The concept of civil society has for so long been complex, elusive and debatable. Time and again it has increasingly dominated both political and academic discourses. For the last two decades, there has been proliferation of civil society organisations especially in developing world whereby the donor community regard them as a universal remedy for underdevelopment and authoritarianism. After failure of several development approaches to do away with poverty, underdevelopment and dictatorial regimes, civil society has been presented as the beacon of freedom, the fountain for the protection of civil rights and of resistance against state repression. It was also regarded as the mobilizing platform of society for the protection and projection of substantive interests, the compelling force for state moderation, the epitome of popular struggles and civil power as well as a centralforce in political and economic reforms. This report presents findings on a study of state-civil society relationship, the case of Uganda. The main objective of this study was to “describe and analyze the reality of civil society in Uganda in relation to the theoretical concept of civil society”, therein comprehending the functions, actors and relationship between state and civil society in Uganda. The study process consisted of a desk study of available documentation on civil society concept.  The main findings indicate that civil society organisations in Uganda are more active in the area of service delivery than policy advocacy. Therefore the bilateral function as service deliverers and policy advocates by civil society is far way from being a reality in Uganda. Findings also indicate that the state is less tolerant and uncomfortable with advocacy CSOs but largely cooperates with CSOs dealing in service delivery. The applicability of civil society concept in Uganda’s context is still far away from being achieved due to the fact that the political environment where civil society operates is constrained by the state. It was also revealed that donor funding is the cornerstone for civil society functioning in Uganda.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

The tension uncovered during this study is between two worlds: the very pragmatic and enormously challenging world of managing in a rapidly changing and highly competitive global market, and the scientific world of strategic management thinking and the concern that contemporary strategic management is unable to deal effectively with the modern dilemma of globalisation. This dilemma is as a result of change; before a current scenario can be solved, the next evolution of scenarios is upon the business community. In today's turbulent world, globalisation is sweeping away the market and industry structures that, historically, have defined competition. Swept away with them are the classic approaches to strategic management, nearly all of which mistakenly assume that a predictable path to the future can be paved from the experiences of the past. The solution: Strategy should be dynamic and should change constantly in order to contend with external turbulences. Organisations should brace themselves for a future of hyper-competition. They should respond to these rapid changes in the business environment by adopting a new approach to strategy, one that combines speed, openness, and flexibility. Organisations need: an ability to sense changes in their environment; an ability to understand the impact, of this change, on the whole; a willingness to adapt to change; and an ability to adapt. Experimenting with new strategies is also important. Constant testing, adaptation and building on what is found to be successful with customers is the way ahead, especially when one is trying to re-invent the value provided, or the way in which it is produced and delivered. The overall purpose of this experimental strategic learning and management process is to establish which strategic options or elements thereof are robust across the possible competitive scenarios, and use the healthiest elements to develop your strategic intent - your core strategic focus or theme.

Research report presented to the SBL, Unisa, Midrand. / This report proposes to make a contribution in the area of governance by critically analyzing the governance structure of SNV (The Netherlands Development Organization) in implementing projects. This study is motivated by the scarcity of published documentation on corporate and project governance practices specific to the African and particularly Kenyan context which organisations interested in pursuing good governance and managerial practices can use as a reference point.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

