progress for individuals and organisations; however, adopting technology may not always be simple. Cloud computing technology has revolutionised how one consumes IT. Governments too can leverage the advantages of adopting cloud computing. A review of the literature reveals a gap in research on the adoption of cloud computing by the South African public sector. Limited research has been done on the topic of cloud computing and none of them are from a quantitative perspective. This study set out to answer the question, “What is the extent (current state, benefits, barriers and readiness levels) of the adoption of cloud computing by the South Africa public sector?” The study is of much value to the public sector of South Africa and other countries and organisations wanting to understand what to consider when adopting cloud computing. The study used a survey research strategy that was exploratory in nature. The sample comprised government CIO’s and government Senior IT management. Questionnaires were sent via a web link and 51 responses were completed. The results revealed that more than half of the South African public sector has adopted cloud computing; however there is a lack of visibility of government initiatives that promote cloud computing. The study shows that public organisations that have adopted cloud computing significantly perceive more benefits of cloud computing than organisations that are yet to adopt. The Technology Organisation Environment (TOE) framework tested the barriers to adoption, revealing areas of concern that are limiting successful cloud computing adoption and adoption rates. The study uncovers a timeline for further cloud computing adoption in the South African public sector.

The purpose of this research was to identify factors that impact on tablet PC usage in low-income communities. In order to determine and identify these factors a main research question and sub-research questions were formulated. The primary research question of this study was "What factors impact on tablet PC usage in low-income communities?" This main research question was answered by creating three sub-research questions followed by triangulating the results from these questions. The first sub-research question was aimed at determining whether prior exposure to touch screen technology impacts the user experience. In order to reach this objective an extensive literature review was conducted on the tablet PC landscape in South Africa. This literature review, coupled with the case study helped answer this first research question. The second sub-research question was concerned with determining whether existing user experience guidelines are relevant to South African users. A thorough literature review was conducted on user experience guidelines and related studies. This literature review, together with the results from the case study helped answer this second research question. The third sub-research question involved identifying specific factors which help improve the user experience of tablet PC users in a specific context. This research question was addressed in the case study. Each sub-research question provided results which were analysed in order to answer the main research question. The factors which impact on tablet PC usage were thus identified and recommendations were proposed.

The construction sector serves as the engine of growth to the South Africa economy because of its catalytic role in the growth and development of the country. This study focuses mainly on the influence of the macro-economic environment on the contribution of the private sector to construction in the South Africa economy from 1984 to 2011. Government construction work is considered to be an injection into the economy; in this regard, state construction is regarded as public investment in the economy; and therefore, it is anti-cyclic (Keynes, 1936). The aim of this study has been to develop an econometric model for predicting the influence of the macroeconomic environment on the contribution of the private sector to the construction sector in the South Africa economy. The research design adopted in this study was an “ex-post facto” type, otherwise known as a causal-comparative design. The data were extracted from the published sources of the South African National Statistics, namely SARB, Stats SA and Quantec SA. The estimation technique used in this study was the ARDL model using quarterly data from 1984 to 2011. This is because in the construction sector, the influence of the independent variables is always felt over time – rather than all at once. The results of this study show that there is a long run causal relationship between inflation rate, interest rate, real exchange rate, GDP and gdp in the construction sector. The descriptive statistical analysis shows that there is a negative relationship between variables inflation rate and interest rate and the private sector spending in construction. However, economic growth as well as growth in the construction sector has a positive relationship with the private sector spending in construction. Likewise, the real exchange rate and labour productivity in construction have a negative relationship with the private sector’s spending in construction and they are statistically insignificant. The variance decomposition analysis show that the private sector spending in construction explains about 75 per cent of it variations, followed by inflation rate that explains 21 per cent on the average; while the remaining variations, comprising about 4 per cent, were shared among the other independent variables, such as GDP, GDP in construction, the interest rate and the real exchange rate. It was discovered that only the inflation rate does Granger-cause the private sector spending in construction. From the finding it can be concluded that inflation rate is a significant explanatory variable in explaining the variation in the dependent variable during period under review. Policy recommendations are as follows: firstly, the monetary authorities in South Africa should embark on sound policies that would bring about low prices of the construction materials. This would ensure growth and development in the construction sector; secondly, a stimulating development plan that would encourage private sector investment in properties and infrastructural development must be instituted; thirdly, an alternative policy to the present inflation targeting is recommended that would bring about low inflation, high growth, low unemployment and stable exchange rate; fourthly, the present policy on interest rate must be reviewed to allow for more participation in construction projects by the private sectors of the economy; fifthly, due to the fact that fluctuation in the crude oil prices in the international market is one of the major factors causing high inflation rate in South Africa, government must source local alternative products that would bring down prices of construction materials.

