The objective of this study was to find out how a course in School Financial Management should be designed and presented in order to bring about an improvement in the practice of school financial management in disadvantaged schools in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The study was conducted in the interpretive and critical theory paradigms, and employed a qualitative empirical approach. The focus of the research was two cohorts of school leaders taking part in the Advanced Certificate in Education: School Management and Leadership programme at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth. The researcher presented a course in Financial Management to both of these cohorts, and employed an action research method in her research, introducing the insights and lessons learned from teaching the first cohort in the design and teaching of the second cohort. Data were collected in various ways, including written assignments of students, class discussions, personal interviews and document analyses. More data were collected during school visits at which the researcher observed the level of financial practice at schools, and could also, from the one-to-one interactions with the students, identify the issues that were still problematic to them. Another aspect of the data gathering process was the detailed analysis of the section on Financial Management in the ACE study material provided by the Department of Education. This enabled the researcher to compare her study material and teaching approach to that of the Department’s study material, so as to ascertain which content and methods of teaching were best suited to bringing about an improvement in practice. The study’s main findings were that designers of such programmes in Financial Management should focus on basic Accounting principles and avoid an overload of content of issues which are “good to know”, but do not contribute to the understanding of Accounting principles necessary for the drawing up of financial statements. The method of teaching should predominantly be an interactive approach based on adult learning principles, with enough time for students to complete certain assignments and activities with feedback by the lecturer. The role v of mentors and of the lecturer visiting schools was emphasised as one of the key ways to assist participants in implementing what they had learned. The most important recommendations emanating from the study were the suggestion that the Department of Education should play a bigger formational role in providing feedback to schools on the financial statements submitted to the Department by these schools, the rethinking of the Department of Education’s module on Financial Management in the ACE for School Principals, and the development of a follow-up course in which all the additional aspects of School Financial Management could be included.

Studies have shown that BBBEE parties are unsuccessful in raising banking finance due to a number of reasons. The objective of the enactment of the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) Act is primarily to promote the participation of black people in the economy. The measurement of BBBEE is determined by the codes of good practice for Qualifying Small Enterprises (QSE), which consists of seven elements namely: ownership, management control, employment equity, skills development, preferential procurement, enterprise development and socio-economic development. Enterprises with annual turnover ranging from R5 million and R35 million qualify as QSE. These elements measure the level of BBBEE status. The enactment of the National Credit Act replaced the Usury Act, 1968 and the Credit Agreements Act, 1980. The objective of the act is to promote accessibility to the credit market and to prevent the over-indebtedness of consumers. The Act is applicable to natural persons with contractual capacity and juristic persons with monetary assets or annual turnover of less than R1 million. This study aims to establish the facilitation of access to banking finance for BBBEE SME’S within the George and Mossel Bay area as these towns form part of the Garden Route Business Banking Division of Nedbank. The effect of the BBBEE and NCA on the accessing of banking finance was studied and analysed. Credit applications are subject to stringent credit scoring systems to rate applicants, monitor performance and manage accounts. The Basel rating which measures the minimum level of capital a bank should hold to protect investors determines the interest rate charged for loans. These ratings affect the accessibility of banking finance. A framework for bank and SME relationship building shows the relationships between: • The accounts manager’s role in relationship management; • Branch staff role in relationship management; • Corporate policies as part of relationship management. A survey was conducted in the form of a questionnaire in order to obtain primary information from two sample groups, banking officials and BBBEE clients to establish the relationship between the two sample groups. Quantitative techniques were used and the data obtained from the two sample groups were analysed. The study revealed that the by establishment of relationships between BBBEE clients and banking officials would facilitate access to banking.

The third sphere of government (Local Government) has been persistently clouded by unfavourable Annual Financial Statement (AFS) audit reports. This results in local government losing credibility and its stakeholders losing confidence in the institutions or municipalities. In-depth analysis of the root cause of this dilemma is an opportunity for the municipality to reorganise its house and redeem its dignity and credibility to its stakeholders through addressing the identified challenges. The importance of the study can be attributed to the need to investigate the root causes of unfavourable audit opinion and recommend possible remedies that can assist municipalities to improve their audit report outcomes which in turn will improve the confidence of its stakeholders. The primary objective of the study was to investigate variables that impact on the audit report outcomes on annual financial statements of the municipalities that are within Alfred Nzo District (AND) Jurisdiction, including Alfred Nzo District Municipality (ANDM). This was achieved through investigating the root causes of the audit report outcomes with specific focus on the relationship that exists between the management role and audit outcomes of the Alfred Nzo District Municipalities. This was measured by the municipality’s leadership, governance, internal controls and human capital management. Convenient sampling was used wherein 150 questionnaires (30 per municipality) were sent out to the selected employees in all the municipalities in the Alfred Nzo District. Out of the questionnaires that were sent out, 103 responses were received. These were analysed to draw findings, conclusion and recommendations. The empirical results of the study revealed that there is strong evidence that leadership, governance and human capital management have a positive influence on the municipality’s AFS audit report outcomes. It also revealed that there is overwhelming evidence that internal controls have a positive influence on the municipality’s AFS audit report outcomes. The study recommends how leadership, governance, internal controls and human capital management must be improved. It also provides future research recommendations to improve this study.

