Developing countries such as South Africa have a tremendous potential for rapid and sustainable economic and social development by leveraging the benefits and advantages of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and applying it appropriately within the local government sector. As such, the Local Government Turnaround Strategy’s (LGTAS) vision states that: Each municipality must have the necessary ICT infrastructure and connectivity; and that ICT systems must be put in place across all municipalities to accelerate service delivery, and improve efficiency and accountability. However, technology on its own cannot achieve much; it must be supported by capable people and tested processes to provide services in which the public can have confidence. Disparities, both from within the municipal sector as well as in the larger South African ICT landscape, have influenced the manner in which municipalities make use of ICT. Nevertheless, it has been observed that despite the use of ICT, there has been a lack of utilising ICT governance to enhance corporate governance in the public sector, particularly in municipalities. In this study, an analysis was made of ICT governance initiatives, as a mechanism to enhance corporate governance, with particular reference to the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM) in the Eastern Cape. The research itself has identified risk levels that exist as a result of the lack of ICT governance and risk management. The respondents were given an opportunity to agree or disagree with statements regarding the state of ICT provision and support, corporate governance and other elements within the institution. The researcher has formulated recommendations to solve identified problem based in the research results in ICT governance and corporate governance. While governance developments have primarily been driven by the need for transparency regarding enterprise risks and the protection of shareholder value, the pervasive use of technology has created a critical dependency on ICT that calls for a specific focus on ICT governance. ICT governance is part of corporate governance,which is the responsibility of the organisation’s top executive, to ensure that its information technology supports the goals and objectives of the organisation, through a variety of structural mechanisms, processes and mechanisms for communication. Fundamentally, ICT governance is concerned with whether ICT is delivering value and the management of ICT risks, driven by a strategic alignment between business and ICT, resources management and performance management. The corporate governance of ICT involves evaluating and directing the plans for the use of ICT to support the Institution and monitoring these. It includes the strategy and policies for using ICT within the institution. The executive authority and executive management are accountable and responsible for ensuring that the governance of ICT is implemented in the institution in line with this framework.

Tito Mboweni (2011) said one of South Africa’s biggest tests is the overwhelming the skills shortage. He was echoing the views of Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande who himself said “South Africa could not afford to have an economy "constrained by a severe lack of skills". There are numerous initiatives that having been undertaken by government in an attempt to solve the skills shortage problem. However, these initiatives are not aimed at the tertiary education system. The tertiary education system is the focus of this study as the author investigates how the NMMU Business School can play a significant role in addressing the skills shortage in the credit risk management sector. Following a literature review, surveys were completed by the NMMU Business School MBA students (ninety of them completed it) and personal interviews were conducted with three Provincial HR managers from South Africa’s “four big banks” in Nelson Mandela Bay (Nedbank, Standard Bank and ABSA). The study found that the skills shortage is indeed a problem. The study found that reasons including the legacy left by apartheid and students pursuing the wrong degrees were highlighted as some of the reason for this skills shortage. An opportunity for the NMMU Business School was identified to support the banking industry in addressing credit risk management skills shortage. The benefits include financial reward and more importantly an opportunity to differentiate the Business School and the courses offered at the school from the rest. Some of the recommendations included sourcing of the best practices from institutions like the Millpark Business School on effective partnering with the banking industry as well as a proactive approach to be adopted by the banking industry in terms of lobbying support from other potential role players for example but not limited to, student bodies, BankSeta and the smaller banks in the industry.

This study undertook to examine public participation as a contributor to good governance in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM), as part of the process of improving this Municipality’s governance. The main objectives of the study were to analyse the existing processes and arrangements for public participation in the NMBM; to examine the extent to which community participation influences decision-making; to investigate the factors that improve or lead to good governance in a municipal environment; to examine a framework for robust participation, in which communities are able to influence decisions that affect them; and to propose recommendations to potentially improve the Municipality’s governance. The triangulation research methodology was employed with emphasis on both the quantitative and qualitative methodologies. The sample comprised of two Ward Councillors, two selected Mayoral Committee members and 14 Ward Committee members. Questionnaires, with open and closed questions, were employed for the Ward Committee members and semi-structured interviews were conducted with both the Ward Councillors and the two Mayoral Committee members. Statistical procedures supplied by the NMMU Unit of Statistics were utilised to interpret and analyse the quantitative data to determine the results for data analysis. The qualitative data analysis involved thematic content analysis. The findings suggest that the current public participation processes are inadequate. The correlation of results further revealed that a significant negative relationship exists between the Ward Councillors, the Municipality and Ward Committee members. Despite various legislative prescriptions pertaining to public participation requirements in local government, the results suggest that the NMBM may be undertaking the public participation exercise for the sake of compliance and therefore it might not be a genuine exercise. The thesis proposes specific recommendations on how the NMBM can address the current shortcomings in terms of its public participation processes and strategies. Recommendations include significant civic education for the public to understand that being in a democratic country involves active participation in local affairs; more participatory initiatives need to be done to make the public aware of the role of Ward Committees and to invite people to apply to be on these Committees; recommendations also suggested that it would be crucial that Ward Committees are not used as a political platform to push political agendas, as this deters public participation. The NMBM needs to establish a monitoring and evaluation process to track their progress with public participation and develop and implement a public participation strategy and policy for enhanced public participation is also proposed in the thesis.

