Thesis (M.A.)--University of South Africa, 2001.

Water provision is an important tool in the management of savanna ecosystems. Artificial water sources are a potential focus for degradation (biodiversity and loss of ecosystem resilience at a range of spatio-temporal scales), because they alter plant-animal interactions and soil function and stability, through the creation of piospheres. This study was undertaken as part of a drive by the Kruger National Park (KNP) to enable managers to integrate artificial waterhole management (e.g. waterhole closure or rotation) when setting goals for heterogeneity and biodiversity conservation in the park. The over-arching goal was to quantify the relationship between water provision and different attributes of heterogeneity, as part of a broader initiative to place water provision and piospheres within an ecosystem threshold framework. Herbivore utilisation gradients (piospheres) around artificial waterholes in the KNP, described in 1990, were resurveyed in 2006-2007, against a backdrop of waterhole closure in the KNP, to contribute to an understanding of the factors governing recovery and resilience in grazing systems. The responses of the plant community and soil parameters to a relaxation of herbivore utilisation pressure around closed waterholes (recovering piospheres) were examined, as were changes in the same parameters at sites that have remained open (active piospheres). These ecosystem properties were considered in relation to structural and functional ecosystem thresholds, and the piospheres surveyed incorporated a range of rainfall and edaphic gradients in the KNP. Herbaceous basal cover and soil infiltration capacity both increased significantly between 1990 and 2006/7, regardless of waterhole status. This was linked to higher rainfall in 2006/7, compared to 1990. The only vegetation variables to respond consistently to distance from water were the remote-sensed Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and herbaceous species composition. NDVI increased with distance from water, and annual grasses and forbs were most abundant close to water. Perennial, disturbance-sensitive climax species increased in abundance further from water. Soil analyses (N, P, pH, organic matter, and texture) and field measurements (infiltration, compaction) revealed no systematic piosphere patterns. Waterhole closure did not result in soil or vegetation recovery, but piosphere intermittency and the increases of basal cover and infiltration rate indicated that ecosystem resilience has not been compromised vii by long-term artificial water provision in the KNP. This study has shown that the traditional piosphere model is of limited use in sub-humid savanna ecosystems like the KNP during above-average rainfall periods. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

Many rural South African people depend on natural resources for their survival. Wetlands provide some of those natural resources. These are presently are under pressure due to high demand, overexploitation and poor land management. The history of South Africa has been characterised by exclusion of local communities in the process of decision-making and general management of natural resources. Participation of all stakeholders is crucial for successful sustainable natural resource management. Various South African departments are engaged in a number of strategies for promoting meaningful participation of local communities. The South African laws promoting protection and sustainable use of natural resources incorporate democratic principles that require high level of participation from resource users, local communities in particular. Most of the participation techniques used are focused on satisfying political mandates and do not respond to the social context of the resource users. The aim of the study was to review the participation of stakeholders in the project of promoting the sustainable use and protection of the Lake Fundudzi catchment. The idea was to probe stakeholder interests more carefully, and to research tensions that arise in the participation process, using qualitative methodologies. Through the use of questionnaires, observations and document analysis stakeholders’ interests were identified to assess their influence in the process of participation of local stakeholders. The review of stakeholders’ participation in the Lake Fundudzi Project showed that stakeholders’ interests are crucial for meaningful local community participation, communication and education influence. They enable meaningful participation and empowerment. A multi-stakeholders approach enables stakeholders to share roles and responsibilities and the participation process offers an opportunity for local stakeholders to participate democratically in the Project. Power relations affect stakeholder participation, capital dependant participatory initiatives are likely to be at risk, participatory processes are likely to promote the empowerment and knowledge exchange amongst stakeholders, the views of local stakeholders are not always considered by outside support organisation and multi-stakeholder participatory approaches enable the initiative/activity/project to achieve its objectives.

MRDV / Institute for Rural Development / Subsistence agriculture is regarded as a primary strategy adopted by the rural households for increasing their access to food for their families. Food system options for rural households are mainly through own production and purchase from markets. In some cases people require more than what they produce hence they access food through donations and gifts. The main objective of this study was to determine the contribution of subsistence farming to household food system. The specific objectives were to characterize the rural household food system, analyse the contribution by subsistence farming to rural household food system and to suggest possible strategies that can be used to enhance rural household food system. This study was guided by mixed methods in which quantitative and qualitative approaches were used to collect and analyse data that was collected from the households around various aspects of the household food system. Systematic sampling was applied to select the research respondents. A questionnaire was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. To achieve the overall aim and objectives of the study, data was entered into Microsoft Excel and transferred to Statistical Packages for the Social Sciences (SPSS) vision 24.0. Various tools of SPSS were used to interpreted and make sense of the data collected. Furthermore, descriptive statistics were computed to understand variables constituting the data. Furthermore, Chi square test was performed, with the latter applied to achieve objective two and to analyze the association between subsistence farming and variables related to household food system. Discourse analysis was used to sort, categorize, combine and then interpret results for the qualitative data collected. Subsistence farming in the study area is characterised by low level of production. The main sources of food for households are markets, subsistence production and transfers from other households or public programmes. The main findings indicate that subsistence farmers spent most of their money on market food rather than on own production. The Chi square test P-value results indicate that there is relationship significant (P<0.1) relationship between subsistence farming and quality of harvest and there is insignificant (p=0.123) relationship between subsistence farming income used for household food consumption. Therefore, subsistence farmers’ households should be provided with resources required for farming to increase productivity in the study area. Furthermore, the attributes and dynamics of subsistence agriculture need to be understood by all households in the subsistence farming sector to advance the sector as a possible solution to food system and food security in the study area. / NRF

Department of Soil Science / PhD (Agric)

MPM / Olive Tambo Institute of Governance and Policy Studies

Department of Curriculum Studies and Education Management / MEDEM

MGS / Institute for Gender and Youth Studies

MA (English) / Department of English

MCur / Department of Advanced Nursing Science