Dissertations / Theses: 'Agricultural wages – South Africa – KwaZulu-Natal'

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Kheswa, Nomzamo Sybil. "Changes and continuities in the labour process on commercial farms in post-Apartheid South Africa : studies from Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal Provinces." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011978.

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This thesis examines the agricultural labour process on commercial farms in post-apartheid South Africa with a particular focus on systems of labour control on these farms. Considerable literature exists about the labour process in capitalist society but the capitalist labour process does not exist in any pure form. Rather, different labour processes exist and the specific form they take depends on spatial and temporal conditions. Additionally, labour processes are often economic sector-specific. Because of variation in capitalist labour processes, differences in systems of labour control (or labour control regimes) also arise. Historically, up until the end of apartheid in 1994, the labour control regime on commercial farms in South Africa was marked by a paternalistic despotism of a racialised kind. This in part reflected the fact that commercial farms were simultaneously sites of both economic production and social reproduction and, further, they were very privatised agrarian spaces largely unregulated (specifically with regard to labour) by the state. Since the end of apartheid, commercial farms have been subjected to multiple pressures. Notably, the South African state has strongly intervened in labour relations on commercial farms, and commercial farms have been subjected to ongoing neo-liberal restructuring. This has led to the prospects of changes in the prevailing labour control system on commercial farms. In this context, the thesis pursues the following key objective: to understand changes and continuities in the labour process on commercial farms – and particularly labour control systems – subsequent to the end of apartheid in South Africa. It does so with reference to four farms in Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal Provinces.

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Kubheka, Patrick Skhumbuzo. "Developing and testing the congruency of selected biological indicators and an existing tool designed to assess wetland health in agricultural settings in the KZN Midlands." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/58310.

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Despite the fact that wetlands have been understood to be important for a wide range of ecosystem services, wetlands continue to be degraded globally. There has been a growing need to develop biomonitoring tools that reflect the present ecological state of wetlands, but very few attempts have been made in South Africa to achieve this, and those that have attempted this have generally achieved limited success. This study was conducted to develop and test the congruency of four selected biological indicators (dragonflies, frogs, macroinveterbrates and plants) in relation to the assessment of present ecological state using an existing method in South Africa, "WET-Health". WET-Health assessments rely primarily on transformations to a wetland that result from human impacts in both the catchment and the wetland itself. Using the tool, a health score is obtained that is consistent with the Department of Water Affairs (DWA) current "present ecological state” as applied to river health assessment. The study was conducted in agricultural settings of the Midlands of KwaZulu-Natal based on 13 wetlands. The selected wetlands were scored using WET - Health and grouped in four different ecological condition classes (A, B, C and D). Physical characteristics (wetland area, mean depth), biological characteristics (species cover/abundance, presence and species richness), and chemical characteristics (ammonia, pH, sulphate, nitrogen and phosphate) were also recorded in the selected wetlands. Nineteen different species of dragonfly were recorded in this study. The study demonstrated that dragonflies are a promising bioindicator of wetland present ecological state as the dragonfly index was found to be closely correlated with WET- Health scores. Open water bodies within the selected wetlands were the focus of dragonfly sampling, as male dragonflies are territorial and they will patrol or be found around this habitat. Emergent vegetation dominated by sedges formed the focus of macroinvertebrate sampling in this study because greater numbers of macroinvertebrate families were found in this biotope in comparison to open water areas with no emergent vegetation. A total of 47 macroinvertebrate families were recorded in this study, but SASS5 scores based on macroinvetebrates showed no correlation with WET-Health scores. A total of 10 different frog species were recorded in this study. All the species were common frog species found in most parts of the country. Frog species richness and occurrence showed no correlation with WET- Health scores. A total of twenty samples of two meter radius were measured per wetland and sampled for plant species and estimation of cover-abundance of each species per sample. Over 50 different plant species were recorded in this study, and both species accumulation and species richness showed a degree of correlation with WET-Health scores. All the wetlands in class A had generally higher species accumulation rate and species richness compared to the other wetland classes. In addition to testing the congruency of four selected biological indicators with WET- Health, water quality was measured in all the wetlands. Wetlands in class A were associated with improved water quality as the water passes through the wetland. However, wetlands in class C and D did not show consistently improved water quality between the apex and the toe of these wetlands. In some cases the water quality deteriorated as it passed through wetlands in these two classes.

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Mabaso, Siphesihle Merit. "Impact of Agricultural development projects on poverty alleviation In Amajuba district municipality (KZN)." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1019770.

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The study determined the impact of agricultural development projects on poverty alleviation at Amajuba district municipality. Data was drawn from 100 respondents, projects were purposively selected in line with the focus of projects members and non-projects members in Dannhauser under Amajuba District municipality to access and investigate the impact of agricultural development projects on poverty alleviation. The study presents the results of assessing those that are in groups and those that are working individually on agricultural production to alleviate poverty. The data was captured using a questionnaire which was administered through face-to-face interviews. Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression model were used to analyse and compare the level of livelihood and variables between project and non-project members. The results show that project members are more productive than non-project members. Project members had more access to funding, training, markets and extension services compared to non-members. However, the results further showed that being a project member attracts some rewards which end up improving the living standards as well as alleviates the poverty levels of farmers, whereas working as an individual limits the farmer(s) from receiving reasonable government assistance such as funding and extension services delivery. The descriptive results indicated that members of most rural households were relatively old, married, literate but unemployed. Non-project members were dependent on remittances, social grants and pension funds because the farming strategy could not meet all their household needs. However, The major crops that were grown for income and food security to maintain their livelihoods include: maize, potatoes, onions, butternut, carrots, cabbage and dry beans. Factors that had significant influences on outcomes were extension services, grants, pension and remittances, land productivity, market accessibility, output difference and livelihood. The available opportunities for project members were access to land, funding, markets, infrastructure, inputs and support services from government institutions, as well as NGO’s.

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Walters, Michele. "Seed ecology as a determinant of population structure in some Southern African Savanna Acacia species." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/53044.

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Thesis (MScAgric)--Stellenbosch University, 2002.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: African Acacia species are often major contributors to the progressive increase in the woody component of savannas, a phenomenon commonly referred to as bush encroachment. In Hluhluwe- Umfolozi Park, the numbers of adult Acacia nilotica (L.) Willd. Ex Del. trees per hectare far exceed (by III) that of A. karroo Hayne adults. The relative dominance is reversed in the juvenile stage with A. karroo (725 ha') outnumbering A. nilotica (225 ha-I) threefold outside closed woodlands. African acacias produce large quantities of seed and may have large soil-stored seed banks. They suffer pre-dispersal predation by bruchid beetles and may be either wind or animal dispersed. Once dispersed they are vulnerable to post-dispersal attack. This study tested several hypotheses regarding various aspects of seed ecology of A. karroo and A. nilotica. The null hypothesis that seed ecology does not contribute to the success of A. karroo over A. nilotica, was tested. Acacia karroo trees were smaller (mean basal diameter: 7.8 cm) than A. ni/otica trees (mean basal diameter: 18.5 cm) on average, but produced more seeds (A. karroo mean: 1628; A. nilotica mean: 992) for a given basal diameter size class. It was found that A. karroo showed less bruchid infestation (mean: 1.36-3.81%) than A. nilotica (mean: 14.67-86.70%) at all stages of pod development with a proportion of A. karroo seeds (7.1 %) being able to germinate after bruchid attack. Bruchid attack rendered A. ni/otica seeds unviable. There was no difference between the two species with regards to the soil-stored seed bank and the viability of seeds found in the soil. Acacia karroo showed higher germination levels (5.1%) and better establishment (4.9%) than A. nilotica (1.5% and 0.4% respectively). On average, there was no difference in germination levels between burnt and unbumt seeds, but there was a significant difference in germination of burnt seeds in both burnt (4.5%) and unbumt (2.5%) sites and unbumt seeds in both burnt (2.8%) and unbumt (4.9%) sites when considered separately. Post-dispersal predation of A. karroo seeds (21.8%) was higher than that of A. nilotica (12.7%). There was more rodent predation in tall grass areas (26.0%) than short grass (10.7%) or canopy areas (15.2%), and most seeds were lost from unprotected control groups. Rodent presence was a significant factor in unexplained seed disappearance. The ability of A. karroo to germinate easily and the low levels of beetle predation experienced by this species seemed to be its main advantage over A. nilotica as an encroaching species in Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Park.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Acacia spesies van Afrika is dikwels belangrike bydraers tot die progressiewe toename in die houtkomponent van savannas. Hierdie verskynsel word algemeen na verwys as bosindringing. In die Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Park is die aantal volwasse Acacia nilotica (L.) Willd. Ex Del. bome per hektaar aansienlik meer (l l l meer) as die aantal volwasse A. karroo Hayne bome. In die jong stadium is die oorheersing omgekeerd, met driekeer soveel A. karroo (725 ha-I) as A. nilotica (225 ha-I) bome buite beboste gedeeltes. Afrika se Acacia spesies produseer groot hoeveelhede saad en kan oor aansienlike grond-gebergde saadbanke beskik. Voor verspreiding word die saad aan predasie deur bruchid-kewers blootgestel. Die saad kan óf deur wind óf diere versprei word en na verspreiding word dit ook aan predasie blootgestel. Hierdie studie het verskillende hipoteses rakende verskeie aspekte van die saadekologie van A. karroo en A. nilotica getoets. Die nulhipotese dat saadekologie nie tot die groter sukses van A. karroo teenoor A. nilotica bydrae nie, is getoets. Acacia karroo bome was oor die algemeen kleiner (gemid. basale omtrek: 7.8 cm) as A. nilotica (gemid. basale omtrek: 18.5 cm) bome maar het meer saad (A. karroo gemid.: 1628; A. nilotica gemid.: 992) per gegewe basale diameter grootte klas gelewer. Daar is geen verskil tussen die twee spesies rakende grondgebergde saadbanke en die lewensvatbaarheid van hierdie saad gevind nie. Acacia karroo het hoër vlakke van ontkieming (5.1%) en beter vestiging (4.9%) as A. nilotica (l.5% en .4% respektiewelik) getoon. Daar was oor die algemeen geen verskil in die ontkiemingsvlakke van gebrande en ongebrande sade nie, maar wel 'n beduidende verskil in die ontkieming van gebrande sade in beide gebrande (4.5%) en ongebrande (2.5%) areas en ongebrande sade in gebrande (2.8%) en ongebrande (4.9%) areas as dit afsonderlik geëvalueer is. Die predasie van A. karroo saad na verspreiding (21.8%) was hoër as dié van A. nilotica (12.7%). Daar was meer knaagdier-predasie in gebiede met lang gras (26.0%) as dié met kort gras (10.7%) of boomryke gedeeltes (15.2%). Die meeste saad is in onbeskermde kontrolegroepe verloor. Die teenwoordigheid van knaagdiere het 'n belangrike rol in die onverklaarde verdwyning van saad gespeel. Dit is gevind dat A. karroo se vermoë om maklik te ontkiem, asook die lae vlakke van insek skade aan die saad, die belangrikste voorsprong is wat dié spesie oor A. nilotica as 'n indringer in Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Park het.