This dissertation is a systematic study of the 22kV Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM) electricity power distribution network reliability evaluation and improvements to be applied. Reliability evaluation of electric power systems has traditionally been an integral part of planning and operation. Changes in the electricity utility, coupled with aging electrical apparatus, create a need for more realistic techniques for power system reliability modelling. This work presents a reliability evaluation technique that combines set literature and evaluation criteria. In analysing system reliability, this research takes into account the reasons for many outages and voltage dips and seeks to find mitigating approaches that are financially justified. The study analyses the power system in terms of the methodology developed, using power system reliability techniques, power quality evaluation, protection analyses and evaluating the network against maintenance interventions and programs, manpower availability and weather conditions contributing to the outages. In evaluating the power system various techniques are used to determine if the power network operates within the NRS standards, namely, reliability calculations, testing of protection equipment, interrogation of power quality instruments and modeling the network on Digsilent. This study will look at all the important factors influencing power system reliability, analysing the network in terms of the methodology and recommend improvements.

The purpose of this study was to critically investigate challenges in the provision of low-income housing in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM). In order to reach this goal, it was necessary to study the literature on the housing sector, especially as regards the impact between the external factors and the provision of low-income housing. A further supporting objective was to investigate and analyse the challenges in order to develop techniques and strategies for solving the challenges facing the NMBM in the provision of low-income housing. In order to address the reach problem and to fulfil the research objectives, an in-depth literature study was done. Empirical studies were also performed by means of face-to-face interviews and a questionnaire with the target group in the Housing Department of the NMBM. The literature and empirical study made it possible to identify underperformance and to recommend possible solutions for the challenges in the provision of low-income housing in the NMBM. These recommendations should be of value to all participants in the housing sector. From the investigation into the NMBM in the provision of low-income housing, the findings indicate that the constraints and challenges such as the housing backlog also exist in other parts of South Africa. Challenges such as availability of land in the NMBM can be considered to exist principally in the NMBM area. The new national policies and local government housing strategies should concur with the internationally accepted developmental approach. Recommendations were made with regard to sustainable development strategies, housing policies, finance and housing provision. Essential proposals were made, such as efficient financial support, and to train and improve certain unskilled staff in the NMBM. The study concludes with recommended techniques and strategies for the improvement of low-income housing in the NMBM, in order to overcome its challenges and to empower it on a sustainable basis.

