Thesis (Ph.D. (Educational Management)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020 / Continuous professional development (CPD) embraces the idea that individuals aim for continuous improvement in their professional knowledge and skills beyond the basic training initially required to carry out the job. CPD is especially critical in schools where the kind of education that students receive is heavily dependent on the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of educators. The purpose of the study was to explore the influence of continuous professional development in promoting quality teaching and learning leading to enhanced student achievement in South African schools. The study was based on a qualitative research approach. The interpretive paradigm and case-study research design were adopted. The researcher employed three research methods of data collection namely; individual interview, focus group and documentary evidence. The population from which the study sample was drawn is defined as all Pietersburg Circuit secondary schools in Polokwane urban. Five schools were drawn from the population to make a sample for the study. Two subjects for the study were principals and educators. The sample consisted of 5 principals and 10 educators to give a total sample size of 15. The research engaged purposive sampling technique. The idea behind purposive sampling was to concentrate on participants with those particular characteristics ideal to supply relevant research data that best enabled me to answer research questions. The researcher chose thematic data analysis. Thematic analysis basically entailed arranging data according to themes evolving. Data was triangulated to determine if data results from different sources supported each other. Findings revealed that both principals and educators were well conversant with the concept of continuous professional development. Continuous professional development in schools was mainly put through school-based, educator-initiated and externally-initiated approaches. Additionally, the findings revealed that the educators were minimally consulted and involved in professional development needs-identification and analysis. Furthermore, study findings showed that evaluations of informal continuous professional development programmes prevailed in schools, but the majority response alluded to the total failure by schools to institute deliberate, planned and documented evaluations. The professional development of educators is regarded as crucial in developing professional skills. Furthermore, it is looked upon as a direct contribution to student achievement. Professional development of educators has long been a key and logically positioned undertaking for improving educator iv satisfaction as well as hope for improved classroom instruction and student achievement. As a result, continuous professional development comes as both a big challenge as well as the best solution to effective teaching and learning in schools. On the basis of the findings of this study, some recommendations were made and possible areas for further research suggested. The primary recommendation of this study is for continuous professional development to match and attempt to address the identified needs of the educators and students alike. That would likely have the desired consequence of a more empowered and enriched educator with the capacity to efficiently and effectively raise student achievement. It could be assumed that, by allowing educators a voice in their own professional development, they would embrace a more vested interest and feel compelled to contribute more.Key concepts Continuous professional development, needs-identification and analysis, educator consultation and involvement, monitoring and evaluating professional development programmes, school-initiated professional development, educator-initiated professional development, externally-initiated professional development, student achievement.

Thesis (M.Dev. ( Planning and Management)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / Cooperatives are recognised as an important instrument to reduce poverty, create employment, achieve economic growth and development. As a result, smallholder farmers with common interests have organised themselves and registered agricultural cooperatives. However, the operational performance of smallholder agricultural cooperatives for sustainable community development has remained poor. The purpose of the study is to explore the operational performance of smallholder agricultural cooperatives for sustainable community development in Elias Motsoaledi Local Municipality in Limpopo Province. Mixed research design was used in this study. Data was collected from sixty participants, questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used to collect primary data for both quantitative and qualitative methods. The study found that smallholder agricultural cooperatives in the area of the study face challenges such as lack of managerial skills, poor governance, lack of adequate financial support and access to loans, lack of clarity on policy as well as lack of alternative strategies. The main findings of the study confirmed that there are challenges associated with the operational performance for sustainable community development. Inadequate financial support and lack of managerial skills were regarded as the main challenges that hinder the operational performance for sustainable community development. The study has suggested alternative strategies and recommendations that can assist smallholder agricultural cooperatives to improve their operational performance for sustainable community development.

