The Republic of South Africa (RSA) became a democracy when the African National Congress (ANC) came to power in 1994. However, more than twenty years after the apartheid era, the people of the RSA are highly politicised and society still shows an extremely high level of inequality in income that is aggravated by the lack of formal job opportunities in the country. Disturbingly, early-stage entrepreneurial activity in the RSA declined from 7.8 percent in 2008 to 5 percent in 2009. As a result, the low levels of entrepreneurial activity are partly responsible for the stagnation in the structural transformation of the economy. The economy remains dependent on sectors such as agriculture and mining where looting, instability, violence and rent-seeking are endemic in spite of plentiful natural resources. As a consequence of these factors, manufacturing is becoming increasingly uncompetitive and the economy is becoming increasingly less innovative. The RSA‟s government leaders should have used the strengths of the country to minimise or rectify the weaknesses of the extremely high levels of inequality in income and the lack of formal job opportunities. Instead, these leaders identified their supporters, satisfied their short-term consumption demands, distributed jobs to the party faithful and provided social welfare to the poor. Additionally, the majority of school leavers are not pursuing tertiary studies but, with limited or little education, they still have to form part of the potential labour force of the future. The youth employment rate for 15 to 24 year-olds, in the RSA, is as low as 12.5 percent. Again, this highlights the importance of finding alternative ways to increase the population‟s participation in the economy, probably through some form of entrepreneurship. The purpose of this study was to develop a theoretical model with the main objective being to identify the factors (variables) that will promote growth, sustainability and good governance in Christian-owned Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMME) within the RSA. Business is commonly viewed as a secular pursuit and religious people, particularly in Western societies, have a narrow view of the conceptual and practical application of their faith and spirituality in their businesses. As a result, the potential of businesses to influence communities, particularly with regard to issues such as social iniquities and cultural reform, good governance, responsible business behaviour, social capital, spiritual intelligence (SQ) and Christian entrepreneurship orientation appear to be, at worst, more or less irrelevant and, at best, greatly under-valued and under-utilised. The intersection of these constructs provides an understanding of how an entrepreneur‟s heightened consciousness in terms of his/her personal values and beliefs can affect his or her business activities and crucial characteristics of the entrepreneurial process, such as the recognition of opportunities, the creation of new ventures, as well as the operation and growth of these business ventures. This study uncovered a number of themes that shed light on how Christian SMME owner-managers rationalise the everyday dealings of their business lives as an expression of their faith. This study is an expression of a complex phenomenon that is extremely relevant in the present day and sharpens the focus on the important role that religious faith has to play in the field of business outcomes. Many Christian entrepreneurs express a motivational need to give back to their communities, customers and other stakeholders of the business venture. Christian entrepreneurs value intrinsic factors like purpose, passionate work and personal calling above wealth, fame, power, money, and recognition. A combination of Christian character traits forms the backbone of a Christian‟s internal power and purpose. God created people to glorify Him and this purpose is achieved through the fulfilling of a personal calling. A calling is often accompanied by a conviction of divine influence and the vocation in which one customarily engages. The call to the Christian entrepreneur is to be the salt and light in an environment (Mathew 5:13) like RSA, that is not conducive to entrepreneurial behaviour, where unemployment is very high, infrastructure is buckling under the pressures of bad management and corruption is rife.

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are engines of growth. It has been determined globally that these enterprises are the largest employers in economies. Small and Medium Enterprises fail fundamentally to succeed in South Africa. Many challenges and barriers were identified as the reason why the enterprise fails to survive or succeed for at least 42 months. Poor performance of the SMEs could be blamed on the lack of meaningful support including an over-regulated environment, red tape and the poor quality of education and training. A number of Small and Medium Enterprise owners in Turkey were interviewed to determine if the enterprise development support system contributed to success and economic growth. The government succeeded to improve the economy of Turkey profoundly by investing and supporting this very important sector. Turkey is positioned 17th in the world based on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The purpose of this study was to develop an entrepreneurial development framework for SMEs in South Africa. The government needs to support and implement this framework to stimulate economic growth, to address the poor quality of education and training and to establish a system to measure the performance of critical success factors. A case study research approach was employed to address five propositions that were investigated in this research project. Semi-structured interviews studied the perceptions and experiences of the SME owners in Turkey. The study found a positive relationship between economic growth, a meaningful enterprise development support system, education and training, critical success factors and entrepreneurship and the perceived success of entrepreneurial ventures in South Africa. The establishment and implementation of an entrepreneurial development framework will encourage the creation of new ventures. The government will be able to achieve the goal of economic growth as set out in the National Development Plan. The establishment of SMEs will result in employment, social stability, economic growth and the generation of tax revenues. The purpose of an entrepreneurial development framework is to ensure the sustainable economic development and prosperity of South Africa.

The study seeks to analyse the socio-economic impact on local economic development programme with specific reference to Nyandeni local Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province. Nyandeni local Municipality is under the district of O.R. Tambo, its administrative seat is the town of Libode with a population of about 290, 390 which is spread over 31 wards. Scattered, low-density rural settlements dominate the Municipality. 79% of households reside in traditional or village type settlements. These settlements are loosely scattered throughout the entire Municipal area and are surrounded by communal grazing and arable lands. The majority of residential structures are self-built. Apart from a few trading stores, there is little sign of any significant economic activity within the rural settlements.

