MCom / Department of Accountancy / The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) concept emerged in the 1960s as an attempt to link businesses with their surrounding society and environment. Over recent years, CSR has been recognized as one of the significant concepts that are prioritized in both academic and professional practices, and this concept has also aided companies to achieve sustainable competitive advantages within their respective industries. This study is aimed at evaluating the nature and level of CSR disclosure in the South African banking institutions in comparison to Nigerian and United Kingdom banking institutions. Secondly, it aims to investigate the determinants of CSR disclosure of the South African, United Kingdom and Nigerian banking institutions. The study used data collected from the integrated reports of South African, Nigerian and the United Kingdom listed banks during the period from 2010 until 2018. In line with the Branco and Rodrigues’ (2006 and 2008) disclosure index, the study used 23 items of CSR disclosure to conduct the content analysis of the bank’s integrated reports to evaluate the nature and level of CSR disclosure. The study also made use of the regression analysis to identify the determinants of CSR disclosure used by South African, United Kingdom and Nigerian banks. The data collected for the regression analysis was split into three panels, namely, South African banks, Nigerian banks and the full sample. To identify these determinants, the study utilized STATA 15 and the fixed effects and random effects estimators to fit the regression models. The results of the content analysis show that South African and the United Kingdom banks mainly focused on the disclosure of CSR information relating to Human Resources while the Nigerian banks mainly focuses on the disclosure of CSR information relating to Product and Customers. The study also found that the overall level of CSR disclosure between the three countries does not differ significantly. With regard to the determinants of CSR disclosure, the banks’ leverage and the number of board members appear to be the main factors that have either a positive or negative impact, on the CSR disclosure in the South African banks. For Nigerian banks, the age of the banks is the only factor that appears to have an impact on the disclosure of CSR information. Furthermore, this study also found that the age of the bank is the main factor that has a positive impact on the disclosure of CSR information of the full sample (combined South African and Nigerian banks sample). Other factors including, bank size, return on equity, and ownership concentration were found to have no significant impact on the disclosure of CSR information of either South African or Nigerian banks. The study is subjected to the limitations of using manual content analysis and the use of integrated reports as the only source of data collected for the study. This study contributes to the limited literature on CSR disclosure within financial institutions. / NRF

This dissertation examines two recent programs for post-secondary Islamic theological training in Europe that aim to produce a new class of professional Islamic scholars for emerging roles within European society. Graduates can use their training and new qualifications to secure advanced professional roles and leadership positions within the Muslim community and the broader society and state. In the process, these graduates develop and define an emergent institutional role for Islamic knowledge and authority in Europe. This study is based in seven months of fieldwork research in 2017 at two centers for higher Islamic education, including participant observation within classrooms and interviews with students, faculty and alumni. Founded in 2009, the Cambridge Muslim College in Cambridge, England is a small private school that provides professional training for about a dozen graduates of the many Islamic seminaries in the UK. Founded in 2012 with support from the German state, the Center for Islamic Theology at the University of Tübingen provides Islamic theological training to hundreds of undergraduate and graduate students each year, many of whom have received no prior formal Islamic education. In addition to the institutional differences between the schools, their graduates enter into different job markets. Where the British graduates must develop new entrepreneurial roles for Islamic leaders in the UK, the German graduates become the skilled workforce to meet existing demand for public school Islam teachers, academic theologians and professional chaplains. Comparing these two educational programs—one private, the other public—this dissertation explores how the position of each school vis-á-vis the Muslim community and the state shapes the construction of scholarly authority and the professional outcomes of the graduates. It finds that students at each school leverage their new authority to formulate creative programs of Islamic reform that justify and promote new roles for professional Islamic scholars within both the Muslim community and the larger society. Drawing upon current scholarship about Muslim identity, Islamic authority and secularism in Europe, this study considers how prevailing national discourses that marginalize Muslims in Europe shape students’ creative programs of reform and so also the future institution of Islamic knowledge in Europe. / 2022-09-30T00:00:00Z

Astrid Lindgren is one of Sweden’s most beloved writers of all time and many of her works include many hard topics, such as for example death. It has not always been as common to include such difficult topics in children's literature as it is today. The change in the sociopolitical attitude during the late 1960s brought in a new level of awareness and aspects of reality in children’s literature which is thought to be noticeable in works by Lindgren. This thesis aspires to explain kinds of representations of death prevalent in Mio's Kingdom and The Brothers Lionheart, and what these representations make visible in relation to the theoretical background based on what literary representation is and how it is constructed mostly by culture.Despite the fact that both books share similar representations of death and those feelings associated with it, the overall perception is that The Brothers Lionheart depicts death as a salvation, something to find hope in and not to be scared of to a greater extent than Mio’s Kingdom does, where death is portrayed as dark and inescapable. Furthermore, this thesis concludes that Lindgren has incorporated the standards of social realism into both of these stories and that they originate from personal experiences.