In 2005, the city of Port Elizabeth, in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM) of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, initiated an urban renewal project of its derelict city centre areas and the southern part of the old Port Elizabeth port. This, after the newly constructed Port of Ngqura, 34-kilometres north of Nelson Mandela Bay, was designed to serve as a state-of-the-art industrial port within a specially established Industrial Development Zone (IDZ). This has freed the existing southern part of the old Port Elizabeth port – strategically centred on the doorstep of the city – up for re-development for nonindustrial purposes, effectively opening it up to retail, residential, office and tourism/leisure/entertainment development; and causing it to become an extension of the inner city. The Urban Renewal Plan and the implementation thereof, address specific local economic growth-related factors, integrated with urban development challenges applicable to the city. Since the process began in 2005, significant progress has been made, embracing a long-term approach incrementally implemented on the basis of a well-researched overall plan. This plan is hinged on the strong foundation of in-depth, extensive market research in the retail, residential, office and tourism/leisure/entertainment sectors and aims at the creation of a strong cluster around these areas of development. The term cluster describes the concept of groups of inter-connected and related firms, suppliers, related industries, and specialized institutions in particular fields, uniting in particular a location to - amongst other reasons - maximise their reach, lower their costs and enhance their business (Porter: 1990: 71). In this study, the cluster concept is broadened to encompass a constellation of urban developments around and complementing retail, residential, office and tourism/leisure/entertainment business. As such, the urban renewal project becomes an important element in the Local Economic Development (LED) planning of Port Elizabeth. The practical experience of traditional, rational and urban planning methodology, often conflicts with the reality of market demand - particularly in the South African case. Therefore, this study explores an alternative method for approaching urban planning, by focussing on the bottom-up approach, which essentially takes into account the needs of the customer – or local community – through a special purpose vehicle: a fresh, alternative approach to urban renewal that still makes a positive contribution to local economic development. The Mandela Bay Development Agency (MBDA) – a separate company formed by the NMBM to manage the redevelopment of the city – strategy embraced an interventionist approach to urban renewal as an alternative framework for encouraging overall development in a particular urban node. The cornerstone of the MBDA’s urban renewal approach is an overarching philosophy of “private sector investment following public sector infrastructure investment” (MBDA: 2010: 2). This research is the result of a long-standing interaction between theory, praxis and reflection. Experiences of practical implementation have been framed by the MBDA project over a five year period and build the case-study presented. viii Urban planning and urban renewal are used in a pro-active, action-orientated manner, to achieve sustainable, competitive LED through the development of a viable multi-purpose, non-industrial retail and leisure cluster in Port Elizabeth. Port Elizabeth is still known as the Friendly City. This epithet originated from an effective tourism marketing campaign in the eighties, but as a true description, has become somewhat diminished by the urban decay of the past twenty years. The Friendly City concept refers to a city that presents a healthy mix of work, housing and leisure – a combination of lifestyle offerings that no longer really exist in Port Elizabeth. However, through interventionary initiatives such as the MBDA’s Urban Renewal Plan, this situation is likely to change as a result of catalytic urban developments. Port Elizabeth was built on an internationally competitive motor manufacturing and industrial cluster, but had few other major industries. As such, the creation of an innovative urban renewal cluster was critical for the diversification of its economy – not only from a local economic perspective, but also from a national and international competitiveness point of view. It is the general feeling amongst city planners, economists and industrialists that the current industrial base of Port Elizabeth is not sufficient and that a more diversified economy would have the potential to improve the domestic and global competitiveness of the city. This interaction between the dual goals of economic and urban development, produces farreaching effects on the discourses of urban management and planning, as the two compete and converge to push development forward. Diversification is, however, not an easy endeavour. Considerations around growth-related objectives on planning demands – a shift from the rational, linear and government-based structure of urban management, to an interactive governance of planning and development – where integrated urban and economic strategies inter-play with planning and implementation, has become important in the creation of a more diversified economy. In Port Elizabeth, this approach is referred to as an “alternative method” of urban planning: An approach that involves a process of guided development through a collaborative bottom-up engagement, involving local government, public participation and the private sector. The alternative method of urban planning is further reinforced by the current economic recession, which is, and will continue to, change property development and its response to the needs of the market for the foreseeable future. The solution to urban renewal does not only lie in well-targeted, well-researched public-sector infrastructure investment (that responds strongly to the market and customer needs), but in a joint participatory process that ensures that the final design of infrastructure projects is the outcome of what the market requires, as a means to ensure sustainability and the biggest possible response in private sector investment. Because of global economic forces, the functional and developmental structure of the neighbourhood – where the epicentre of the growth system is situated – has become of paramount significance. This thesis attempts to demonstrate how urban renewal and the redevelopment of designated, formally idle city buildings and public spaces may serve as a site for the creation of an urban growth node or urban cluster. A key focus of this study is how new economic and social growth based structures can be induced to integrate with the process of urban redevelopment. Further demonstrated is that the agenda for urban management, illuminated in the light of the described practices, conducts a fundamental re-appraisal in its local economic development context. Local economic development has been lauded as the saviour of development at a local level in South Africa. LED, however, has by no means utilized the required level of property development pragmatism and has thus, throughout the duration of its approach, not culminated in specific sustainable, capital-driven projects – which is probably one of the reasons for its overall market failure in South Africa and Port Elizabeth. LED has therefore become an outdated economic approach that leaves in its wake, the necessity and opportunity for a fundamental change. Urban renewal and the city’s economic contribution to LED, requires a completely new conceptualisation of urban renewal in its narrow sense, and urban design and planning in its broader sense. Concepts such as redevelopment and urban renewal are frequently used in planning discourse. Redevelopment is understood to encompass actions of clearing (such as slum clearance), reorganising or reconstruction. Renewal signifies rebirth, breaking new ground or innovatively refashioning; a form of re-growing or bringing new and more prolific life. In this thesis, reference is made to urban renewal as an attempt to influence social and economic forces in a desired direction, integrated with planning and development. It re-conceptualises redevelopment as more than a matter of reconstructing an urban arrangement. These concepts are often used in line with the new governance-based style of urban planning, such as guided development, development