Thesis (M.Sc. Agriculture (Agricultural Economics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / Climate change and variability on a global level is one of the most serious environmental challenges which exacerbates the well-known vulnerability of smallholder farmers. To cushion the shock of climate change, risk management plays a crucial role in farming, and in the same context, insurance positions itself as one of the main risk management instruments available to farmers. However, one of the key reasons to the struggles of smallholder farmers in South Africa is the inability to obtain effective insurance. To this end, the study identified and profiled the socio-economic features of smallholder cattle farmers, identified smallholder cattle farmers’ perceptions on components of climate change as sources of risk to cattle production and finally, analysed the determinants of willingness to adopt IBLI among smallholder cattle farmers. A purposive multistage sampling procedure was used to identify 110 smallholder cattle farmers in the Polokwane local Municipality. IBM SPSS version 26 and STATA version 15 was used to analyse the primary cross-sectional data collected through structured questionnaire interviews. Farmers’ perceptions on components of climate change as sources of risk were identified using the Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The PCA revealed three principal components (PCs) explaining almost 61% of the variance of the original variables (climate change components). Furthermore, about 89% of the sampled farmers were willing to adopt IBLI, while about 11% weren’t willing to adopt and the Probit regression model results revealed that marital status, farming experience, access to extension services, off- farm income and land ownership, farmers’ educational level, household size, experience of livestock loss and farm size significantly influenced willingness to adopt IBLI. Based on the findings of this study, the recommended interventions include workshops for raising IBLI awareness, government subsidy on insurance premiums and finally, increased extension service reach to smallholder cattle farmers. / AgriSETA

Thesis (Ph.D. Agricultural (Agricultural Economics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / Regardless of the various measures implemented by the South African government to curb food insecurity, majority of rural households are still experiencing food insecurity at the household level. This could be because of the high unemployment rate that the rural households are experiencing, especially in the Limpopo Province. Despite rural household members exerting frantic efforts to acquire education, most of them still find it difficult to secure jobs, which results in them depending on social grants for a living. Still, social grant money alone is not enough to meet their entire families’ needs, including food acquisition. The aim of the study was to analyse food security looking at four dimensions, namely, food availability, access, utilisation, and stability among rural households of Capricorn and Mopani Districts in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Only two district municipalities in the Limpopo Province, namely, Mopani and Capricorn Districts, were chosen as areas of study. The two district municipalities were chosen because, previous studies and reviews reported that these municipalities are the most affected districts by food insecurity shocks in the Limpopo Province. The study used a cross-sectional survey, where a Multistage sampling procedure was employed. The villages were selected based on probability proportionate to size. The study considered a total of 346 rural households, comprising 173 rural households in each district municipality. A structured questionnaire was used as an instrument to collect data from rural households in the study area. In addition, the collected data was captured using Excel 16. Thereafter, the data was exported to SPSS Version 27 for analysis. Furthermore, to profile the socio-economic characteristics of households, assess food consumption patterns and identify the strategies employed to enhance household food security, descriptive statistics was used. To determine the food security status of rural households in the study areas, the four dimensions of food security were analysed separately. For instance, food availability was analysed using descriptive statistics whereas food accessibility was analysed using Household Food Insecurity Access Scale [HFIAS]. The HFIAS was also used to identify the food security status while Household Dietary Diversity Score [HDDS] was used to measure food utilisation. To measure food stability, a Likert Scale [LS] and descriptive statistics were used. Multiple Linear Regression Models [MRM] were used to determine the factors that influenced rural households’ food security status. On the other hand, the Multinomial Logistic Regression Model [MLRM] was used to examine the determinants of food security among rural households of Capricorn and Mopani district municipalities. The descriptive results established that most rural households from both Mopani District Municipality [MDM] and Capricorn District Municipality [CDM] consume different food groups. In this regard, a minority of rural households are classified as dietary diverse whereas a majority of rural households are still characterised as less dietary diverse due to the limited consumption of different food groups. This reveals that these households range from less food secure to moderate food secure, as illustrated by the food security results. Moreover, the descriptive results also indicated that a majority of rural households in MDM are classified as severely food insecure and that food stability was the component contributing to these households being severely food insecure. As for CDM rural households, the results showed that a majority of these rural households were moderately food insecure with food availability and food stability being the contributing component at CDM. The Multiple linear Regression Model [MRM] results in MDM revealed that the age of the household head, remittances, and access to credit positively influenced food security status. On the other hand, the Multinomial Logistic Regression Model [MLRM] results in MDM revealed that the age of household head, household income greater than R1000, household income between R1099 to R1999, household income between R4000 to R4999, income from salary and access to credit, negatively influence food insecurity status. The Multiple Linear Regression Model confirmed that the male headed