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Manes, Rebecca. "Determinants of adoption of genetically modified maize by smallholders in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, Kansas State University, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/2097/15706.

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Master of Science
Department of Agricultural Economics
Timothy Dalton
Previous research on small-scale farmers in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa indicates that certain genetically modified maize seed types improve production efficiencies and increase net returns (Regier 2012). Yet despite the substantiated advantages, not all farmers have adopted genetically modified maize. The purpose of this research is to identify the determinants of adopting certain types of genetically modified maize over traditional or conventional hybrid maize for 184 small-holders in two villages in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Previous adoption studies use socioeconomic characteristics of the farmer as well as farm-level production characteristics to determine the probability that a farmer will implement an improved agricultural technology. While many studies employ a binomial approach to adoption, this study tests the probability of adopting three different GM varieties—the insect resistant Bt maize, the herbicide tolerant Roundup Ready® maize, and the stacked trait BR maize. Furthermore, the model is enhanced by farmers’ open-ended explanations of their perceptions on genetically modified maize and of the major production constraints they face. Following results from previous adoption studies, this research tests three hypotheses in a three different model structures. The first hypothesis tests whether farmers are more likely to adopt if they have greater financial means to cover higher expected production costs. This is tested by variables measuring off-farm employment and expected production costs. The second hypothesis tests whether farmers with less labor availability are more likely to choose maize with the herbicide tolerant technology, either the Roundup Ready® or stacked BR maize, which reduce the need for weeding. The final hypothesis is whether there are differences in the determinants of adoption that differentiate GM adopters into three distinct categories. These hypotheses are tested in three model structures that test the binary probability of adopting GM maize over non-GM, the probabilities of adopting each maize variety separately, and the intensity of adoption. The first finding is that many non-adopters have greater access to income and are more likely to sell a portion of their yield than are many farmers who adopted, especially in comparison to those who plant RR maize. Also, BR farmers are more likely to report input expenses as a major constraint in their adoption decision. Results for the second hypothesis show that those who planted either RR or BR maize did in fact have less family labor available, used less total labor, and used a greater proportion of family to hired labor. Finally, there are differences in the determinants for geographic site, education, self-sufficiency in maize supply, number of family members working off-farm, and whether households planned to sell any of their maize yields. This indicates that adoption should be considered according to each genetically modified trait.

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Lutge, Rolf. "Analysis into the effectiveness of the provincial agricultural research systems of KwaZulu Natal and the Western Cape." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/52092.

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Thesis (MScAgric)--Stellenbosch University, 2001.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: With the advent of Globalisation, the need for improved competitiveness ill agriculture, as in all sectors, has become increasingly important in obtaining satisfactory levels of growth and development. International producers are competing for South African markets while local producers must not only defend these markets, but also seek out opportunities globally. Agricultural research has been identified as one of the more important agricultural support services contributing towards the goal of increased competitiveness. Innovation and new technology are central towards achieving satisfactory competitiveness, and in order for these to be adequately available, the agricultural research system in place must be effective and efficient in its tasks and responsibilities. The objective of this study was to determine whether or not the agricultural research systems of KwaZulu Natal and the Western Cape conform to the current challenges presented by the market, technology and economic environments. The effectiveness and efficiency of these systems regarding structural interactions, research investments and the involvement of the private sector was critically analysed with regard to the stakeholders within the system, namely: producers, co-operatives, private sector agribusiness companies and agricultural research institutes. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the agricultural sectors concerned and recommendations made for potential improvements and future areas of research. It was found that most of the structural interactions between the various stakeholders investigated were conducted inefficiently and have thus resulted in a lack of cooperation, poor relationship building, and sub-optimum productivity and growth. Furthermore, it was established that investment in agricultural research is too low. Although research expenditure growth rates and expenditure per fulltime researcher are high, most of the growth rates are on the decline and most of the organizations do not employ fulltime researchers, while the actual total amounts invested are low. Investment in market research for current products is satisfactory, while investment in market research prior to conducting research is poor. Finally, increased private sector involvement has not been realized. Incentives for greater private sector involvement based on profitability, have not been adequately developed. Of those companies who have recognized the need for increased commitment to research, all but one have predicted zero to low increases in research expenditure for the future, while current research expenditures are also low. There are many areas in which the agricultural research systems of the two provinces concerned must improve. A culture inductive of greater research spending and private sector participation should be fostered to overcome the causes and motives behind these problem areas. Currently, the research systems investigated seem incapable of effectively and efficiently supplying the agricultural sectors concerned with the much needed new technologies, innovations and research management necessary to adequately increase competitiveness. However, if all the shortcomings of the system are recognized and a new demand driven orientation adopted, the research systems of South Africa will in the future be more likely to promote increased productivity and growth in agriculture through greater competitiveness.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Met die koms van In verenigde wêreldmark, het dit noodsaaklik geword dat die landbou - net soos ander bedryfsektore - mededingend moet wees vir bevredigende groei en ontwikkeling in dié sektor. Internasionale produsente ding mee om Suid- Afrikaanse markte, terwyl plaaslike produsente nie net hierdie markte moet verdedig nie, maar ook nuwe geleenthede in die buiteland moet soek. Landbounavorsing is as een van die belangrikste landbou-ondersteuningsdienste geïdentifiseer om mededingendheid te verhoog. Om voldoende mededingend te wees, is vernuwing en nuwe tegnologie van wesenlike belang. Vir dié doel moet die bestaande landbounavorsingstelsel doeltreffend funksioneer en sy take en verantwoordelikhede behoorlik nakom. Die doel van hierdie studie is om te bepaal of die landbounavorsingstelsels van KwaZulu/Natal en die Wes-Kaap die uitdagings van die huidige mark-, tegnologiese en ekonomiese omgewings die hoof kan bied. Die doeltreffendheid van strukturele interaksies, beleggings in navorsing en die betrokkenheid van die privaatsektor is krities ontleed aan die hand van die belangegroepe binne die stelsel, te wete produsente, kooperasies, private maatskappye en landbounavorsingsinstitute. Die implikasies van die resultate is vervolgens bespreek en aanbevelings is gedoen vir moontlike verbeterings en toekomstige navorsingsgebiede. Daar is bevind dat die meeste strukturele interaksies tussen die onderskeie belangegroepe wat bestudeer is, ondoeltreffend is. Daar is te min samewerking, weinig sprake van verhoudings bou, produktiwiteit is te laag en daar is te min groei. Daar is verder vasgestel dat daar te min in landbou-navorsing belê word. Alhoewel die groeikoerse van navorsingsuitgawes en uitgawes per voltydse navorser hoog is, is die meeste groeikoerse aan die daal, die meeste organisasies neem geen voltydse navorsers in diens nie en die totale besteding is laag. Belegging in marknavorsing vir bestaande produkte is bevredigend, maar belegging in marknavorsing voor navorsing aangepak word, is onbevredigend. Laastens is die privaatsektor nog nie voldoende betrokke nie. Daar bestaan egter nie genoeg aansporingsmaatreëls om die privaatsektor se betrokkenheid te verhoog nie. Van dié maatskappye wat wel die noodsaaklikheid van 'n groter verbintenis tot navorsing erken het, het almal behalwe een, nul tot lae verhogings in navorsingsuitgawes vir die toekoms voorsien, terwyl hulle huidige navorsingsuitgawes alreeds laag is. Daar is baie opsigte waann die landbounavorsingstelsels van die twee betrokke provinsies moet verbeter. Daar moet 'n kultuur ontstaan waar meer bestee word aan navorsing. Verder moet die privaatsektor meer betrokke raak om die omstandighede wat aanleiding gee tot die probleme, die hoof te help bied. Tans wil dit voorkom of die navorsingstelsels wat ondersoek is, nie daarin slaag om die betrokke landbousektore van die nuwe tegnologie, vernuwings en navorsingsbestuur te voorsien wat noodsaaklik is om mededingendheid te verhoog nie. Indien al die tekortkominge van die stelsel erken word en die korrekte aanpassings gemaak word, sal die navorsingstelsels van Suid Afrika in die toekoms 'n groter bydrae kan lewer om produktiwiteit te laat styg en groei in die landbou teweeg te bring.