M.Comm. / Microfinance refers to the provision of financial services, in particular small loans in the context of South Africa, to poor people with very small businesses. Commercial banks have largely considered poor people in remote areas unbankable, because they lack collateral and have no credit histories. Microfinance institutions emerged as unconventional institutions with innovative techniques, mechanisms and instruments to advance financial services to this segmented part of the population. This has, however, not been without challenges. Microfinance institutions face a number of challenges such as lack of competent human capital, unfavourable regulatory environment, and insufficient financing. The study examines if these challenges are applicable in the South African context and whether financial and operational inefficiency has hindered microfinance institutions in South Africa from sustainably increasing their outreach through the provision of microcredit. It surveys two microfinance institutions, characterised as non-governmental organisations using the group lending methodology to offer microloans to the very poor. The results indicate that microfinance institutions are not on a sound fiscal footing, and large operating expenses have resulted in some form of inefficiency. This has, however, not hindered the microfinance institutions from reaching a greater number of borrowers. The witnessed increased outreach in number of clients reached is considered unsustainable given the existence of inefficiency and financial weakness. The results suggest a number of policy options on the side of government and the institutions concerned. Increasing the funding sources available to microfinance institutions should be considered by both government and private institutions. This policy would succeed if microfinance institutions work at reducing their operational costs and become both efficient and sustainable so as to be seen as viable investment options.

Dans le cadre de ce travail, nous avons synthétisé, isolé et caractérisé de nouvelles molécules amphiphiles dérivées d’acides nucléiques. Les modifications de ces structures ont été réalisées par voie chimique au moyen d’une réaction de chimie clic, la réaction de Huisgen. Les amphiphiles développés peuvent être classés dans deux catégories différentes : - Les amphiphiles de faible masse moléculaire qui dérivent de nucléosides et de glycosylnucléosides. Les propriétés d’auto organisation de ces composés ont été étudiées par différentes techniques, notamment de microscopie électronique et de diffraction des rayons X. La capacité de ces amphiphiles à former des gels a été évaluée dans différents solvants (eau et solvants organiques). Les propriétés de complexation des acides nucléiques de ces molécules ont également été mises en évidence. Les premiers résultats de transfection montrent que les glycosylnucléosides amphiphiles permettent l’internalisation des oligonucléotides à visée thérapeutique dans des cellules humaines de carcinome hépatocellulaire (Huh 7) en présence de sérum. - Les amphiphiles de masse moléculaire élevée qui dérivent d’oligonucléotides. La formation d’agrégats a été mise en évidence par différentes techniques telles que la microscopie électronique et la diffusion de la lumière. Les propriétés de reconnaissance associées à la séquence oligonucléotide ont été étudiées par des expériences de thermodénaturation. L’auto vectorisation de ces composés a pu être observée par microscopie d’épi-fluorescence et confocale. Cette auto vectorisation a également pu être quantifiée par cytométrie en flux sur une gamme variée de types cellulaires humains tels que les cellules épithéliales (Hela T4), les cellules gastriques (NCI) ou encore les cellules de carcinome hépatocellulaire (Huh-7). Ces travaux présentent également pour la première fois l’évaluation in cellulo d’oligonucléotides amphiphiles ciblant le virus de l’hépatite C. / *

Thesis (M.Com. (Marketing Management and Information Systems))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, School of Economic and Business Sciences, 2015 / The objectives of the study were to explore the extent to which three management characteristics related to organisational entrepreneurship in not-for-profit organisations (NPOs) in Gauteng, as well as the relation between organisational entrepreneurship and the organisational performance. The research was based on a quantitative approach which involved a random sample of 257 NPO managers who responded via a self-administered questionnaire. The research instrument measured management’s commitment to their occupation, management’s continuous education and management ethics, as well as organisational entrepreneurship and organisational performance. Data analysis techniques comprised of structural equation modelling which focused on confirmatory factory analysis to confirm conceptual relations and path model analysis to determine the causal relations between each management characteristics with organisational entrepreneurship, and organisational entrepreneurship with organisational performance. Path analysis results returned significant at the 99% confidence level that management’s continuous education and management’s ethics had strong positive causal relations to organisational entrepreneurship, as well as the positive relation of organisational entrepreneurship with organisational performance. The research noted implications for NPO management teams, including the renovation of business model structures to incorporate continuous learning and constructive risk-taking in order to take advantage of the performance benefits derived from organisational entrepreneurship. The study also recommends further research into potential citizenship bodies for NPO management team to foster commitment to their occupation in the non-profit sector.