Sustainable environmental practices need to be integrated into a university's infrastructural operations. Universities are entities that function within financial constraints with varying priorities across both administrative and educational functions. Unfortunately, these financial constraints often imply that a university's potential leadership role can only be realised should the viability (business case) of a proposed intervention be determined. This study focuses on the determination of a relational sustainable indicator and a relational cost factor. A relational sustainable indicator demonstrates how a university can collectively determine the contribution made to sustainability by various sectors of infrastructure. This is developed by means of a secondary study. Two components are important for calculating the relational sustainability indicator, namely, green infrastructure attributes and the basic elements of sustainability systems, namely, the environmental, economic and social dimensions of sustainability. The determination of a relational cost factor involves the quantification of the costs associated with alternative infrastructure provision. In particular, attention is paid to demand-side management costs, rationalising spatial growth costs, green building development costs, operation and maintenance of existing buildings costs, wastewater infrastructure costs, water infrastructure costs, energy infrastructure costs and transport infrastructure costs. Once the actual costs of each intervention category are determined, a relational sustainable cost factor can be calculated. Utilising the costs in the eight categories identified, a relational sustainable cost factor is determined. A resultant relational cost benefit as per the eight defined categories of sustainable infrastructure provision is derived from the relevant costs of sustainable infrastructure provision, the resultant relational cost factors and, finally, the relational sustainability indicators. It is proposed that that the determination of a budget split between the various interventions based on the resultant relational cost factor occur as follows: - Demand side management interventions: 15.97percent - Rationalising spatial growth: 6.72percent - Construction of green buildings: 24.37percent - Operations and maintenance: 21.85percent - Wastewater: 7.56percent - Water: 1.68percent - Energy: 12.61percent - Transport: 9.24percent. This study provides a platform to guide how and where to invest in sustainable infrastructure and provide direction in determining a budget split between various categories of sustainable infrastructure development.

A research Report submitted to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Property Development and Management, September 2018 / Corporate real estate is required by firms to operate business and this can either be owned or leased. Either option requires substantial amounts of money. Despite this fact most studies conducted have focussed on tangible corporate assets in general and not corporate real estate in particular, the reason put forward being that this asset type has diverse intangible aspects which makes the own or lease equation a complex one. South Africa is the second largest economy on the continent and has a real estate market rivalling that of European countries by size; these facts are reason enough to support investigating the real estate market in detail. Gauteng Province accounts for 34.4% of the country’s GDP and 23% of this is from the industrial sector. This study, which is based on a 2011 UK study by Barkham and Park, sought to establish whether non-financial factors play a key role in the decision to own or lease industrial real estate in Gauteng Province. The study used an empirical approach using Thematic Network analysis to explore the non-financial determinants of owning or leasing industrial real estate from data obtained from 4 firms. Findings reveal that both financial and non-financial determinants are considered in the LVB decision for industrial CRE in Gauteng. Ranking of these factors showed that 3 of the four respondents ranked the non-financial ones first followed by some financial ones. It is suggested that further research be conducted to cover a larger population i.e. industrial firms in the major cities with a large industrial presence country wide. Additionally one which includes different firm sizes and a mixed method for data collection and analysis. / XL2019

Thesis (M.Com. (Development Theory and Policy))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, School of Economic and Business Sciences, 2017 / The South African higher education student protests which began in October 2015 have culminated in the student body voicing increased demands for the implementation of free fee higher education. Key policy stakeholders and commentators have been critical of this demand stating that such a policy would be regressive and ‘destructive’ due to the fact that the rich dominate the student cohort, the net result of which would be the poor funding the higher education of the rich. There is a continued emphasis on the private benefits that higher education provides graduates, therbey necessitating tuition fees. This paper has shown that these arguments, dating back to the 1970s, have weak theoretical foundations. The view that the rich dominate the student cohort is questioned with the finding that only 18% of the households containing students are classified as rich. As the rich provide 97% of personal income tax revenue and 76% of value added tax revenue it would be difficult for the poor to fund the rich. The states ‘chronic underfunding’ of the higher education system comes amid ‘budgetary pressures’ highlighting the continued adherence of the state to fiscal austerity measures. These austerity measures have increasingly shifted the financial burden of higher education onto students. A financial burden that 80% of households are deemed to require financial assistance to meet. In reducing state funding to the higher education system, in real terms, the private benefits of higher education are used to lure students into paying ever increasing tuition fees, even taking on debt in order to do so. / GR2018