planning and efforts for enabling the feasibility thereof. This thesis attempts to clarify under what conditions redevelopment is unified with social and economic regeneration. Its approach intends to scrutinise regional strategies, urban management and urban planning to generate an understanding of the urban environment as it relates to growth issues. Many growth-related discourses are discussed in terms of development and innovation. The grammar of this process, when unified with urban development, is referred to as a Dynamic Place Initiative (DPI). In the DPI, issues of feasibility (enablement) are unified in formal government, planning and implementation, restricted to a specific bounded area. The core focus of interest in this thesis is not primarily concerned with architecture and urban design, but rather with the principles of how the process may be implemented as a leverage tool to encourage a range of factors to interact with government agents in an LED-orientated field of action. This field includes not only the built infrastructure, but also the inherent economic and social targets that come with such infrastructure. This thesis discusses economic and innovation theory, as a method of understanding urban development, yet should be understood as an analysis of urban renewal and urban planning. The MBDA case study is a brownfield (redeveloped/renovated) development within an economic cluster of retail, residential, office and tourism/leisure/entertainment. The MBDA uses greenfield (new) development to complement urban renewal and systems of innovation x that endeavour to meet customer needs. The development case aims to focus on its customer (or local community) needs in an all-encompassing approach. Specifically, this includes guided development - a process using well-defined urban design briefs that ensures urban designs are complementary in their overall impact and culminate in a dynamic place initiative. The situation in Port Elizabeth is not unique. On account of global forces of industrial transformation, many countries have, and continue to, find themselves struggling with the renewal of large and redundant inner urban areas that were formerly used for industry and logistics. A typical challenge in this type of context for renewal is to design development schemes that will encourage economic growth and revitalisation within these areas. Although planning, construction and development are systematically methodical activities, economic and social regeneration are more complex. Due to the on-going transformation of the economy in South Africa, the urban context is under constant pressure to change in tandem with pressurised demand for change. The driving forces in the economy are progressing from a nation-orientated and raw-materialbased production origin, which formed the industrial society, to a global, regional and information-orientated urban growth-based structure. The condition of cities has become one of the qualities – or a prominent part of the overall quality – of this so-called knowledge economy. The urban environment, the territorially bounded areas which comprise it and the conditions of the environment within which it exists, are important factors for competitiveness, at both a city and regional level. Observed in reverse, competitiveness has also become a critical factor in achieving complex urban change from a new perspective of economic growth. Cities are the engines of regional and national growth. The economic success of cities and CBDs in South Africa is vital and will effectively ensure the much-needed upgrading of CBD and township infrastructure, using the revenue streams generated during city-centred economic revival. In South Africa (and likely elsewhere in the world), urban renewal is not only about aesthetics, but also about providing a foundation for urban planning, functional architecture and LED. In situations where cities undertake the urban renewal of redundant areas and buildings, economic competitiveness is foremost on the agenda. In order to understand how the forces of production and growth are linked with urban development, it is important to consider the new growth-orientated context for planning. An awareness of these changes and their trends, expressed as a paradigm shift, is reflected in the current discussions concerning the revision of urban planning in South Africa. This specifically targets integration between the previously disadvantaged communities and the advantaged communities. The Strategic Spatial Implementation Framework (SSIF) (2005), often referred to as the “Master Plan” of the MBDA, is an interventionist plan to ensure that the urban renewal infrastructure programme has well-researched projects with a strong catalytic impact leading xi to private sector investment and that thus secure the highest possible economic multiplier impact. Over the past four years, extensive capital has been deployed in Port Elizabeth’s urban infrastructure to lay the foundation for an enabling environment for private sector investment that will culminate in mobilising people to live, work and play in the city again. Public participation and market research have shown that the demand for residential, office, retail and tourism/leisure/entertainment will be directed largely by the black population; more specifically, the “black diamond” middle class anticipated to dominate the future Port Elizabeth economy (MBDA: 2010). It was the initial infrastructure programme in the CBD – which included projects that codepended or linked up with one another, to form a collective whole – which lifted the inner city to another level. It is these urban projects that culminated in renewed interest in the city, inter-linking this interest with the retail, residential, office and tourism/leisure/entertainment customer needs of the city. In most European countries, as in the case of South Africa, urban planning is in the process of transformation, from being a method for regulation and control into becoming a channel for possibilities and enabling development at local level. It is common cause that society needs to be more involved in a city’s planning processes. Tax payers now increasingly demand the use of government funds for infrastructure and the improvement of public areas and open spaces. In the 1980s, the liberal alternative to meet the shortage of tax money was to rely on private investment for urban development. The society used its organisational and planning capacity to encourage market investment through public-private partnerships (PPPs). This strategy is viable in situations where the level of financial risk is low or where conditions are reasonably predictable. Private actors refrain from investment in complex settings where the returns are projected to be far ahead in the future. In South Africa, this is often perceived as a degree of business fatigue; particularly in respect of public-private partnerships. Urban development through private sector investment requires leadership. This can come in the form of the precreation of an enabling environment, i.e. extensive publicly funded basic urban infrastructure investment. Consequently, the urban context requires development to a level where investment can be motivated by core business economic reasoning. In short, other than making social and political sense, urban planning must adhere to financial and economic sense. The society is an important actor and one that has far-sighted motives. In Port Elizabeth, as in the case of many other municipalities, the revenue pool drawn from rates and taxes is simply insufficient to meet the demands of society. The Dynamic Place Initiative represents an alternative that unifies the advantages of the two previous planning discourses. Through a limited agency – such as the MBDA – positioned to guide urban development, the city is enabled to form advanced, politically-set strategies and at the same time, isolate the financial risk through the response of private sector investment. It should be emphasised that the private sector enters the realm of urban development through property actions guided by the planning system. Planning questions ought to be based around the there and then rather than the here and now. The MBDA has become a conduit for dealing with these systems gaps, ensuring that urban and port planning is not limited in focus but speaks to customer needs and makes financial and economic sense. / Thesis (DPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2013 / Town and Regional Planning / unrestricted