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Murphy, Carol (Carol Anne) 1961. "Gender constraints to increased agricultural production faced by rural women in KwaZulu." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 1990. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15959.

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Bibliography: pages 116-124.
It is well known that women are constrained by their gender role, which is imposed on them by the gender relations they experience. This role allocates them the direct responsibility for maintenance of the household and subjects them to patriarchal relations of male domination and female subordination. There is little understanding, however, of how gender-specific constraints operate. This study records the gender-specific constraints affecting the lives of black, rural women in a homeland in South Africa (KwaZulu). An analysis is given of the extent to which these gender-specific constraints affect the agricultural productivity of these women. An integrated methodology, combining elements of qualitative observations, key-informant interviews and quantitative surveys was used to identify gender-based constraints to agricultural production experienced by rural women in the study area (the Nhlangwini Ward, Umzumbe District, southern KwaZulu). This information revealed that the lives of women in the Nhlangwini Ward are severely affected by gender-specific constraints that arise out of: their involvement in various activities that constitute their multiple work role (survival tasks, household tasks and different resources (land, income generation); their access to capital and training) and their perception of their gender role and the patriarchal relations they experience. Women in the ward adapt to these constraints by: using child labour and hired labour to assist them in conducting survival tasks and household tasks; allocating some shopping (for clothes) to male household members who have greater access to urban centres; membership of community gardens to gain access to arable land and agricultural expertise; hiring private arable land for farming and adopting poultry farming as a favoured agricultural activity. Recommendations are made for types of projects and policy changes that could work to overcome these constraints and the broader subordination of women in rural areas. As gender and rural development is a pioneering research field in South Africa, more research of this type is urgently required because at present the development process takes little cognisance of gender issues.

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Strachan, Brian Douglas. "The design, implementation and assessing of an agroecological cropping system by rural KwaZulu-Natal households : its effect on their diet and food security." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/86234.

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Thesis(MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2014
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis documents a Participatory Action Research (PAR) project conducted from 2011 to 2013 in a rural communal area in southern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The area is a microcosm of the global environmental and socio-economic polycrisis; with adult unemployment at 50 percent, 73 percent female-headed households, heavy dependence on government social grants and a food system reliant on purchased food. Eight, mainly female-headed households (the co-researchers), assisted by the student researcher, implemented and assessed a cropping system, designed on agroecological principles, on their abandoned garden plots. The objective was to grow culturally acceptable food crops to supplement their household diets and positively affect their food security. The student researcher provided the necessary infrastructure, including goat-proof plot fences, hand tools, a grain hammermill, seed, and fertiliser. The literature review, which also used early 1900’s photographs and contemporary isiZulu language as evidence, revealed the agroecological basis of pre-colonial agriculture. However, colonial and apartheid influences destroyed this knowledge base. The cropping system design utilized practices from this pre-colonial era combined with current agroecological techniques. The agroecological techniques employed on the plots included non-inversion tillage of planting pits using garden forks, precision placement of phosphate fertiliser and animal manures, open pollinated seeds, east-west orientated strip cropping, soil surface mulches, crop rotations including legumes and the use of chickens to control pests. Dryland crops included maize, beans, sweet potatoes, and butternuts, with small trial vegetable patches on some plots. The research identified a method to calculate the planting frequency of these vegetables to ensure a constant annual supply, however further research is needed. The dryland crops supplemented household diets between harvests. The formation of structured groups amongst the households proved vital to the success of the cropping system, providing mutual labour assistance, shared decision-making, building knowledge and moral support. The importance of dialogue and trust, reinforced by the student researcher’s ability to communicate in isiZulu with the co-researchers, formed the basis of both the PAR, and Focus Group Discussions(FGD), used to qualitative assess the cropping system. During these, the households reported a good understanding of the agroecological principles of the cropping system, a willingness to continue with it post research, and positive benefits, including better health, and money saved on food purchases, redirected to improve their asset base. The World Food Programme (2008) Food Consumption Score Analysis Method (FCS), modified to show the percentage contribution of homegrown food to the FCS, provided the quantitative assessment of the cropping system. The FCS scores rose during the research, with homegrown food contributing over a third of the FCS at times. The co-researchers suggested instituting group ‘stokvels’1to finance inputs and maintain infrastructure post research. The financial implications of these ‘stokvels’ was calculated. Due to the initial success of the PAR, the research recommends a method to extend the cropping system to more households, utilizing state finance to provide the infrastructure, and the co-researchers imparting technical knowledge through farmer-to-farmer extension.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In hierdie tesis word verslag gedoen van ’n deelnemende aksienavorsingsprojek wat van 2011 tot 2013 in ’n landelike dorpsgebied in die suide van KwaZulu-Natal, Suid-Afrika, uitgevoer is. Die gebied is ’n mikrokosmos van die wêreldwye omgewings- en sosio-ekonomiese polikrisis, met volwasse werkloosheid op 50%, 73% huishoudings met vroue aan die hoof, swaar afhanklikheid van die staat se maatskaplike toelae en ’n voedselstelsel wat van gekoopte kos afhanklik is. In die studie het agt huishoudings, wat hoofsaaklik vroue aan die hoof het (die medenavorsers), met behulp van die studentenavorser, ’n verbouingstelsel, wat op agro-ekologiese beginsels gegrond is, op hul verlate tuingrond geïmplementeer en geassesseer. Die doel was om kultureel aanvaarbare gewasse te verbou om hul huishoudelike dieet aan te vul en hul voedselsekerheid positief te beïnvloed. Die studentenavorser het die nodige infrastruktuur verskaf, met inbegrip van bokbestande omheining, handgereedskap, ’n graanhamermeul, saad en kunsmis. Die literatuurstudie, waarin foto’s uit die 1900’s en moderne Zoeloe as bewyse gebruik is, toon die agro-ekologiese grondslag van prekoloniale landbou. Koloniale en apartheidsinvloede het egter hierdie kennisbasis vernietig. Die verbouingstelselontwerp was gegrond op praktyke uit hierdie prekoloniale era gekombineer met moderne agro-ekologiese tegnieke. Hierdie tegnieke het ingesluit nie-inversie-grondbewerking van plantgate met gebruik van tuinvurke, presisieplasing van fosfaatkunsmis en dieremis, oop bestuifde sade, oos–wes-georiënteerde strookverbouing, grondoppervlak-deklae, wisselbou met onder andere peulgewasse en die gebruik van hoenders om peste te beheer. Droëland-gewasse het ingesluit mielies, bone, soetpatats en botterskorsies, met klein toetsgroenteakkers op sommige stukke grond. ’n Metode is in die navorsing geïdentifiseer om te bepaal hoe gereeld hierdie groente geplant moet word om ’n konstante jaarlikse voorraad te verseker. Verdere navorsing is egter nodig. Die droëland-gewasse het huishoudelike diëte tussen oeste aangevul. Die vorming van gestruktureerde groepe onder die huishoudings het noodsaaklik geblyk te wees vir die sukses van die verbouingstelsel, waardeur wedersydse hulp met arbeid, gedeelde besluitneming, die bou van kennis en morele ondersteuning gebied is. Die belangrikheid van dialoog en vertroue, wat versterk is deur die studentenavorser se vermoë om in Zoeloe met die medenavorsers te kommunikeer, het die grondslag gevorm van die deelnemende aksienavorsingsprojek asook die fokusgroeponderhoude, wat gebruik is om die verbouingstelsel kwalitatief te assesseer. In hierdie onderhoude het die huishoudings verslag gedoen van hul grondige begrip van die agro-ekologiese beginsels van die verbouingstelsel, hul gewilligheid om ná die navorsing daarmee voort te gaan, asook die voordele wat dit bied, soos beter gesondheid en geld wat op voedselaankope gespaar is, wat heraangewend is om hul batebasis te verbeter. Die Wêreldvoedingsprogram (2008) se Food Consumption Score- (FCS-)ontledingsmetode, wat aangepas is om die persentasie bydrae van selfgekweekte voedsel tot die FCS aan te toon, is gebruik vir die kwantitatiewe assessering van die verbouingstelsel. Die FCS-tellings het tydens die navorsing toegeneem, met selfgekweekte voedsel wat by tye tot meer as ’n derde tot die FCS bygedra het. Die medenavorsers het voorstel dat ’n stokvel gestig word om insette te finansier en die infrastruktuur ná die navorsing in stand te hou. Die finansiële implikasies van hierdie stokvel is bereken. Op grond van die aanvanklike sukses van die deelnemende aksienavorsingsprojek stel die navorser ’n metode voor om die verbouingstelsel na meer huishoudings uit te brei met behulp van staatsfinansiering om die infrastruktuur te verskaf asook die oordrag van die medenavorsers se tegniese kennis na ander boere.