Existing literature and theories related to the separation of ownership and control and its impact on companies' financial performance, including dividend payment have left this subject in state of ambiguity and uncleamess, with various contradictions and inconsistencies being noted. In order to establish whether there is a significant difference in financial performance between owner-controlled and management-controlled companies in South Africa, as a result of the separation of ownership and control, this study has used appropriate mathematical and statistical methods for data processing and analysis. Results obtained from the study have revealed the existence of a significant difference in financial performance between owner-controlled and management-controlled companies in South Africa, as measured in terms of profitability, asset management, liquidity, leverage and dividend payment. The analysis has indicated that management-controlled companies have been more efficient, more mature financially and paying higher dividends, out of earnings available to shareholders, than their owner-controlled counterparts. / Business Management / M. Comm. (Business Management)

The procurement function accounts for the largest total amount of organisational expenditure. This fact notwithstanding, the function is still referred to as non-strategic and is often subordinate to finance in the public or service sectors, and is therefore considered as a non-value-adding task in some organisations. Despite the fact that renowned scholars have revealed that organisations may eliminate waste, realise more prospects and cut costs if they implement procurement best practices. It is reported that few organisations have adopted procurement best practices, especially in the public sector. In South Africa, public universities face numerous procurement challenges, such as procurement irregularities and wasteful expenditure of resources and money. Corruption and maladministration in the procurement system have been noticed, which involves among others, the payment of suppliers, owned or co-owned by university employees who have failed to declare their interest when providing services to the university. This study determines whether South African comprehensive universities conduct procurement according to the best practices. In order to investigate the problem, an exploratory study was carried out in two phases. The first phase comprised the literature study, while the second phase entailed an empirical study. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using open-ended questions. The findings of the study revealed that that some participating South African comprehensive universities do not conduct their procurement according to procurement best practices and consequently do not contribute sufficiently to the university’s overall objectives for competitive advantage and sustainability. While others displayed elementary initiatives in the adoption of procurement best practices, some universities had developed turnaround strategies for implementing procurement best practices. The slow progression can be attributed to the rigid, cumbersome and unclear public procurement policies that govern procurement in South Africa. So, comprehensive universities face diverse challenges in the adoption of procurement best practices. A framework for implementing procurement best practices in South African Comprehensive universities was developed. / Business Management / M. Com. (Business Management)

Thesis (PhD (Economics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2008. / The primary financial objective of a firm is the maximisation of its shareholders’ value. A problem faced by the shareholders of a firm is that it is difficult to determine the effect of management decisions on the future share returns of the firm. Furthermore, it may be necessary to implement certain monitoring costs to ensure that management is focused on achieving this objective. A firm would, therefore, benefit from being able to identify those financial performance measures that are able to link the financial performance of the firm to its share returns. Implementing such a financial performance measure in the valuation and reward systems of a firm should ensure that management is aligned with the objective of shareholder value maximisation, and rewarded for achieving it. A large number of traditional financial performance measures have been developed. These measures are often criticised for excluding a firm’s cost of capital, and are considered inappropriate to be used when evaluating value creation. Furthermore, it is argued that these measures are based on accounting information, which could be distorted by Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP). Studies investigating the relationship between these measures and share returns also provide conflicting results. As a result of the perceived limitations of traditional measures, value based financial performance measures were developed. The major difference between the traditional and value based measures is that the value based measures include a firm’s cost of capital in their calculation. They also attempt to remove some of the accounting distortions resulting from GAAP. Proponents of the value based measures present these measures as a major improvement over the traditional financial performance measures and report high levels of correlation between the measures and share returns. A number of studies containing contradictory results have been published. On the basis of these conflicting results it is not clear whether the value based measures are able to outperform the traditional financial performance measures in explaining share returns. The primary objectives of this study are thus to: • Determine the relationship between the traditional measures earnings before extraordinary items (EBEI) and cash from operations (CFO), and shareholder value creation; • Investigate the value based measures residual income (RI), economic value added (EVA), cash value added (CVA) and cash flow return on investments (CFROI), and to determine their relationship with the creation of shareholder value; • Evaluate the incremental information content of the value based measures above the traditional measures. The information content of the traditional measures and the value based measures are evaluated by employing an approach developed by Biddle, Bowen and Wallace (1997). The first phase of this approach entails the evaluation of the relative information content of the various measures in order to determine which measure explains the largest portion of a firm’s market-adjusted share returns. The second phase consists of an evaluation of the incremental information content of the components of a measure in order to determine whether the inclusion of an additional component contributes statistically significant additional information beyond that contained in the other components. The study is conducted for South African industrial firms listed on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange for the period 1991 to 2005. The data required to calculate the measures investigated in the study are obtained from the McGregor BFA database. This database contains annual standardised financial statements for listed and delisted South African firms. It also contains EVA, cost of capital and invested capital amounts for those firms listed at the end of the research period. Including only these listed firms in the research sample would expose the study to a survivorship bias. Hence these values are estimated for those firms that delisted during the period under review by employing a similar approach to the one used in the database. The resulting sample consists of 364 firms providing 3181 complete observations. Since different information is required to calculate the various measures included in the study, different samples are compiled from this initial sample and included in the tests conducted to evaluate the information content of the measures. The results of this study indicate that the value based measures are not able to outperform EBEI in the majority of the relative information content tests. Furthermore, the measures EVA, CVA and CFROI are also not able to outperform the relatively simple value based measure RI. The results from the incremental information content tests indicate that although some of the components of the value based measures provide statistically significant incremental information content, the level of significance for these relatively complex adjustments is generally low. Based on these results, the claims made by the proponents of the value based measures cannot be supported. Furthermore, if a firm intends to incorporate its cost of capital in its financial performance measures, the measure RI provides most of the benefits contained in the other more complex value based measures.