households, age of household head, wages, employment status and household income negatively influence food security status in CDM. On the contrary, MLRM results revealed that gender of household head, income from wages, income from salary, old age pension grant, child support grant, household income above R1000 and access to credit for borrowing money positively influenced the food security status of rural households in CDM. In light of this, the study recommends that health practitioners should educate rural households about healthy eating habits and that having a variety of nutritious food type may increase food security. The Department of Agriculture should advise rural households to participate primarily in subsistence farming and that they should focus their agriculture on crops and livestock. This will enable them to enjoy diverse and balanced diets. In addition, the government should empower rural households to participate in development programmes. This may assist households to improve their livelihoods and may also lead to diverse sources of income, which may enhance food security. Furthermore, the government can further assist rural households by providing production inputs (such as seeds/seedlings, fertilizers, and water for irrigation), which may promote food availability, utilisation and accessibility. / NRF-DAAD

Thesis (M. Sc. (Geography)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / Disposal of disposable infant diapers has emerged as one of the major challenges in solid waste management. The use of disposable infant diapers is an unmanageable challenge in many rural areas due to a lack of disposal equipment and proper disposal methods. Incorrect disposal of used disposable infant diapers causes immediate and long-term negative health, environmental, social and economic impacts on communities. Consequently, this study sought to establish the practices and effects of used diaper disposal in the community of Mashashane Village, Limpopo. Using snowball sampling, households with infants determined participants for this study. The data collection methods were observations and questionnaires. The results showed that most mothers used disposable infant diapers. All respondents indicated that they did not have proper places for disposal and as a result, they disposed of used disposable infant diapers at any convenient place such as near streams, in wetlands and open places. The study, therefore, concluded that disposal of used disposable infant diapers was not appropriately practised in Mashashane Village and that led to environmental, social and economic challenges that require immediate intervention by the municipality. The study recommended that the municipality should encourage proper disposal of used disposable infant diapers through provision of skip bins and waste collection trucks. / Risk and Vulnerability Unit University of Limpopo

Thesis (MPH.) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / Background: Termination of pregnancy among young women is a public health issue, particularly in South Africa where high prevalence of pregnany terminations has lately been reported. It is estimated that 260000 terminations of pregnancy take place in South Africa every year. Studies in South Africa have reported that risk factors associated with termination of pregnancy such as financial problems, being poorly educated, being young, unemployed, dependent on parents, widowed or single and other relationship problems were most common. Approximately 1200 pregnancies were terminated in the District Hospital of Limpopo Province between 2017 and 2018. There is also an increased rate of unintended pregnancy among HIV positive women which suggest that women with HIV may be more likely to terminate pregnancy but chooses not to terminate due to fear of being judged. Therefore, the primary objective of this study was to investigate the risk factors associated with termination of pregnancy at a District Hospital in Limpopo Province. Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive retrospective review study in which convenience sampling of the records of women who terminated pregnancies was used in this study. A self-constructed data extraction tool was used to extract the data from patients records. The tool covered variables such as the age of the women, educational status, marital status, year and month of termination of pregnancy, gestational age, parity, and gravidity, HIV status and circumstances leading to termination of pregnancy. Data analysis was done using the STATA statistical software version 12 for Windows (STATA Corporation, College Station, Texas). The independent t-test was used for variables having two categories as it assesses whether the difference between means of two groups are statistically significant. This test was performed at the 95% confidence level. The p-value of less than 0.05 in the study results was used for statistical significant difference in means between the categories which were investigated. vi Results: The mean age was 27.9 years (standard error [Std. Err.] =0.37) and majority of women who terminated pregnancies were in the age group 20 – 24 years, single and had a secondary educational level. There was a statistical significance difference between age groups and the gestational age, parity and gravidity at p=0.004 and p<0.001 respectively. The proportion of women who were at gestational age of 1 to 8 weeks decreased with increasing maternal age from 22.4% in age ≤20 years to 13% in age group 30 – 34 years. There was again a statistical significance difference (p<0.001) in relation to number of pregnancies that have each resulted in the birth of an infant capable of survival (parity) and similarly to gravida. The prevalence of HIV amongst women who terminated pregnancy in the current study was found to be 21.3% and the risk of women who terminated pregnancies being HIV positive increased significantly with age as older women (age 20 years and above) were 6.5 times more likely to be HIV positive as compared to younger ones (p<001). Low educational level, gestational age of more than 13 weeks and parity of 1 – 2 were significantly associated with termination of pregnancy. The association of gravida of women who terminated pregnancies and HIV revealed that women who were in their second or third pregnancies (gravida) while HIV positive were 3.9 times more likely to terminate pregnancies as compared to those who were first pregnancy (p<0.001). Marital status was not significantly associated with termination of pregnancy. Conclusion: Termination of pregnancies among adolescents and youth is a major public health issue and the findings of this study highlight the need to address the structural socio-economic drivers of family planning which results in high number of termination of pregnancy amongst the youth. Structural interventions, such as increasing contraceptive use which may be useful for reducing the burden of unplanned pregnancies. These findings suggest the need for targeted interventions for women of child-bearing age to access reproductive health interventions to prevent unintended pregnancies and the associated risk of termination.