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Mkhabela, Thulasizwe. "An econometric analysis of the economic and environmental efficiency of dairy farms in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/6768.

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Thesis (PhD(Agric) (Agricultural Economics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2011.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This dissertation is an analysis of dairy production in the Midlands district of KwaZulu-Natal. The analysis of agricultural production generally ignores undesirable outputs that are produced alongside desirable outputs. This research attempted to integrate a model of nitrate leaching from dairy production into a multiple input/output representation of the production technology, together with the analysis of technical efficiency. Estimation of both technical efficiency and environmental efficiency were done following the parametric econometric stochastic frontier (SFA) and the nonparametric mathematical programming data envelopment analysis (DEA) approaches. The study used unbalanced panel data from 37 individual highly specialized dairy farms for the period 2000 to 2007 and totals to 2130 observations. Production functions for the three outputs; milk, animals and farm produced feed, were fitted as a simultaneous system to model the farms’ production activities for the econometric SFA estimation of technical efficiency. A single equation reduced form was fitted as a frontier to allow for the estimation of the relative efficiencies of the individual farms. The results showed that with data this detailed it was possible to refine the model until it fits very tightly. Indeed, in the gross output model that includes cows, there was nothing left to call inefficiency and what was clearly a frontier becomes a mean response function. Technical efficiency was further calculated using the nonparametric DEA approach using the same dataset. The estimation of environmental efficiency was done using both SFA and DEA approaches. Undesirable emissions of nitrate were represented within the models by calculating nitrogen surplus (kg/ha) for each farm. This nitrogen surplus value was based on the intensity of the use of nitrogen containing inputs and the nitrogen content of marketable products specific information and from farm data which were used to calculate a farm nitrogen balance. The stochastic estimation of environmental efficiency used the same data that were used for the estimation of technical efficiency. However, for the DEA calculation of environmental efficiency, a balanced cross-section dataset for 34 farms participating in a pasture-utilization programme was used. This dataset was used because it had quantities of nitrogen fertilizer and other nitrogen containing inputs. Results indicate that there was minimal “over-usage” (over production) of milk thus reducing milk output alone will not lead to improved environmental efficiency. Farm size, herd size, and quantity of nitrogen fertilizer applied, present the best scope of reducing nitrogen surplus thus improving environmental efficiency of the dairy farms. Reducing imported feed by relying more on home grown feed can also help reduce nitrogen surplus. This is feasible because dairy farmers in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands can produce most of the feed on farm. In summary, to obtain environmental efficiency milk production would have to be reduced by 80 litres per hectare; farm size by 73.69 ha; herd size by 33 cows, nitrogen fertilizer application by 74.3 kilograms per hectare; and imported feed by 13.4 kilograms of dry matter per hectare. The adjustments that would be required if environmentally inefficient farms were to adopt best practice technology and move towards their environmental production frontiers indicate that the production of pollutants (nitrogen surplus) could be reduced at negligible cost to milk production. The positive correlation between technical and environmental efficiencies indicates that improving environmental efficiency could be associated with improvements in technical efficiency. Thus, policies aimed at improving both efficiencies could have substantial rewards.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In hierdie tesis word suiwelproduksie in die Middellande van KwaZulu-Natal van nader beskou. Met die ontleding van landbouproduksie, word ongewenste uitsette wat saam met gewenste uitsette geproduseer word, gewoonlik oor die hoof gesien. Hierdie navorsing poog om ’n model van nitraatvrylating uit suiwelproduksie in ’n veelvuldige inset/uitset verteenwoordiging van die produksietegnologie, te integreer by die analise van tegniese doeltreffendheid. In opvolging van die benaderings tot die parametriese ekonometriese stogastiese front (SFA) en die omvattingsanalise ten opsigte van die nie-parametriese matematiese programmeringsdata, is beramings van sowel tegniese as omgewings doeltreffendheid gedoen. In die studie is gebruik gemaak van paneeldata van 37 individuele hoogs gespesialiseerde melkplase vir die tydperk 2000 tot 2007, wat altesaam 2130 waarnemings beloop. Produksiewerksaamhede vir die drie uitsette; melkproduksie en diere- en plaasgeproduseerde voer, is as ’n gelyklopende stelsel ingepas om die plase se produksiewerksaamhede vir die ekonometriese SFA-beramings van tegniese doeltreffendheid weer te gee. ’n Enkele vorm om gelykmaking te verminder is daargestel as ’n front vir die beraming van die relatiewe doeltreffendhede van die individuele plase. Die resultate het bewys dat data van hierdie omvang dit moontlik maak om die model sodanig te verfyn dat dit net-net inpas. By die bruto uitset-model waarby koeie ingesluit is, was daar inderdaad niks wat op ondoeltreffendheid gedui het nie en wat eers ’n duidelike front was, het ’n betekenisvolle responsfunksie geword. Voorts is tegniese doeltreffendheid bereken deur aanwending van die nie-parametriese DEAbenadering, deur gebruik te maak van dieselfde datastel. Die beraming van omgewingsdoeltreffendheid is gedoen deur gebruikmaking van sowel SFA- as DEA-benaderings. Ongewenste nitraatvrylatings is in die modelle gevind deur die stikstofsurplus vir elke plaas te bereken (kg/ha) Die waarde van hierdie stikstofsurplus is gebaseer op die intensiteit van die gebruik van stikstofbevattende insette en bepaalde inligting oor die stikstof-inhoud van bemarkbare produkte, sowel as van plaas data, wat gebruik is om ’n stikstofbalans vir die plaas te bereken. Dieselfde data wat aangewend is vir die beraming van tegniese doeltreffendheid, is gebruik om die stogastiese beraming van omgewingsdoeltreffendheid te bepaal. Vir die DEA-berekening van omgewingsxii doeltreffendheid, is egter ’n gebalanseerde kruisseksie datastel gebruik vir 34 plase wat aan ’n weidingsbenuttings-program deelgeneem het. Die bepaalde datastel is gebruik omdat dit dosisse stikstofbemestingstof en ander stikstofbevattende insette bevat het. Resultate het op minimale “oorgebruik” (oorproduksie) van melk gedui en daarom sal die vermindering van slegs die melkuitset nie lei tot verbeterde omgewingsdoeltreffendheid nie. Plaasgrootte, kuddegrootte en die dosis stikstof wat toegedien is, verskaf die beste beeld van verminderde stikstofsurplus, wat dus tot verbeterde omgewingsdoeltreffendheid op melkplase lei. Die vermindering van ingevoerde voer deur meer op plaasgeproduseerde voer staat te maak, kan ook meewerk om stikstofsurplus te laat daal. Dit kan gedoen word omdat melkboere in die Middellande van KwaZulu-Natal die meeste van die voer op die plaas kan produseer. Ter samevatting kan gesê word dat om omgewingsdoeltreffendheid te bereik moet melkproduksie met 80 liter per hektaar verminder word, plaasgrootte met 73.69 ha, kuddegrootte met 33 koeie, stikstofbemestingtoediening met 74.3 kilogram per hektaar en ingevoerde voer met 13.4 kilogram droë materiaal per hektaar. Die aanpassings wat nodig sal wees indien omgewingsdoeltreffende plase beste praktyk-tegnologie sou aanvaar en sou aanbeweeg na hulle omgewingsproduksiefronte, dui daarop dat die produksie van besoedelende stowwe (stikstofsurplus) verminder kan word teen geringe koste aan melkproduksie. Die positiewe verband tussen tegniese en omgewingsdoeltreffendhede, dui daarop dat die verbetering van omgewingsdoeltreffendheid, in verband gebring kan word met verbeterings in tegniese doeltreffendheid. Beleid wat op verbetering van beide doeltreffendhede gemik is, kan daarom aanmerklike voordele inhou.

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Ramashia, Nkhangweleni. "Determinants of agricultural loan repayments: the case of MAFISA funded farmers in uMkanyakude, KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa." Master's thesis, Faculty of Commerce, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/30475.

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The Micro Agricultural Financial Institutions of South Africa (MAFISA) was established by the South African government in 2005 to provide production loans to smallholder farmers in all nine provinces of South Africa. This study examined the socio-economic and loan factors that influence loan repayment of MAFISA-funded farmers in umKanyakude district municipality. Using data from 191 selected loans granted by Peulwana Agricultural Financial Services (PAFS), the study employed a logit model to identify the explanatory for loan default. The study found that age, gender and education were not significant in determining loan repayment. On the other hand, land size, loan cycle and loan amount were significant in influencing loan repayment. The results of the empirical analysis have three main policy implications for the government and the microfinance institutions. Firstly, smallholder farmers should be supported to increase their ownership of land size so that they can plant more crops and increase their sales. This will enable them to improve their repayment rate. Secondly, smallholder farmers should be provided with smaller loan amounts at first as it leads to good repayment. Thirdly microfinance institutions should provide more loans to lenders on a second or more cycle as this leads to good repayment.

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Taylor, Dan. "Field of futility or hidden hope? : agricultural knowledge and practice of low resource farmers in the Kwazulu-Natal Province of South Africa." Thesis, University College London (University of London), 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.325329.