Talent in the field of attraction of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is scarce in South Africa, especially in the Eastern Cape, due to the history of exclusion of South Africa from world economic participation, prior to 1994. In order for the ELIDZ to achieve its mandate of FDI attraction, job creation and economic growth, talent management has to be a key aspect in the boardroom discussions and strategic planning sessions. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effective use of talent management by the East London IDZ to leverage the competitive edge of the ELIDZ in the business of attracting Foreign Direct Investment into South Africa, and also of competing against the world’s Economic Processing Zones (EPZ’s) and Free Trade Zones (FTZ’s). According to Holbeche (2009:166), talent consists of those individuals who can make a difference to organisational performance, either through their immediate contribution, or, in the longer term, by demonstrating the highest level of potential. For the purpose of this study, talent management is defined as the systematic attraction, identification, development, engagement / retention and deployment of those individuals with high potential who are of particular value to an organisation. The literature reviewed pointed out very clearly that organisations that have properly developed, implemented and managed talent management strategies enjoy high levels of motivation, innovation and creativity, lesser levels of staff turn-over, high employee performance, superior productivity and mostly a competitive advantage in their league. The East London IDZ study response enjoyed a rate of 40 out of 54 employees who received questionnaires and returned them by the due date. The responses represented a total of 74.1 percent, and this level of response is attributed to the fact that by the end of May 2011, the ELIDZ had just undergone an Organisational Re-structuring. The current status quo of the ELIDZ, based on the views as reflected in this study ,is very compromising for an organisation that aims to compete in the global space for the attraction and retention of foreign direct investment (FDI’s), and the global competitiveness based on the talent available. The overall picture depicted by the empirical results suggests that there are critical gaps for which the ELIDZ Executive Management and Board need to craft solutions, if competitiveness is going to be taken seriously in the near and long-term future.

Social protection measures are poverty reduction interventions implemented to assist in reducing poverty shocks of communities. This study considered the Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP) that has been implemented in Malawi with the aim of reducing poverty amongst subsistence farmers by providing them with subsidized farm inputs. The study was conducted in the rural area of Lilongwe District, under Traditional Authority Kabudula. The study mainly focussed on the outcomes of implementing the FISP and it entails whether or not the poverty reduction intervention is really achieving its goals. Thus, the study greatly evaluates the effectiveness of subsidizing farm inputs in reducing poverty amongst households in rural communities characterised by subsistence farming. This study was mainly qualitative in nature and data was collected through interviews and Focus Group Discussions. Some quantitative data for specific trends of national indicators was collected through document. Mainly, content analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data and descriptive statistical analysis with the aid of Microsoft Excel was engaged to analyse the quantitative data. The study found that that FISP assist in household food security only in the short term. Among the reasons cited, the package size received by households has become smaller with sharing tendencies that have been devised to help households that do not receive the inputs or qualify to receive them. This practice is compromising the agricultural productivity in terms of quantities as it lasts only in the short-term before the next harvest. When households’ food reserves are depleted, households become food insecure and poverty sets in again. The study thus reveals that FISP implementation is not operating as a sustainable programme as its intended goal is not being achieved in the long-term. The study also found that coupled with the fact that there is no clear policy guidelines on graduation and that there is continued benefitting of the same beneficiaries, FISP is nowhere close to its phasing-out stage in social protection perspective.

The economic boom in South Africa following the 1994 democratisation led to increased welfare of the citizens and their purchasing power. This further resulted in increase in electricity consumption. The electricity supply did not increase proportionally to the increase in electricity consumption leading to the 2008 shortage of electricity which nearly damaged the power generating circuit. The literature review has shown that electricity supply and consumption have a positive impact on economic growth. It further showed that employment enhances economic growth. Conversely, it showed that power outages negatively affect economic growth. The research serves to investigate the relationship between electricity supply and economic growth in South Africa and to examine the impact of power outages on economic growth. It also seeks to find the appropriate structure for electricity supply industry that will lead to increase in economic growth. The autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds approach was used to find the relationship between economic growth, electricity supply, power outages and employment using quarterly data from 2000 to 2012. The ARDL technique was chosen over the conventional models such as Johansen technique for the research because it uses a single reduced form of equation to examine the long run relationship of the variables as opposed to the conventional Johansen test that employs a system of equations. The ARDL technique is also suitable to use to test co-integration when a small sample data is used and does not require the underlying variables to be integrated of similar order. The Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) Granger causality was also employed in the study to establish the causality between economic growth and electricity supply. It was chosen for its ability to develop longer term forecasting, when dealing with an unconstrained model. The results from the ARDL bounds test showed that there is a long run relationship between economic growth, electricity supply, power outages and employment. Based on the causality tests, the findings showed a unidirectional causality flowing from electricity supply to economic growth. This implies that electricity supply affect economic growth in South Africa. The results further showed no causality flowing from economic growth to electricity supply which indicates that when economic growth is booming fewer funds are used for improvement of the electricity generation. Lastly, the results showed that power outages negatively affect economic growth in the long run. To sum up, electricity supply is an important factor for economic growth in South Africa. It is therefore necessary that South Africa must put in place measures aimed at stimulating electricity supply. One of the measures aimed at increasing output of electricity is to unbundle the electricity sector. This process involves allowing entry of the Independent Power Producers (IPPs), Independent System Operator (ISO) and Regional Electricity Distributors (REDs). This will lead to increased supply of electricity and competitively lower prices of electricity. The study further recommends that renewable energy sources should be used to produce electricity instead of coal and nuclear fuels as they failed to produce enough electricity for the nation.