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Public Administration)) -- University of Limpopo, 2017 / This study was undertaken in four villages which are Makgemeng, Maroga Phalatseng, Mooihoek, and Legabeng, in the Limpopo Province. The aim of the study was to examine whether local communities were benefitting from the local mine, whether the mine promoted an acceptable number of LED projects; whether the mine complied with the Mineral Petroleum and Resources Development Act 2002 (MPRDA), initiatives such as Black Economic Empowerment and Social Labour Policies, and whether the mine helped the development of the local economy, and whether the mine promoted job creation through down-streaming beneficiation which is the core beneficiation form where a mineral is extracted, processed and sold as a finished product and side streaming beneficiation which is an extended form of beneficiation through infrastructures, roads, harbours, airports, railways, institutions The study was anchored on the modernisation theory with a focus on the Sachs economic stages. Four hundred participants took part in the study. The mixed methods research design which integrates both quantitative and qualitative was applied since the study was aimed at exploring and giving in-depth analysis of the relationship between mineral resource wealth gained by the mining industry, and the ongoing poverty and marginalisation in the four rural mining communities. Literature reviewed for the study establishes that despite mining legislation, local economic development growth in rural mining communities remains problematic due to lack of compliance of the Mining Charter which is a legislative instrument of the MPRDA. South Africa has not managed to advance its state of manufacturing through mineral beneficiation as it continues to export minerals partially processed thereby missing out on the full economic value of job creation and industrialisation. Moreover, minimal transformation amongst the Blacks in the rural mining communities has transpired as envisioned under the MPRDA. Instead, an elite core of Blacks have broken into the mining industry while a majority remain marginalised. It is argued that for South Africa to succeed in promoting mineral industrialization through LED in rural communities, it will have to address the challenges that rural typologies mining communities face which include challenges at municipal capacity level, lack of policy alignment between local and national government, historical mistrust between the mining industry and the community, spatial economics and minimal business attraction. Globalisation it is argued can also be addressed better through the modernization framework which promotes strong state intervention of legislative oversight. Most industrialised states it is asserted reached the final economic stage of services through iii interventionist procedures unlike neoliberalism which promotes minimal state participation in the business sector. Neoliberalism has been the bedrock of South Africa’s economic policies since 1994. Due to neoliberalism, South Africa has been forced to take into consideration global trends focused on increasing economic interdependence, and also constrained the ability of South Africa’s ability to diversify its mining sector and communities. The findings confirm that the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) should create a program that will serve as a one stop shop to provide mining information for the local government on mining programs facilitated, and ensure that they are managed properly with the communities involved. This program should also capacitate the local government officials in addressing legislative oversight issues such as Social labour policies with the mines so that they don’t go unchecked. Most of the community members perceived that the mine was not genuinely interested in promoting the development of their communities, particularly in regards to LED projects. The government also need to address the low literacy rate at the mining rural communities which has become a roadblock for transformation. Industrialisation requires a qualified human stock that would be able to professionally deliver on BEE related services and development. For MPRDA to succeed as a beneficiation tool, it can only be accomplished through human resource development beginning at basic education. Value-addition to minerals is only achievable by a well-trained and fully equipped labour force The study also confirmed that the mines were unwilling to engage with the communities, did not understand the communities, were not transparent with them on tenders or procurements, and made minimal effort to assist develop the communities. A majority of the mines did not participate in the integrated development plan, and most of the community members indicated that the mine did not view them as stakeholders. Lack of corporate social responsibility efforts to alleviate poverty in the communities will only further tension and conflict within the community. Moreover, this continued practice by the mines perpetuates lack of transformation as required by the MPRDA leading the mining industry to remains predominately under the control of white owned companies and rural communities to remain marginalized and undeveloped. In summary, the DMR should stop relying on the mines to transform and comply to all the MPRDA requirements without any form of effective oversight. / Human Science Research Council (HSRC)