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Gilimani, Benedict Mandlenkosi. "The economic contribution of home production for home consumption in South African agriculture." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/1795.

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Goga, Adhil Mahmood. "Factors affecting the demand for labour in large-scale sugarcane farming in three regions of KwaZulu-Natal, 1984-2008." Thesis, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/11366.

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Many authors have cited the relatively high unemployment rate as the most severe economic problem facing South Africa today. At the same time, government institutions claim that the agricultural sector can help solve the high unemployment rate, as this sector has the potential to create employment for a large number of unemployed South Africans. These institutions do not elaborate on how the sector will provide so many jobs. Published empirical studies on the South African (SA) agricultural sector have recommended ways in which policy-makers may achieve their goals of creating employment. However, most studies on labour considered the entire agricultural sector, whereas this study focuses on a sub-sector, namely the SA sugarcane sector. The study aims to analyse the potential of the sugarcane SA sector to create employment by estimating long- and short-run price (wage) elasticities of labour demand for large-scale sugarcane farms on the South Coast, in the Midlands and in Tugela/Zululand during 1984/1985-2008/2009. Using panel data, two models are estimated by Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), Model 1 capturing labour use intensity and using “labour units employed per 1000 tonnes of cane cut” as the dependent variable, while Model 2 captures the total labour units demanded by large-scale sugarcane farmers. Only Model 2 is estimated using simultaneous equations as past studies indicate that labour use intensity may be analysed using single-equation models. For Model 1, the estimates of the long-run wage elasticities compared to the short-run wage elasticities are similar and around -0.5, -0.17 and -0.33 for the South Coast, Midlands and Tugela/Zululand regions, respectively. The wage elasticity estimates for Model 2 in the short-run were -0.34, -0.24 and -0.17 and in the long run -0.61, -0.42 and -0.30 for the South Coast, Midlands and Tugela/Zululand, respectively. The two econometric techniques (OLS and 3SLS) yielded similar wage elasticities. Results suggest that all labour demand estimates were wage inelastic, with the South Coast having a relatively greater response of labour demand to wage rate changes than the other two regions. Inelastic demand estimates for labour in all three regions may be due to the perennial, long-term nature of sugarcane and farmers taking time to decide how to respond to changes (hikes) in the price of labour. The decline in the demand for labour by large-scale sugarcane farmers due to an increase in real wage rates raises questions about the appropriateness of labour laws and minimum wage iii legislation that have increased the real cost of farm labour in the large-scale sugarcane sector of KZN. In order to reverse the rising farm labour unemployment trend in South Africa, the study recommends that policy-makers could rather adopt more flexible labour market regulations (for example, those relating to the hiring and dismissal of workers) that would reduce real labour costs and encourage local farmers to employ more labour on sugarcane farms. Furthermore, the land under sugarcane proved to be an important determinant of the demand for labour by large-scale sugarcane farmers and hence policies regarding land reform need to be revised and implemented more proficiently. Future research could focus on the skill-level of those workers who are affected the most following an increase in minimum wages and possible reasons why the KZN sugar industry is losing land to other land uses.
M.Sc.Agric. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 2013.

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Chibanda, Mutsa. "Institutional and governance factors influencing the performance of selected smallholder agricultural cooperatives in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/562.

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This dissertation investigates the impact of institutional and governance factors on the performance of 10 selected smallholder agricultural cooperatives (case studies) in KwaZulu- Natal (KZN). All the selected cooperatives were traditionally structured (e.g., one-member, one-vote system). Due to logistical and administrative constraints, the selected smallholder cooperatives were drawn from the EThekwini and UMgungundlovu Districts (the latter comprising of two sub-districts, namely Camperdown and Msunduzi), which incorporate the major cities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Five of the cooperatives grow and market vegetables, three produce and market poultry, one is a beef production cooperative and another operates a bakery. Information from the interviews suggests that members of the selected smallholder cooperatives do not fully understand cooperative principles and have high expectations of potential benefits of being members. Descriptive analysis of the case studies describes total membership of each selected cooperative; average number of management meetings per month; gender and age composition of cooperative members; the characteristics of chairpersons of these cooperatives (e.g., gender, age and education); the initial capital structure of these cooperatives; annual turnover; growth opportunities; and institutional and governance factors influencing the performance of these cooperatives. The results of a cluster analysis suggest that the performance of the selected smallholder cooperatives is influenced by institutional and governance problems. Institutional problems give rise to low levels of equity and debt capital, reliance on government funding, low levels of investment, and subsequent loss of members. Governance problems are strongly linked to the absence of secret ballot, low levels of education, lack of production and management skills training, weak marketing arrangements and consequent low returns to members as patrons or investors. The conclusion is that appropriate institutional arrangements and good governance are important to the performance of enterprises initiated by groups of smallholders. South Africa’s new Cooperatives Act prevents smallholder cooperatives from adopting good institutional arrangements. Alternative ownership structures such as close corporations and private companies offer better institutional arrangements and opportunities for equity-sharing partnerships.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

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Siyaya, Thandeka Prudence. "Community empowerment : management of production and distribution of agricultural commodities at Phongolo District, KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/10530/232.

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Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Community Work) in the Department of Social Work in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Zululand, 2006.
This study examined aspects and strategies the communities adopt to manage the production and the distribution of agricultural commodities. The research also focused on problems experienced by small - scale farmers in the production and management of their produce. The food security of the communities relies on the good management of natural resources and production. It would appear that communities need to utilize and manage natural resources properly and appropriately if future generations have to sustain good produce for their livelihood. The study further found out that small-scale farmers live in conditions that are intolerable in terms of their access to water, market and land. The identified problems limit the access of farmers to produce good quality agricultural commodities, which could be acceptable to market retailers and wholesalers. Agriculture cannot be neglected as the backbone of community survival. Empowering communities about agricultural production management is a development strategy that is aimed at facilitating economic growth. In conclusion the researcher recommends that communities need to be provided with inputs like irrigation facilities so that their production could not be seasonal but could be able to produce throughout the year.

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Mushayanyama, Tinashe. "Improving access by smallholder farmers to organic crop supply chains : evidence from the Ezemvelo Farmers' Organization, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/5540.

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The 48 members of the Ezemvelo Farmers' Organisation (EFO) in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa (SA), that were fully-certified as organic farmers were surveyed during October-December 2004 to assess their perceived level of satisfaction, trust, cooperation and commitment in a formal supply chain producing amadhumbes (a traditional vegetable tuber), potatoes and sweet potatoes for a major SA supermarket group. Empirical recursive models show that a high level of satisfaction in the working relationship results in these farmers trusting the pack-house agent more. High levels of trust, in turn, lead to higher levels of both commitment to, and cooperation in, the supply chain. A simultaneous-equation model showed that EFO farmers with higher levels of commitment tend to be more cooperative, and that members with higher levels of cooperation tend to be more committed toward the working relationship. These results suggest that strategies to improve the working relationship with the pack-house agent need to promote satisfaction, trust, cooperation and commitment. For example, co-investment in better crop storage facilities at farm-level would promote satisfaction and hence trust. There is also scope for more cooperation in the planning of new organic crop products to grow and market, and to remove some price uncertainty by giving EFO farmers more information about prices that they will be paid by the pack-house agent in this supply chain. In addition, satisfaction and, hence, trust, cooperation and commitment may be improved by adopting a formal contract between the EFO farmers and the pack-house agent to replace the current, incomplete verbal contract that governs trading. Some issues that may be addressed in this contract are improved communication systems via regular meetings, renegotiations of trading terms so that farmers can benefit from positive changes in organic crop prices; guidelines for paying farmers more quickly by the pack-house agent; mechanisms to trace crop quality to a specific farmer to avoid free riding; and penalties for breaching the contractual arrangements. The 48 EFO farmers were also asked to give their perceptions of the main constraints on organic crop production and marketing in the formal organic crop supply chain. They perceived that uncertain climate, unavailability of tractor or draught power when needed, delays in payments for crops sent to the pack-house, lack of affordable inputs (particularly labour and manure), a lack of cash and credit to finance inputs, lack of affordable transport to market crops, more work than the family can handle, a lack of manure to purchase; and a lack of crop storage facilities and telephones to negotiate sales as the current top 10 constraints. Principal Component Analysis summarized the underlying dimensions in the 20 constraints ranked by these farmers as indicating "lack of market information and lack of market power"; "crop production expansion constraints"; "commitment to crop area expansion"; "lack of liquidity"; "lack of proper storage facilities"; and "lack of information about alternative markets". Potential solutions to better manage these perceived constraints include: improved risk management practices (e.g., supplemental irrigation, water-harvesting and small boreholes), improving access to tractor services via improved tractor scheduling or using local contractor services, quicker pack-house delivery payments, improving quality inspection at the departure points at EFO farm-level to reduce crop rejection rates and "free riding" by producers of lower quality organic crops, more interaction with the retailer to promote sales of organic crops, providing advice on how the EFO farmers can improve their bargaining power, and providing more information (e.g. crop prices) about other organic markets and changing consumer preferences. Apparently, the costs and benefits of these potential solutions, and how they will be financed, need to be evaluated. Real accounting marketing margins since 2001 showed that the farmer's share of the consumer's rand for the 48 fully certified organic EFO farmers rose, while their net returns (selling price less accounting costs) were lower than those of the pack-house agent and hawkers selling at the Isipingo market on the South Coast of KZN. Net returns for the 48 EFO farmers also seemed to be relatively higher if they sold through the informal supply chain (hawkers) rather than the formal supply chain. The EFO farmers' net returns may be improved by lowering operating costs and by aggressive marketing to customers willing and able to pay a price premium for organic crops. These farmers may also consider performing some of t he marketing services themselves (e.g. crop cleaning, grading and packaging) if they have the skills and can access more finance. There are, however, hidden benefits from maintaining the formal supply chain relationship, as the pack-house agent helped to secure tractor services and fencing, and facilitates access to the retailer.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

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Del, Grande Lisa. "Rural agricultural settlement options for farm dwellers : a focus on the Amajuba District Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/360.