The South African automotive industry is by no means a ―cut and paste‖ version of their overseas counterparts. The industry and the market are very complex. The historical background of the industry is such that companies have difficulty forming partnerships and joint ventures with bigger international conglomerates. The difficulty with this kind of mindset is that it is restricting growth and development of the nation as a whole. Globalisation is a future we cannot be avoided. Should the nation continue to reject it and embrace the mindset of countries in Africa, South Africa (SA) will continue on the path that the rest of Africa is heading, a path that leading to self-destruct and segregation. Even though SA is a developing country, it is in some areas as developed as many other first world countries. For a country to generate wealth it needs to be innovative and develop an entrepreneurial consciousness. A young country like South Africa needs creative thinkers and opportunists that can see into the future, seizing every opportunity, to grow and develop new ideas and business. In order for a country to grow it needs a leadership that is to nurture the baby of innovation. If South Africa wants to be part of the global village it need to develop a trade policy that welcomes trade and at the same time creates stable and sustainable jobs. The environment for investments needs to be cultivated in a problem-free and growth prone nation. This can only happen when the educational level of the nation is improved. The fact that so many skilled workers need to be imported creates tension in the labour market. People with talent need to have a reason to stay in the country. Their salaries should match that of their overseas counterparts. Furthermore, with the same skill level and work ethic, should have the same rewards and remuneration.

The quest for resilient cities has emerged as a strategy to mitigate and adapt the problems created by urban population growth and rapid urbanisation. Resilience has increasingly become an important urban policy discourse that challenge cities to reflect on their adaptive capacity to function in the face of adversity. Urban resilience in particular, amplifies the concern that urban spaces are the hub of heightened complexities of diverse risks. Across the globe, the concept of resilience is gaining momentum with many academic researchers discussing this phenomenon. In South Africa, the concept has been sparingly incorporated in a number of literatures with little focus on local government entities such as municipalities. In order to close this gap in the literature, and in response to the increasing use of the concept locally, this study explores the extent to which factors of resilience resonate within the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality urban management practices. Based on the exploration of a wide array of literature from various disciplinary areas, this study examines the concept of urbanisation and the related challenges. It also critically explores the concept of resilience, its application in urban management as well as the attributes of the adaptive capacities that enable urban resilience. This research adopts the City Resilience Framework and Index developed by Arup in partnership with the Rockefeller Foundation to assess the levels of resilience in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. The framework identifies four main dimensions used to measure resilience: People’s health and wellbeing, Organisation of the economy and society, Place of urban systems and services and Knowledge inherent in leadership and strategy. These dimensions form the basis of an integrative framework that provides an alternative lense through which cities can understand their unique attributes that contribute to their resilience. This research highlights the levels of resilience within the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality and outlines practical implications for Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality’s management which can also be applied in other cities. This research adopts a positivist approach and applies statistical empirical measures using a quantitative analysis process. The research instrument in the form of a questionnaire was administered to the target population for data collection. Using the conceptual framework, the researcher applied statistical analysis to derive relationships amongst the variables to determine the degree of resilience in Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality using the four main dimensions of the framework. The findings of the study show the varying levels of resilience within NMBM’s practices. NMBM’s principal success areas include; providing basic houses, ensuring water and sanitation facilities, instituting effective labour policies, providing skills development and training facilities especially to the youth, enabling a conducive atmosphere for business development and the presence of an integrated development strategy. However, not much has been done in providing sufficient public health facilities, alternative energy sources, access to financial services, ensuring food security, enabling continuity of projects and activities through a funded budget, providing emergency medical services in the event of a disaster, high levels of corruption and insufficient deterrents to crime. Overall, the results show that NMBM has made good strides in enabling high level of resilience in its day to day operations. The findings of this study suggest that urban resilience is a continuous process that facilitates engagement leading to a dialogue and deeper understanding of a city.

South Africa is a signatory to several agreements dealing with sustainable development. South Africa has also committed to meeting several Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). One of the biggest challenges facing South Africa, like many other countries, is to maintain a balance between the quest for economic growth and sustainable development. In pursuing economic success, it is often the case that insufficient time and effort are dedicated to determining whether the planned developments support sustainability principles. In some instances, developments may meet one or two sustainability principles whilst violating a number of others, potentially leading to undesirable social, economic or environmental consequences. Countries ought to ensure that projects they approve for development at local, provincial or national level are subjected to thorough scrutiny to ascertain that there is minimal violation of sustainable development principles. The development of the MyCiTi bus transport system in the City of Cape Town was assessed for its consideration of sustainable development principles during the implementation of the project. Several users and non-users of MyCiTi were interviewed regarding their experience and observation of MyCiTi’s development and roll-out relative to sustainable development principles. The results obtained are discussed in this study and the appropriate recommendations given.

