No description available.

The adoption of the 2013 Constitution of Zimbabwe heralded a new era with high expectations from ordinary citizens of Zimbabwe. Among other matters, the Constitution provides for a multilevel system of government with government organised at the national, provincial and local levels. The design of this system of government is linked to the need, inter alia, to realise development, build democracy and sustain peace in Zimbabwe. Provincial and local governments are expected to play a role in the realisation of these goals. The question is whether the law and policy governing provincial and local governments in Zimbabwe enables these governments to play that role. It will be argued that the law and policy hinders the role of provincial and local governments in realising development, building democracy and sustaining peace. The national government has excessive supervisory powers over provincial and local governments which limit the minimum level of local discretion required if these lower governments are to assist in realising development, building democracy and sustaining peace. Moreover, the legal and institutional design emphasises coordinative rather than cooperative relations among governments, thereby undermining opportunities for effective multilevel governance. It will be argued that the 2013 Constitution, however, provides the foundation upon which an effective system of multilevel government can be built. Mere alignment of the legislative framework with the 2013 Constitution is nevertheless unlikely to give full effect to the non-centralised system of government envisaged by this new Constitution. What is required is the development of a policy, institutional and legislative framework that gives effect to the constitutional spirit of devolution of power and cooperative governance. / Doctor Legum - LLD

No abstract available / Dissertation (MA (Development Communication))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Information Science / unrestricted

No description available.

Magister Legum - LLM

HIV and AIDS stigma has become a vital challenge for all stakeholders in the workplace. Although government has developed policies on managing HIV and AIDS, indications are that the implementation of these policies and strategies has not been effective in mitigating HIV and AIDS workplace stigma. The key thrust for conducting this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of Employee Wellness Practitioners concerning HIV and AIDS stigma in the Gauteng Provincial Government [GPG] departments. The study was geared towards ascertaining empirically the Employee Wellness Programme [EWP] practitioners’ perceptions regarding the manifestation of HIV and AIDS stigma, the context of stigma in a government department, and insight into whether workplace interventions have been effective in mitigating stigma. The general orientation to the study in Chapter 1 provides an overview of the definition of the problem of stigma, and also of the goals and objectives of the study, the research question, empirical approach, research design and methodologies used, pilot testing of data collection instrument, research population, sampling methods, ethical considerations and the structure of the study report. Fourteen EWP practitioners from the 13 GPG departments were interviewed by the researcher. The literature review in Chapter 2 theoretically scrutinises the problem of HIV and AIDS stigma with specific reference to the types, forms sources, causes and consequences of stigma. The conjectural context of HIV and AIDS stigma in the workplace is expounded and workplace interventions are explored. Chapter 3 of this study presents and analyses the data collected from the respondents. Findings indicate that HIV and AIDS stigma is widespread in the GPG departments and that workplace responses as per EWP practitioners’ perceptions are diverse. HIV and AIDS stigma mitigation strategies necessitate the use of multi-dimensional, multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral approaches which should be tailored to address the challenges and needs of relevant stakeholders. From the results of this study it is apparent that HIV and AIDS stigma has an immense impact on the performance of government employees, and that current HIV and Employee Wellness policies are not sufficient to enhance stigma mitigation in the workplace. Lack of support, commitment and visionary leadership in government departments impede the hard EWP practitioners’ efforts to de-stigmatise HIV and AIDS in the GPG. Chapter 4 presents the conclusions and recommendations for prioritisation and implementation through workplace interventions. Copyright / Dissertation (MSW)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted

D.Tech / No transformation is subtler, yet more explosive, than the mega shift from an industrial to an information society. In an industrial society, the strategic resource is capital whereas in an information society, the strategic resource is information. These mega trends are evident, to a greater or lesser degree, also in South Africa. At the same time, South Africa has to meet the challenges inherent in the transition to participatory democratic government. Crucial in both these global and local challenges is the management of information and public opinion. One of the primary role-players in achieving this is the public relations (PR) practitioner. Effective public relations depends in many ways on achieving the right balance between over-reacting and under-reacting to events in the environment, as they manifest, inter a/ia, in public opinion. The fundamental tool for achieving this balance in managing public opinion is information. This requires that information be utilised in a strategic way to manage the perceptions constituting public opinion. PR practitioners working in the field of political communication in South Africa need to contribute to the establishment of a framework of political communication based on full acceptance of the requirements of a participative democracy. This involves, inter alio, improving access to information and developing efficient two-way communication between decision-makers and stakeholders. The Free State Provincial Government Department of Finance, Expenditure and Economic Affairs identified the need to improve communication with its stakeholders. To achieve this, an appropriate communication strategy and supporting action plans had to be formulated. This communication strategy and action plans formed the point of departure of this study. Of particular importance for this study were the related principles of the systems management approach, the systemic approach to political communication and the two-way symmetric model of public relations. Both the systems management approach (from a public relations perspective) and the systemic approach (from a political communication perspective) emphasise the need to achieve equilibrium within the system by balancing communication input and output. The two-way symmetric model explains public relations as an attempt to adjust the socio-political environment to suit the political principal, as well as to help the political principal adjust to his/her environment. The PR practitioner plays a vital role in assisting his/her principal to achieve equilibrium and to adjust to the environment. A starting point in evaluating whether communication equilibrium has been attained is to evaluate the communication processes in political public relations. One method of evaluating these processes is by means of a communication audit. The main aim of this study was to develop an evaluative model for political public relations. The objectives of the study were to determine whether the Department, as a political communication system, was achieving communication equilibrium by balancing communication input from its stakeholders with appropriate communication output. The study further recommended steps to achieve communication equilibrium and devised a means of monitoring and evaluating progress with implementation. It resulted in the development of a model for the attainment of communication equilibrium in accordance with the demands of the two-way symmetrical model of public relations.