Life Orientation, a core subject of the South African secondary school curriculum since 1996, is still not taught successfully in the majority of secondary schools. This study was conducted in former Model C secondary schools in the Nelson Mandela Metropole in order to identify challenges and problems with regard to the management of the teaching of the subject. If the subject were managed properly by principals the Departmental outcomes would have been achieved and problems would not have existed. In this study the managerial challenges of the teaching of Life Orientation have been identified by means of mixed method research, in terms of the four main management tasks, namely leading, planning, organising and controlling. The views of principals were obtained through a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The data was synthesised, multi-dimensional management problems were identified and recommendations were made with regard to managing the important subject of Life Orientation. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Education Management)

Decentralisation of the multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) programme to primary health care (PHC) facilities in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan was implemented in order to improve the effectiveness of MDR TB services. This study explored the knowledge gaps of nurses at PHC facilities as regards MDR TB. A quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted; data was collected using a structured questionnaire. Non-probability sampling was applied in this study. A convenient sampling technique was used and 25 of the 42 facilities were selected. Thirty-two respondents completed the questionnaire with a response rate of 64%. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the data. Only 38% of the nurses had been trained on MDR TB. Overall scores were high with a mean knowledge score of 61%. However there were knowledge gaps regarding side effects of MDR TB medication. This study revealed gaps in knowledge of certain areas of MDR TB management / Health Studies / M.A. (Public Health)

Life Orientation, a core subject of the South African secondary school curriculum since 1996, is still not taught successfully in the majority of secondary schools. This study was conducted in former Model C secondary schools in the Nelson Mandela Metropole in order to identify challenges and problems with regard to the management of the teaching of the subject. If the subject were managed properly by principals the Departmental outcomes would have been achieved and problems would not have existed. In this study the managerial challenges of the teaching of Life Orientation have been identified by means of mixed method research, in terms of the four main management tasks, namely leading, planning, organising and controlling. The views of principals were obtained through a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The data was synthesised, multi-dimensional management problems were identified and recommendations were made with regard to managing the important subject of Life Orientation. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Education Management)

Decentralisation of the multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) programme to primary health care (PHC) facilities in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan was implemented in order to improve the effectiveness of MDR TB services. This study explored the knowledge gaps of nurses at PHC facilities as regards MDR TB. A quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted; data was collected using a structured questionnaire. Non-probability sampling was applied in this study. A convenient sampling technique was used and 25 of the 42 facilities were selected. Thirty-two respondents completed the questionnaire with a response rate of 64%. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the data. Only 38% of the nurses had been trained on MDR TB. Overall scores were high with a mean knowledge score of 61%. However there were knowledge gaps regarding side effects of MDR TB medication. This study revealed gaps in knowledge of certain areas of MDR TB management / Health Studies / M.A. (Public Health)