The main purpose of this research is to explore the relationship between the EU and UK in terms of space defence policy developed from the viewpoint of historical institutionalism. As a research objective, it is intended to assess the nature of historical institutionalism as a concept and its applications to space defence policy. Another objective is to trace the historical development of the relationships between the EU and the UK in the space sector. Finally, this historical development is discussed through the lens of historical institutionalism. The attainment of these aims and objectives requires an optimal choice of methodology and research design. This study has been guided by the principles of interpretivism, a dominant philosophical stance in social studies. This philosophy emphasises the role of interpretations in the attainment of knowledge due to a lack of absolute truth, as according to interpretivism, the truth depends on the observer and their interpretations. In line with this philosophical stance, this research is conducted using an inductive approach, which stipulates theory development, hypothesis formulation, or new proposition statements based on observations. This contrasts with deductive testing of existing research hypotheses. The choice of an inductive approach has...

Climate change is one of the hottest topics on the globe as of right now. The deadline of reaching both the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement is getting closer, and actions are needed. This thesis focus on how two countries, Sweden and the United Kingdom are working towards achieving goal 13 of the Sustainable Development Goals. Policies, implementations of policies and actions are assessed. The study is a comparative case study that is based on secondary data presented by each country in official reports, the annual Sustainable Development Report as well as the Nationally Determined Contribution report by each country. The International Regime Approach is the theoretical framework used for consideration and comparison between the actions and non-actions by the two countries, where the relationship to the European Union plays an important role. The findings of the study shows that both Sweden and the United Kingdom is passionately working towards achieving the climate goals and has pointed out relevant policies and actions to meet the SDGs. Progress has been made in both countries as emission rates has been radically reduced but despite their devotion, both countries are far from reaching the climate goals as the overall progress of implementation of policies are not on satisfactory levels.

This study explores the United Kingdom’s Nationality and Borders Act’s inadmissibility criteria for asylum claims. An inadmissible asylum claim results in transferral to Rwanda to process the applicant’s claim, formalised under the Memorandum of Understanding. The study uses a normative legal method, applying international human rights law to national law to aim to determine whether the United Kingdom’s immigration law is in violation of articles 3 and 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as articles 31(1) and 33(1) of the Refugee Convention. Each article is applied respectively to sections 16 and 40 of the Nationality and Borders Act. The aim is subsequently achieved when the conclusion is reached that the Nationality and Borders Act is in breach of articles 3 and 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as articles 31(1) and 33(1) of the Refugee Convention. The results of this study highlight a discussion surrounding impermissible externalisation of asylum law, the limitations of international human rights law, and the interrelation between law and politics.

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This study investigates the accountability of agencies responsible for countering Malign Information Influence (MII) during the 2018 general election in Sweden and the 2017 snap election in the United Kingdom. Using a comparative methodology, the study emphasizes the importance of timely, accurate, transparent, and sufficiently disseminated information as prerequisites for accountability. Qualitative data analysis of annual reports and media coverage was conducted, revealing that both Sweden and the UK were highly aware of the MII risks and implemented various measures to protect electoral integrity. While the conditions of timeliness were fulfilled,  limitations were identified in terms of transparency as well as dissemination. The study highlights common challenges and areas for improvement in the accountability mechanisms of government agencies, providing valuable lessons for countries facing similar issues. Ultimately, the thesis underscores the ongoing challenge for agencies to protect the electoral process from new sharp power threats, while also maintaining citizen trust. Suggestions for future research include incorporating mixed-methods approaches, broadening the research question to explore additional factors, conducting in-depth data analyses, and exploring additional cases to further enhance the generalizability of findings.

From 2015, a huge influx of refugees came from the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia and Africa to Europe. It is triggered by various persecutions, armed wars, economic impossibility. The majority of those arrived were refugees, those who had fled their country due to imminent threat or persecution and were even trying to reach the European continent at the risk of their lives. The others are economic immigrants who have migrated to the European Union in the hope of a better life - to work, study or reunite. The UK has been a major destination for both migrants and refugees for many decades. The dissertation draws attention to the complex effects of migration, with a particular focus on the host country, and highlights, especially in the UK, the need for migrants in an aging society in Europe, even if the public thinks otherwise. With the Brexit, the UK has exited the European Union, cut back on previous benefits for EU migrants and is opening up to former Commonwealth members as sending countries.

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