The present study focuses on the application of electronic governance (e-governance) or implementation of ICTs by governments. This topic has been a worldwide focus for several years to date. This study has unpacked and analysed various contrasting views on the use of ICTs in promoting e-governance. In some quarters there is criticism about challenges and problems which include: lack of in-depth training of public personnel; the particular need to skill public managers in the use of ICTs; the development of training models for ICT/e-governance for public managers in order to improve the services rendered by governments. On the same note, some criticisms have been highlighted on insufficient alignment between governments and legislations governing the use of ICTs. The lack of adequately trained public managers in ICTs has also become a critical factor in African countries, including South Africa and its provinces. This study works toward constructing a training model in e-governance for the selected Free State provincial departments. The aim was especially to empower public managers in order for them to participate effectively in e-governance applications and implementations and thereby fulfil the mandate of the South African legislation governing the use of ICT in Government. This study will start off with an orientation of the problem statement, as well as the goal and objectives as outlined in Chapter 1. The process of developing the e-governance training model will be aligned in Chapter 2 with training principles and theoretical underpinnings as perceived by various theorists who advocate management training. This implies that managers should be trained in interactions between levels and units of analytical skills in a work place. Furthermore, the study will focus in Chapter 2 on the legislation that governs the training of public managers in South Africa. This legislation applies as a legal framework that guides the use of ICTs in government. This discussion will be followed by an examination (in Chapter 3) of the worldwide practices and models on the use of e-governance and ICTs. A selected number of these global e-governance practices and models in chapter 3 will be incorporated (in Chapter 4) into a workable, drafted e-governance training model for the selected Free State provincial departments, while the basic elements of managerial training and model development will be discussed as well. The process of model development will be discussed in Chapter 4 based on the overarching principles such development. The exposition will focus on the concentric layers as macro-, meso- and micro- levels of model development. This will be followed by the processing in Chapter 5 of the empirical findings obtained from the data analysis on training in e-governance. This analysis will be a prelude to the development in Chapter 6 of a comprehensive, operational e-governance training model for Free State provincial public managers. The final, comprehensive e-governance training model will be presented in Chapter 6, after refining the drafted training model from Chapter 4, when the data will be collected, analysed and interpreted in Chapter 5. / PhD (Public Management and Governance), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

The present study focuses on the application of electronic governance (e-governance) or implementation of ICTs by governments. This topic has been a worldwide focus for several years to date. This study has unpacked and analysed various contrasting views on the use of ICTs in promoting e-governance. In some quarters there is criticism about challenges and problems which include: lack of in-depth training of public personnel; the particular need to skill public managers in the use of ICTs; the development of training models for ICT/e-governance for public managers in order to improve the services rendered by governments. On the same note, some criticisms have been highlighted on insufficient alignment between governments and legislations governing the use of ICTs. The lack of adequately trained public managers in ICTs has also become a critical factor in African countries, including South Africa and its provinces. This study works toward constructing a training model in e-governance for the selected Free State provincial departments. The aim was especially to empower public managers in order for them to participate effectively in e-governance applications and implementations and thereby fulfil the mandate of the South African legislation governing the use of ICT in Government. This study will start off with an orientation of the problem statement, as well as the goal and objectives as outlined in Chapter 1. The process of developing the e-governance training model will be aligned in Chapter 2 with training principles and theoretical underpinnings as perceived by various theorists who advocate management training. This implies that managers should be trained in interactions between levels and units of analytical skills in a work place. Furthermore, the study will focus in Chapter 2 on the legislation that governs the training of public managers in South Africa. This legislation applies as a legal framework that guides the use of ICTs in government. This discussion will be followed by an examination (in Chapter 3) of the worldwide practices and models on the use of e-governance and ICTs. A selected number of these global e-governance practices and models in chapter 3 will be incorporated (in Chapter 4) into a workable, drafted e-governance training model for the selected Free State provincial departments, while the basic elements of managerial training and model development will be discussed as well. The process of model development will be discussed in Chapter 4 based on the overarching principles such development. The exposition will focus on the concentric layers as macro-, meso- and micro- levels of model development. This will be followed by the processing in Chapter 5 of the empirical findings obtained from the data analysis on training in e-governance. This analysis will be a prelude to the development in Chapter 6 of a comprehensive, operational e-governance training model for Free State provincial public managers. The final, comprehensive e-governance training model will be presented in Chapter 6, after refining the drafted training model from Chapter 4, when the data will be collected, analysed and interpreted in Chapter 5. / PhD (Public Management and Governance), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Thesis (MPA.) --University of Limpopo, 2005 / Refer to document