Abstract in English, Afrikaans and Zulu / This study is aimed at investigating the capital structures of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange listed South African IT firms and compare these to the capital structures of NASDAQ listed US IT firms in order to better understand the capital structures that JSE listed South African firms employ. The study made use of secondary data in the form of ratio analysis from public sources, as well as the published annual financial statements of the firms. The Generalised Method of Moments regression analysis technique was used in order to test the data for relationships between certain ratios. The study found positive relationships between the firm’s capital structure and its return on equity; meaning that firms should make use of their capital structures to maximise their return on equity and as a result, returns for its shareholders. / Hierdie studie is daarop gerig om die kapitaalstrukture van Suid-Afrikaanse IT-ondernemings wat op die Johannesburgse Aandelebeurs (JSE) genoteer is te ondersoek, en dit te vergelyk met die kapitaalstrukture van NASDAQ-genoteerde Amerikaanse IT-ondernemings ten einde die kapitaalstrukture wat JSE-genoteerde Suid-Afrikaanse ondernemings gebruik, beter te verstaan. Die studie het sekondêre data in die vorm van verhoudingsontleding uit openbare bronne, asook die gepubliseerde finansiële jaarstate van die ondernemings gebruik. Die Veralgemeende Metode van Momente-regressieanalisetegniek is gebruik ten einde die data vir verwantskappe tussen bepaalde verhoudings te toets. Die studie het positiewe verwantskappe tussen die ondernemings se kapitaalstruktuur en opbrengs op ekwiteit gevind; dit beteken dat ondernemings hul kapitaalstrukture behoort te gebruik om hul opbrengs op ekwiteit en gevolglik ook opbrengste vir hul aandeelhouers te maksimeer. / Lolu cwaningo kuhloswe ngalo ukuhlola izinhlaka ezifaka imali ezinkampanini zobuchwephese bamakhompuyutha ezisohlwini lwe-Johannesburg Stock Exchange (i-JSE), nokuziqhathanisa nezinhlaka ezifaka imali ezinkampanini zase-US zobuchwepheshe bekhompuyutha ezisohlwini lwe-NASDAQ ukuze kuqondakale kangcono izinhlaka ezifaka imali ezinkampanini zaseNingizimu Afrika ezisohlwini lwe-JSE. Lolu cwaningo lusebenzise imininingwane eqoqwe kweminye emayelana nokucwaningwa kwezinombolo etholakala emithonjeni evulelekile emalungwini omphakathi kanye nakwizitatimende zezezimali zonyaka zezinkampani. Kusetshenziswe indlela yokucwaninga ehlawumbiselayo ngokuqhathanisa ubudlelwano neyaziwa ngokuthi yi-Generalised Method of Moments, ukuze kuhlolwe imininingwane eveza ubudlelwano phakathi kwezinombolo ezithile. Ucwaningo luthole ubudlelwano obubonakalayo phakathi kwezinhlaka ezifaka imali enkampanini kanye nenzuzo yayo yamanani amasheya; okusho ukuthi izinkampani kumele zisebenzise izinhlaka zazo ezizifakela imali ukwandisa amathuba enzuzo yamanani amasheya okuyinto ezodala ukuba kuhlomule abanini-bamasheya. / Finance, Risk Management and Banking / M. Com. (Finance)