Thesis (M.Sc.(Agriculture (Agricultural Economics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / Understanding the factors that influence farmers' decisions to take preventive measures against natural hazards provides insight that can be used to develop user-specific interventions to support their adaptation processes. The use of Protection Motivation Theory in analysing climate risk adaptation behaviour is driven by the increase in climate change, which is projected to increase the frequency and severity of climate related risks such as heatwaves, floods, and droughts. Given the importance of livestock in rural communities, information about their adaptation must be prioritised; yet, this is not the case, as most climate change adaptation research focus on crop production. The main aim of the study was to analyse the drought risk preparedness of smallholder livestock farmers in the Limpopo Province's Blouberg Local Municipality. The study's specific objectives were to identify and describe the socioeconomic characteristics of smallholder livestock farmers in the Blouberg Local Municipality, as well as to determine the drought coping and adaptation strategies used by them and to evaluate the protection motivation theory components influencing that coping and adaptation behaviour. The study collected primary cross-sectional data from 130 smallholder livestock farmers in the Blouberg Local Municipality using a semi-structured questionnaire. The farmers' drought risk coping and adaptation strategies were described using descriptive statistics, while multiple linear regression was used to test whether protection motivation theory variables influence the adaptation and coping choices of smallholder livestock farmers in Blouberg Local Municipality. According to the findings, smallholder livestock farmers in Blouberg Local Municipality use four measures on average to protect their livestock against drought. With an R2 adjusted of 0.70, protection motivation theory variables explain 70% of the variation in farmer protection motivation. Perceived risk probability, perceived severity, perceived self-efficacy, and perceived costs were significant variables associated with farmers' protection motive. It is recommended that interventions meant to increase drought risk resilience of the farmers should prioritise early warning signals to increase perceived probability of the farmers, create platforms for information exchange to increase perceived severity, teach farmers methods practically to increase perceived self-efficacy and keep the price of utilising measures low to decrease perceived cost / Risk and Vulnerability Science Centre (RVSC)

Thesis (MPAM.) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / The study sought to assess the effectiveness of Integrated Development Planning as a tool to promote community participation in Fetakgomo Tubatse Municipality, Limpopo Province. A qualitative approach was used for data collection from a sample size of 20 municipal officials. An interview schedule was the chosen research instrument. Data was analyzed through thematic analysis. Measures were taken to ensure that the study results were credible, transferable, dependable, and confirmable. The study findings revealed that the effectiveness of the IDP as a tool for enhancing community participation was being hampered by loss of confidence in the IDP by the community; the COVID-19 pandemic; poor participation and lack of leadership commitment. In addition to the fact that community participation within the municipality was affected by challenges such as low literacy levels in the community the municipality also failed to deliver on past promises and logistical challenges. It was recommended that the municipality put plans into action to regain public confidence; introduce ward-level participation; use social media to reach wider audience and form an oversight committee to oversee the municipality’s financial accountability issues.

Thesis (MDev. (Planning and Management)) -- University of Limpopo, 2016 / The purview of this project is to interrogate the alleged rural-urban dichotomy effects of social grants on poverty alleviation. One major problem that sophisticates rural-urban comparative studies is that there is no universally agreed upon definition of "urban" or "rural". By virtue of their contrasting contexts, rural and urban areas are diametrically divergent in terms of their characteristics. These inherent contrasts are critical to the applicability and effects of concerted interventions due to the diversity of actors, agendas, underlying intentions and so on. On one hand, people in rural areas are characterized by socio-economic homogeneity and thus they enjoy communitarianism. On the other, urbanites generally belong to different castes, creeds, religions and cultures, thus they rarely share same social statuses, norms and values. Socio-economic narratives are thereby intrinsically distributed among rural and urban households as well as societies and so are the effects of intervention strategies such as social grants. Literature documents increased blurring of urban-rural distinctions in developed countries, but a multidimensional characterization of settlement type based on style and density of housing, predominant commercial and agricultural activities, and access to services still vividly demonstrates the rural-urban dichotomy in South Africa. The study, thereby, puts the Polokwane Local Municipality on the spotlight to argue that by virtue of contrasting contexts and divergent characteristics between rural and urban areas, social grants have dichotomous effects as strategy for poverty amelioration. The study engages on a scholarship synthesis of characteristics and contexts of the rural-urban dichotomy, roles and types of social grants and dimensions and dynamics of poverty in rural and urban areas prior to a presentation a resume of theoretical and empirical findings from the cross-sectional survey in the Municipality. Employing snowballing to sample a total of a hundred grant-receiving households, the study qualitatively and quantitatively analyses and interprets data from the two study areas. The key finding emanating from the core of the research problem was that despite arguments about modern rural areas across the globe experiencing factors traditionally associated with the urban environment and the ensuing increased blurring of urban-rural distinctions, a multidimensional characterization of settlement type based on style and density of housing, predominant commercial and agricultural activities, behaviour and access to services in South Africa still vividly demonstrates the rural-urban vi | P a g e dichotomy. In the same line of thought, the study concludes that not only are the effects of social grants dichotomous between rural and urban grantees but the effects empirically show dissimilarities at different levels of analysis, including individual, household, location and cash values of various grants.The conclusion also consolidates recommendations revolving around the augmentation of rural-urban effects of social grants so as to synchronize poverty alleviation.