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Processes of dispossession led to the deconstructing and reconstructing of new forms of citizenship through new political identities. Concepts of citizenship and identity are now re - emerging with the reconstruction of a new political order post 1994. Who farm dweller families are in the newly constructed polity, or how their identities are understood by the new state, will have bearing on what they can rightfully access as part of the programmes of redress and transformation. Making the argument that farm dwellers are neither ‘peasant’ nor ‘labour’ or ‘worker’ in the dominant theoretical sense the research sets out to contextualise the farm dwellers’ development dilemma. This research attempts to situate farm dweller families in a dynamic and his torically fraught political economy so that a more accurate consideration is given to the impact of future settlement options on their households’ economy. This study evaluates the relationship between farm dweller settlement patterns and their household f ood security. in the Amajuba District of KwaZulu - Natal, South Africa. The situation of the farm dweller families in the Amajuba district tells a story of extreme vulnerability. The vulnerability is a product of their dependent relationship on the owners of the land for permission to access these basic but critical livelihood needs. Their continued dependence on natural resources, rather than the cash economy, is also a product of this decades’ long relationship which has perpetuated levels of generational chronic poverty. The cycle of this level of poverty is clearly vicious and without directed targeted intervention might take generations to overcome, if it is ever broken. The political economic context of an aggressive global food industry fed by industrial forms of agriculture, the levels of vulnerability, dependency and lack of agency in the farm dweller household economy and the incredibly uncertain government settlement and agricultural policy environment, makes the feasibility of new rural settlemen ts with new forms of economic and social functionality almost unimaginable. What the research finds is that in presenting the farm dweller perspective a good motivation can be made for developing a specific targeted state intervention that has short, medium and long term trajectories to provide farm dwellers with redress, and economic development opportunities.
Thesis (M.U.R.D.P.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

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Obala, Andrew Ambogo. "Malaria vector populations associated with the agricultural development at Mamfene, Northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 1995. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/10331.

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The irrigation farming methods on the Makhathini Flats are thought to be responsible for recent increase in malaria cases in the Mamfene area of northern KwaZulu-Natal despite ongoing malaria control activities. Their coincidence with the period of intensive fanning is an interesting one. This study was therefore carried out to determine the relationship between larval habitats and adult mosquito population in malaria transmission using Geographic Information System (GIS). Four types of breeding sites were utilised by malaria vectors in Mamfene, viz; types 1, II, III and IV. Habitat type I was tap pools, type II was irrigation spillage in agricultural land, type III was spillage outside but adjacent to the agricultural land and type IV was depression pools located both in the Balamhlanga swamp and inland. The cumulative larval density in all habitats peaked in March 1995 (20/man-hr), with irrigation spillage (type III) recording the highest density index (33/man-hr) as compared to tap pools (type I) which recorded 32.8/man-hr while other waterbodies recorded I3 .4/man-hr (type II) and O.5/man-hr (type IV) respectively. Subsamples of both larvae and adults of An. gambiae group were identified by the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technique. Of the larvae identified, 94.1 % and 5.9% (n=289) were An. arabiensis and An. quadriannulatus respectively while in the adult component, the composition was 98.7% and 1.3% (n=303) for An. arabiensis and An. quadriannulatus respectively. This confirmed An. arabiensis as the dominant malaria vector in Mamfene area while the exophilic behaviour of An. quadriannulatus was portrayed. Of the An. gambiae group dissected for parity, 51 .5%) were found parous. This is an indication that the population was old and was able to maintain transmission locally despite ongoing vector control measures. The Global Positioning System (GPS) was used to position larval and adult mosquito sampling sites. The spatial distribution of adult mosquitoes from the breeding sites were plotted using GIS soft ware (Map Info ) and the distance between the breeding sites and study houses were measured using a utility distance tool. With the aid of GIS, the adult mosquito density in houses could be used as an indicator to locate the breeding sites in the vicinity. The importance of these findings in terms of application in cost-effective malaria control cannot be over-emphasized.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1995.

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Mbanjwa, Sibonelo Thanda. "Integrating indigenous knowledge systems into indigenous agricultural and industrial water management that impacts changes in riverine biodiversity: a conservation perspective." Thesis, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/24845.

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Lower reaches of rivers as well as estuaries are regarded as South Africa’s most productive ecosystems due to the important functions such as providing nursery areas and feeding sites for juvenile macro-invertebrate and fish species they perform. Furthermore, ecologically healthy estuaries are not only of critical importance since they facilitate the provision and recirculation of nutrients, they also provide conduits for fish migrations into the fresh water system and act as buffers during floods. In South Africa, these functions are continuously being threatened by residential and/or industrial developments. It is thus essential to determine the ecological integrity (structure and function) of these systems. An Ecological integrity study was carried out on the selected rivers in Kwazulu Natal between 2015 and 2017. This study was assessed in terms of selected abiotic drivers on specific biological responses. The study was carried out according to the guidelines of the ecological determination methodologies and the resource directed measures for aquatic resources as set out by the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, South Africa. Surveys were carried out during summer and winter seasons. Abiotic and biotic monitoring was carried out at four sites along each estuary. The abiotic component such as sediment composition and physio-chemical properties of the water was analyzed using standard methods. The biotic and abiotic components were analyzed using various indices, where applicable. The ecological integrity of the system can be accessed on the basis of its ability to carry out its natural functions. Results showed the various anthropogenic activities in the upper reaches of each river contributed to the high modified state of some of these rivers’ unacceptable water quality, loss and/or modification of habitat and an altered hydrological pattern due to impacts by agricultural, industrial and domestic uses. The ecosystem services of the lower areas of the rivers under investigation are used extensively through sugarcane agricultural activities and heavy industries works inclusive of sand mining and rural sewage-treatment. These activities affect the ecological integrity of the rivers and ultimately the estuaries. This study aimed at determining the current state of ecological integrity of five selected rivers in KwaZulu Natal and to establish trends between current and historical periods for the evaluation of changing trends in ecological integrity. Abiotic and biotic indicator components were used to ascertain changes in the surrounding environment as well as to determine the ecological integrity of these rivers. Monitoring of water quality, sediment grain size, moisture and organic content as well as habitat state, macro-invertebrates and fish assemblages was undertaken. The following variables water temperature, chemical oxygen demand (COD), electrical conductivity (EC), pH and total alkalinity (TAL) as well as salts, nutrients and toxics were investigated to provide indications as to the state of the water-quality of these rivers. The Target Water Quality Requirements (TWQR) as developed by the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry for domestic use (Volume 1) and Aquatic Ecosystems (Volume 7) were used to evaluate the quality of the water sampled in this study. Historical data obtained from previous studies of similar study areas have also been evaluated. Sediment analyses were performed according to the protocol set out by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. As a result of the abiotic drivers, results showed that the invertebrate reside in modified state. Physio-chemical, geomorphological and hydrological changes in this system resulted in the rivers’ suffering a loss in both biological and ecological function as well as aesthetic value. It is apparent from the above that there is not a need for rehabilitation but also a need for effective and continuous management strategies. These strategies can only be successful if the bio-monitoring of the system includes the effects at both economical and social levels. The water quality of the rivers under this investigation was found to be in a slightly modified state with the majority of water quality parameters falling within the target values. Water quality parameters of the lower Thukela River, not within the required target, was highly elevated and could possibly cause negative impacts on the river functionality. The water quality parameters of Umvoti river, Umdloti river and uMngeni river were seriously modified. The sediment clearly indicated that the organic content of the all the rivers was low and directly relating to the possibility of erosion and transportation taking place in the Rivers. The removal of riparian vegetation by agricultural activities, sand mining and water abstraction contributed to the destruction of the habitats along all these rivers. The South African Scoring System, version 5 (SASS 5), the Macro-invertebrate Response Assessment Index (MIRAI) and multivariate statistical analyses were implemented in order to determine the ecological integrity of the rivers. Results revealed that the SASS 5 integrity classes were generally one class higher than the integrity classes of MIRAI. The Fish assemblage methods used to determine fish samples included electro-narcosis and a 5m wide 12mm meshed seine net. Impacts on the ecological integrity of the Rivers under investigation have been assessed by various sources. To protect the current ecological integrity and further destruction of the rivers under investigation, direct involvement by the relevant authorities is of paramount importance.
Agriculture and Environmental Science
D. Litt. et Phil. (Environmental Science)

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Sefoko, Ngwako Moses. "The role of networks in the commercialisation of rural weavers of Northern Kwazulu-Natal in South Africa." Diss., 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/24203.