This qualitative study investigates Waste services provided by community-based enterprises in the Ngombe peri-urban settlement area - Lusaka, Zambia. The aim of the study was to identify and analyze the factors that contribute to illegal dumping of solid waste in the said peri-urban settlement area. The research objectives were as follows: To explore the capability of the community-based enterprises to effectively manage their enterprises in relation to the provision of solid waste services to the residents of the said settlement, To identify and evaluate the solid waste services provided by the community-based enterprises, and To make recommendations for the improvement of solid waste service provision and utilisation based on the findings of the study. The method of data collection for the above listed objectives was a literature study and focus group interviews. In order to achieve the said objectives of the study, the researcher opted for a qualitative research design – utilizing the contextual, descriptive, inductive and deductive approaches. The research population comprised the community-based enterprises involved in the provision of solid waste services in the Ngombe settlement area namely Kutwano and Tiyende Pamodzi Waste Enterprises. The purposive sample method was used for the selection of the focus group. The focus group discussions were captured by means of an audiotape and note-taking. The interviews were transcribed verbatim, within 24 hours of data capturing. Data analysis followed the five steps of Powell and Renner (2003, pp,1-6), namely: familiarization, identifying a thematic framework, categorization (coding or indexing) of data, identifying patterns and connections within and between categories (relationships), and interpretation (bringing it all together). The researcher adhered to the relevant ethical considerations and the principles of trustworthiness, namely: credibility, transferability, dependability and conformability throughout the study. In exploring the capability of the two community-based enterprises to effectively manage their enterprises in relation to the provision of solid waste services to the residents of the said settlement it was found that community-based enterprises do not have the capability to provide adequate solid waste services. This is due to inadequate leadership and entrepreneurship skills of the community-based enterprises management committee members, non-payment of solid waste collection fees by the majority of households and inadequate legal enforcement by the Lusaka City Council’s Waste Management Unit. In identifying and evaluating the solid waste services provided by the community-based enterprises it was found that solid waste services provided by community-based enterprises were inadequate. This is due to the type of equipment (push carts) used for primary solid waste collection that does not carter for other forms of solid waste like construction waste; inappropriate solid waste storage containers (25kg maize meal bags) which do not allow storage of solid waste in a sanitary manner (non-leak proof, accessible to rats, flies and cockroaches and rodents); restriction on the type of solid waste that community-based enterprises should collect (in relation to the specified solid waste storage container, 25kg maize meal bags) and the delay of secondary solid waste collection by Lusaka City Council’s Waste Management Unit. On the basis of the findings of the study, a number of recommendations are being made, which, if implemented effectively, should improve the provision and utilisation of solid waste services within the study area. Such an improvement should lead to a higher level of environmental cleanliness, and ultimately to better health standards of the people living within the area.

This research studies normative pricing strategies for information technology (IT) used by suppliers to supplement an underlying primary good. Transactions with consumers and customer firms are considered. Characteristics of IT are divided into IT impacts on customers, and IT impacts on suppliers. IT impacts on customers include vertical differentiation or reduced turnover costs for the primary good, and positive IT adoption costs. IT impacts on suppliers include reduced production costs for the primary good, and the costs of IT. Optimal pricing for the IT and the primary good is modelled for monopoly, and Bertrand competition based on IT and the primary good is modelled for oligopoly. Two part tariffs are used for the IT and IT enhanced primary good. Results of pricing to consumers show that the fixed component of an optimal (or equilibrium) two part tariff can either be a net tax or a net subsidy, confirming the possibility of taxed or subsidized IT adoption. For the monopolist offering the IT and IT enhanced primary good only, the consumer's adoption/switching cost limits the possible subsidy. Consistent with previous economics research, in a duopoly where one supplier has IT, the IT supplier abandons the original primary good. Two suppliers with identical IT cannot attain a positive profit equilibrium. Analogous results obtain for a special case of pricing to customer firms. Empirical results support differential (premium) pricing for an IT enhanced primary good over an original good. / Business, Sauder School of / Operations and Logistics (OPLOG), Division of / Graduate