This research focuses on using criteria developed with the help of complexity theory to assess development projects, with special reference to a poverty alleviation project. As a test case it specifically addressed MES Port Elizabeth Poverty Alleviation Program. The first objective of the research was to use the principles of complexity theory and sustainable development to help develop a list of criteria for assessing whether or not any poverty alleviation program is worthwhile. These were laid out in terms of four categories: poverty alleviation, general complexity, social complexity and sustainable development. The second objective was to gather together as much information as possible on how the MES Poverty Alleviation Program operates. For this exploratory case study, a document analysis was conducted and the program leader of the MES Program was interviewed in depth. The final objective was to critically assess to what extent the MES Poverty Alleviation Program meets the criteria laid out for a worthwhile project. The results obtained from the analysis indicate that while the MES program makes a significant impact on the lives of participants, it experiences multiple challenges, particularly in relation to social complexity and sustainable development that reduce its effectiveness as a poverty alleviation program. It is concluded that complexity theory provides useful assessment criteria that enables us to identify diverse kinds of weakness within a program. It is recommended that the MES program should try to improve in its specific areas of weakness. Specifically it should redefine its policy on sustainable development, form more partnerships with external local organizations, increase pressure on government for policy change and increase the investment in service units of the project.

The province consists of seven district municipalities, which include Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Cacadu, Amathole, Chris Hani, Ukhahlamba, OR Tambo, and Alfred Ndzo. It is comprised of seven local municipalities: King Sabata Dalindyebo, Nyanden, Qaukeni, Mbizana, Mhlontlo, Port St John’s, and Ntabankulu. According to Bradshaw et al. (2000:4), the Eastern Cape has the second highest poverty level of all provinces in South Africa. Forty seven percent of households are below the poverty line, a figure based on imputed monthly expenditure of R800 or less (USSA, 2000b). In addition, the province has the highest provincial unemployment rate (55 percent) in the country (SSA, 2003). Inequitable growth and development characterise this province. Due to the high level of poverty, the government has formulated strategies, such as income generating projects (IGPs), to address the need for improved living conditions, better skills and more self-employment opportunities. The income generating project as a concept seems a convincing strategy at first glance. However, there is a need to evaluate the effectiveness of income generating projects in improving living conditions and providing sustainable livelihoods. In light of this, the researcher undertook a study to evaluate these projects in order to determine the extent to which IGPs as mechanisms provide sustainable livelihoods for resource–poor rural people in the Lukhanji Local Municipality. The researcher used a combined method approach; the study includes both quantitative and qualitative research designs in an attempt to gain an in-depth understanding of the problem. The investigator employed questionnaires and interviews to gather information. Participants were project members, project leaders and key informants, as these people were contributing builders and mangers of the project. Findings reveal a lack of sustainability in income generating projects, as numerous project members left the projects studied. A lack of income to sustain project members during their membership was a common complaint. Further, a lack of skills is a crucial contributing factor, as members of another project complained of a lack of training of project members.

The government of South African has stated its intentions to enforce a policy which will compel developers of upmarket residential properties to set aside 20 percent of their upmarket residential developments to accommodate affordable housing. The developers on the other hand, have expressed concerns about this approach. The principal aim of this study and of the research was to investigate the desirability of the concept of multi-income-level investment approach to the development of golf estates. A phenomenological strand of qualitative research method was used in the research. The following formed the focal point of the research: • An investigation into the perceptions of the stakeholders, especially the buyers of up-market properties, about mixed-income-level investments in golf estates. • The potential effect of the implementation of including affordable housing in the development of golf estates • An investigation of the perceived effect on the profitability of investments by the inclusion of affordable housing in golf estate properties. • The extent of the contribution of including affordable housing in golf estate developments to the reduction of the current backlog

Conflict is inevitable but sustainable development is achievable. An analysis of the mix between development and conflict in two communities revealed the imperatives needed to strike a balance between conflict and sustainable development. While conflicts over natural resources are neither a new phenomenon nor are they inevitable, it is the approaches adopted to manage them that generate interests and makes a difference between peace and violence. Thus, conflicts associated with wilderness or TFCA development initiatives such as the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park (GLTP) have attracted significant interest from various stakeholders. While the GLTP is a flagship conservation initiative in Southern Africa designed to integrate different land uses for socio-economic development, it is littered with conflicts. Through documenting the experiences of two communities involved in development conflicts, a determination was sought to understand the efficacy of approaches used to manage the conflict. Using mainly questionnaires and personal interviews, perceptions and attitudes of key informants were solicited. Unresolved historical problems reincarnated to haunt current conservation projects as memories of unresolved past events reflected negatively on new related initiatives. Different approaches adopted in managing these conflicts resulted in significantly different outcomes. Local stakeholder involvements were inadequate, but were identified as pertinent to successful sustainable conservation and development. Unless local communities are assured of real benefits from new conservation initiatives it became evident that recurrent conflicts would be inevitable. The findings reveal that current conservation initiatives should be underpinned by emerging inclusivity theories in the conservation discourse. A broad range of stakeholders should embrace this new paradigm based on the philosophy that conservation efforts that exclude local communities are bound to be unsustainable. We found out that it is in the interests of all for policy makers to come up with policies that recognise the critical role local communities play, while subscribing to the regional and international standards for best practices in the conservation business.