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This study identifies intra- and inter-organisational barriers to commercialisation 0f rural weavers in KwaZulu-Natal and evaluate the role of local networks in procurement, processing and marketing activities in order to reduce transaction costs. The study specifically investigates the way local networks a san alternative organisational mode can become a solution to minimise transaction costs of rural weavers. The expectation is that weaving groups incur less transaction costs during commercialisation when they have well established local networks. This follows as transaction costs give a reflection of the market given the operating environment. The access to market information, assets, extension services and remunerative markets is of commercial importance. An exploratory analysis suggests that existing networks in craft businesses in northern KwaZulu-Natal have an impact in reducing some of the transaction costs of weavers, thereby improving weavers' economic performance and commercialisation process. Local networks have therefore shown to be not only a pre-condition for non-local networks, but an important vehicle for information exchange, co-ordination of fragmented activities, conducting training services, and guarding against market failures for weavers. However, the two fundamental questions to be asked for future research are how to create local networks to improve supply chain functions in similar or different socio-economic settings to this study's cases and how to assure the sustainability of networks.
Dissertation (Magister Institutionis Agrariae)--University of Pretoria, 2006.
Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development
unrestricted

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Floyd, Warren N. "An economic analysis of the factors that affect the success of new freehold growers in the South African sugar industry." Thesis, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/710.

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The South African (SA) Sugar Industry is committed to transformation in land ownership and supports the SA government's target to transfer 30% of freehold sugarcane land to previously disadvantaged individuals (PDls) by 2014 via the land market under the willing buyer/willing seller principle. The medium-scale farmer scheme for emerging commercial sugarcane farmers, which was introduced in 1996 to help redistribute commercial sugarcane farmland to PDIs is an important component of the SA Sugar Industry's land reform strategy. The average financial performance of emerging commercial farmers (now called New Freehold Growers or NFGs) in the SA Sugar Industry was below that of large-scale commercial farmers during 1997-2007 (real average annual net return per hectare of R390 versus R3 075 in 2007 Rand). Given that this trend raises concerns about the long-term viability of NFGs, the first aim of this study is to identify factors that distinguish between successful, less successful and unsuccessful NFGs using a stratified random sample of 96 NFGs in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) surveyed during July-November 2008. These NFGs were classified according to whether their mortgage loans were current (successful), in arrears (less successful) or in the process of legal action (unsuccessful). Student t-tests indicate that successful NFGs, on average, had statistically significantly more experience in farming sugarcane, larger farm sizes (proxied by average annual gross farm income), greater solvency and liquidity, and larger areas annually replanted to sugarcane than the less successful and unsuccessful NFGs. The successful NFGs also placed relatively more emphasis on computerized record keeping systems that can save time in conducting production and financial analyses to improve farm profitability. They also on average tended to make more use of their own financial record keeping system in addition to the services of bookkeepers, and used more risk management strategies than unsuccessful NFGs, in particular having off-farm investments and keeping cash and credit reserves. A multinomial logit model of factors affecting the sample NFGs' mortgage loan repayment status estimated that extension contact, production and financial risk management capacity, farm financial and production management ability, own record keeping and cash management, and having more sugarcane farm experience to operate larger farm sizes were key determinants of successful loan repayment. The results suggest that policy makers can promote the viability of NFGs by (1) encouraging them to manage solvency and liquidity levels and implement replanting schedules in line with industry norms (e.g. debt:asset ratio of 0.5 or lower, and the replanting of 10% of the area under cane (AUC) per annum); and (2) facilitate the transfer of adequate size farms (expected annual gross farm income can meet annual loan repayments) in commercial transactions or transactions funded via government grants to farmers who have the relevant farming experience. New Freehold Growers are also encouraged to build business relationships with industry support staff, implement good record keeping practices, and develop strategies to manage risk (e.g. off-farm investment and holding cash and credit reserves). The second aim of this study was to document the NFGs' perceptions of the scheme and industry role players in order to identify what aspects could be improved for both current and future farmers. The results suggest that most sample respondents (84%) can identify with, or have experienced the relatively low current returns (cash flow problems) usually associated with the early years after land purchase, while about 60% of the sample NFGs would have preferred to first lease their land before buying. Future NFGs, or the beneficiaries of other land reform initiatives, must be informed that an investment in land has low current returns relative to capital growth and that the annual profit from farming is low relative to the land value. The possibility of leasing could also be considered for future land transfers to NFGs or other land reform beneficiaries to help manage the liquidity constraints associated with land purchase. Ninety-nine percent of the sample NFGs felt that it was important for new farmers to have a mentor. Post-settlement support thus needs attention from industry role players, and a sustainable mentorship programme could, in part, meet this need.
Thesis (M.Sc.Agric.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

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Semalulu, Allan Kasirye. "Land redistribution in KwaZulu-Natal : an analysis of farmland transactions from 1997 until 2002." Thesis, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/6247.

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Apartheid and colonialism left deep imprints on contemporary South African society. Nowhere are these more compellingly apparent than in the highly skewed distribution of land between whites and blacks. At the beginning of the 1990' s, it was estimated that 12 million black people lived on only 17.1 million hectares of land, whilst 60,000 white commercial farmers occupied 86.2 million hectares. Since democratisation in 1994 various modes of land redistribution have emerged in South Africa to redistribute farmland to previously disadvantaged people. In 1994, an African National Congress (ANC)-led government initiated a land redistribution programme by offering Settlement/Land Acquisition Grants (SLAG) to previously disadvantaged South Africans to purchase formerly white-owned farms on a willing buyer-willing seller basis. The aim of SLAG was to redistribute 30 per cent of the country's commercial farmland to previously disadvantaged South Africans within five years. However, by the end of the first five years less than two per cent of white-owned farmland was transferred to previously disadvantaged South Africans. Government responded by introducing a new grant programme, the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development (LRAD) programme in August 2001 with a less ambitious objective of transferring 30 per cent of white-owned farmland to previously disadvantaged South Africans over 15 years (i.e. two percent per annum). In addition to the government's land redistribution programme, private and semi-private initiatives have emerged to redistribute farmland to previously disadvantaged people. The BASIS Collaborative Research Support Programme sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has monitored government (SLAG) and private farmland transactions in the province of KwaZulu-Natal since 1997. This study builds on these previous analyses of farmland transactions by comparing the performance of LRAD relative to private transactions in transferring farmland to previously disadvantaged South Africans during 2002, and contrasts the results with those from years 1997 to 2001. Results from the study indicate that the launch of LRAD in 2001 had a significant impact on land redistribution in 2002. In KwaZulu-Natal, the rate of land redistribution doubled from 0.5 per cent in 2001 to one percent in 2002. The results also show that LRAD has not only succeeded in drawing private resources into the land reform process, but has also been more successful in targeting women than the earlier SLAG programme. Findings further show that unlike the earlier (SLAG) programme, LRAD offers larger grants to wealthier and more-creditworthy beneficiaries and is therefore conducive to establishing farms owned and operated by individuals or by small groups of individuals. A small area (1,454 hectares) was transferred back to previously advantaged owners in 2002. Such transactions were not detected before 2002 and should be monitored to identify the underlining reasons for these sales. It is also recommended that research should be conducted to ascertain whether improvements in the rate of land redistribution in KwaZulu-Natal during 2002 will be sustained in the future.
Thesis (M.Agric.Mgt.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

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Sparks, Garreth David. "The economic feasibility of non-farm biodiesel production in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/8543.

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Recent years have seen an unprecedented global increase in the production and use of biofuels. This has been driven primarily by government support for biofuel industries. Soybeans are the only field crop produced in sufficient quantities in the province of KwaZulu- Natal (KZN) that the South African (SA) industrial biofuel strategy identifies as a potential biodiesel feedstock. Thus, this study is an evaluation of the economic feasibility of producing biodiesel on farms from soybeans in the main soybean-producing regions of KZN, using batch processing biodiesel plants. A mixed integer linear programming model was developed to simulate observed agricultural land rental rates (estimated at 4.48% of the market value of land) and cropping behaviour of commercial crop farms in the study regions. The model incorporates various alternative crops, crop rotations, tillage techniques, arable land categories and variance-covariance matrices to account for risk in production. All data are on a real 2009/10 basis. The model is used to predict possible farmer investment behaviour and determine the minimum biodiesel subsidy required to stimulate soybean-based biodiesel production in the study areas. Results suggest that biodiesel production is currently not an economically viable alternative to fossil fuel, and that the incentives and commitments outlined by the current industrial biofuel strategy are inadequate to both establish and sustain a domestic biodiesel industry. Under baseline assumptions, a realistic minimum implicit subsidy of R4.37 per litre of biodiesel is required to draw soybean-based biodiesel production into the optimum solution for commercial farms. The economic feasibility of on-farm biodiesel production is highly dependent on the soybean price (i.e., the feedstock input cost) and the soybean oilcake price (i.e., the highest valued byproduct). Thus, future promotion of biodiesel ventures could primarily target a reduction of feedstock costs through the development of new technologies which increase yields of available feedstocks and/or permit the use of lower cost alternatives. Higher subsidy levels are anticipated for: (i) small-scale initiatives (particularly in the absence of a rental market for cropland); (ii) soybean-based biodiesel production in areas with less suitable growing conditions for cultivating soybeans; and (iii) using sunflower and/or canola as biodiesel feedstock. To the author’s knowledge no other previous studies have attempted to quantify the minimum level of support needed to stimulate biodiesel production in South Africa. The SA industrial biofuels strategy promotes a development-oriented strategy with feedstock produced by smallholders and processed by traditional producer-owned cooperatives. However, traditional cooperatives suffer from a myriad of institutional problems that are associated with ill-defined property rights. As such, it is argued that these initiatives will fail to attract the capital and expertise needed to process biodiesel. This research, therefore, highlights the need for South Africa’s current Cooperatives Act to be amended. Accordingly, this also infers a need to revise the proposed SA industrial biofuels strategy. It is concluded that smallholder participation in biodiesel ventures would require a rental market for cropland, co-ownership of the processing plant in a non-traditional cooperative or investor-owned firm, information and training, and a high level of government subsidy. This research advocates that government consider promoting soybean oil extrusion ventures as a means of stimulating rural development for small-scale farming initiatives rather than soybean-based biodiesel production, as they will likely require less government assistance, whilst potentially combating the food versus fuel debate against biofuels. This is compounded by the fact that South Africa has historically been a net importer of both soybean oilcake and soybean oil. Importantly, however, the proliferation of such initiatives should not be based on the current notion of traditional cooperatives. The need for government to play a proactive role in such ventures through facilitating the development of appropriate business models which stimulate private investment in feedstock and processing facilities is clearly evident.
Thesis (M.Sc.Agric.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

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Buthelezi, Nkosinomusa Nomfundo. "The use of scientific and indigenous knowledge in agricultural land evaluation and soil fertility studies of Ezigeni and Ogagwini villages in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/651.

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In the past, the indigenous knowledge of soils of small-scale farmers in South Africa has been largely ignored in scientific research. Hence the use of scientific approaches to land evaluation has often failed to improve land use in rural areas where understanding of the prescriptive scientific logic is lacking. Despite this, it is clear that local people and smallscale farmers have knowledge of their lands based on soil and land characteristics that remain largely unknown to the scientific community. It is therefore important for researchers to understand farmers’ knowledge of soil classification and management. To address this issue, a study was conducted in the uMbumbulu area of KwaZulu-Natal to investigate the use of indigenous knowledge as well as farmers’ perceptions and assessments of soil fertility. A preliminary questionnaire was designed to explore indigenous knowledge in a group interview that was conducted prior to the study. Another questionnaire was used to elicit indigenous knowledge from 59 randomly chosen homesteads representative of the population of Ezigeni and Ogagwini villages. Six homesteads were chosen for further detailed information on the cropping history, knowledge specific to the cultivated lands, detailed soil description and fertility. Soil samples were taken from these homesteads under different land uses (taro, fallow, veld and vegetable) at 0-30 and 30-60 cm depth for laboratory analysis. This was done to determine the effect of land use on soil physical and chemical properties and soil microbial activity. For scientific evaluation a general purpose free soil survey was conducted to produce land capability and suitability maps. Farmers identified ten soil types using soil morphological characteristics, mainly soil colour and texture. These soil properties were also used in the farmers’ land suitability assessment. In addition, slope position, natural vegetation and village location were used to indicate land suitability. The amount of topsoil was also used in land evaluation. However, slope position was considered the most important factor as it affects the pattern of soils and hence their suitability. Soils on the footslope were considered more suitable for crops than those found on the midslope and upslope. The yield difference observed between villages, which were higher in Ogagwini than Ezigeni, was also used as a criterion for evaluation. Farmers attributed these yield differences for various crops to the effect of soil type on productivity. In support, scientific evaluation found that Ezigeni village had a number of soils with a heavy textured, pedocutanic B horizon and hence a relatively shallow effective rooting depth. Moreover, the Ezigeni village land suitability was limited in places by poor drainage and stoniness. These limitations were rarely found for the Ogagwini village soils. Farmers had a total of six comprehensive and well defined soil fertility indicators, namely crop yield, crop appearance, natural vegetation, soil texture, soil colour and presence of mesofauna. Results showed that farmers’ fertility perceptions are more holistic than those of researchers. However, despite this, their assessment correlated with soil analysis. There was a close relationship between scientific and indigenous suitability evaluation for three commonly cultivated crops (taro, maize and dry beans). This was further substantiated by yield measurements which were significantly higher for Ogagwini as rated by both farmers and scientific evaluation as the more suitable. The significant agreements between the scientific and indigenous approaches imply that there are fundamental similarities between them. Recognizing this and subsequently integrating the two approaches will produce land use plans relevant and profitable for both small-scale farmers and scientists.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

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Bakre, Olayemi Rahman. "Water resource management for subsistence farming in Ward 19 of KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10321/1305.

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Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Technology: Governance and Economic Development, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa. 2015.
South African rural areas are amongst the poorest in the world, as there is still a wide gap in terms of development with their urban neighbours. With an estimated 6.4 million South Africans falling below the national poverty line in 2010, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) remains the province with the highest number of poor people. The majority of rural dwellers in South Africa and KZN rely on subsistence farming, while others depend on government grants or family members living and working in urban areas to sustain a living. However, the income received is often insufficient to cater for their daily needs. In consonance with the high prevalence of poverty and the stagnation of subsistence farming, this study aims to examine the role of water supply in rural agricultural development in the Ward 19 area of Mtubatuba Municipality, which is situated along the north eastern region of KZN. To accomplish this aim, a mixed research approach with elements of qualitative (interviews) and quantitative (questionnaire) research techniques was used to obtain relevant information. A total of 50 participants took part in this study, all of whom were subsistence farmers in Ward 19 of Mtubatuba Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal. Furthermore, interviews were conducted with three senior officials from the regional office of the Department of Water Affairs in Durban; three staff members from the Mtubatuba Municipality; two individuals from Ward 19; two senior staff members from the Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural Development in Mtubatuba; as well as two senior staff members from Umkanyakude water services provider in Mtubatuba. The study revealed that water shortages have adversely undermined the development and growth of subsistence farming in this poor community. Furthermore, the difficulties experienced by the marginalised people of Ward 19 are typical of many rural areas which have not fully benefitted from transformation in a post-apartheid South Africa. In order to address the defunct subsistence iii farming in this community, the study proposed a well-tailored and effective water resource management approach with the intention of transforming subsistence farming into commercial farming, thus improving the standard of living and reducing poverty to a reasonable level. Furthermore, in recognition that the area under study is dominated by women, the study emphasised the imperativeness of empowering the women of the community as a strategy underpinning rural development.

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Sinyolo, Sikhulumile. "The impact of smallholder irrigation and water security on household welfare : the case of Tugela Ferry irrigation scheme in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/10021.

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Smallholder irrigation has been promoted across the developing world as a means of poverty reduction and rural development. The potential of smallholder irrigated agriculture in alleviating rural poverty has led the South African government to prioritise and invest in irrigation establishment, rehabilitation and revitalisation. However, the extent to which smallholder irrigation has been able to reduce poverty in the rural areas of South Africa is not well understood. This study, therefore, aimed to contribute to smallholder irrigation literature in two ways. The first objective of this study was to conduct an in-depth impact evaluation of the Tugela Ferry smallholder irrigation scheme on household welfare using the treatment effect and propensity score matching (PSM) methods. Secondly, the study sought to investigate the determinants of household water security, and how the level of water security subsequently affects the farmers’ household welfare. A stratified random sampling technique was used to obtain a sample of 186 irrigators and 70 non-irrigators in the Tugela Ferry area. Descriptive analysis highlighted that although the demographic characteristics of the farmers were not significantly different, the irrigators were characterized by better welfare indicators compared to non-irrigators. The Foster Greer Thorbecke (FGT) poverty indices also indicated that poverty incidence was more pronounced among non-irrigators than among irrigators. The results from the econometric models indicated that irrigation access plays an important role in the welfare of rural households, with irrigators consuming about R2,000 per adult equivalent per year more than the non-irrigators. While irrigation access is important, this study concluded that the poverty reduction effectiveness of smallholder irrigation can further be enhanced by ensuring that the irrigators are water secure. Factors such as age, off-farm income, duration of scheme membership, occurrence of conflicts, method of pumping water, location in the scheme and access to agricultural training influenced household water security. The study recommends that investments in smallholder irrigation should continue for poverty reduction, and that priority should be in ensuring water security not just irrigation participation. The study also recommends the introduction of small motorised pumps among the gravity-reliant irrigators and farmer training on water conservation techniques to improve the farmers’ water security in the smallholder irrigation schemes. Although the study highlighted how perceptions of irrigators could be used to generate the water security index, the water security concept needs further investigation.
Thesis (M.Sc.Agric.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.

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Lee, Richard Brian. "The economic impact of a rural land tax on selected commercial farms in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/5332.

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This study investigates the potential economic impact of a land tax implemented in terms of the Local Government Municipal Property Rates Act No. 6 of 2004 (“the LGMPRA”) on selected commercial farms in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) using individual farm data for the period 2001-2006. The study first presents a brief history of land taxes around the world, describing the origins, prevalence and rates of land tax in the United States of America (USA), Australia, Britain and some Nordic countries. This sets the background for a brief history of land taxation in South Africa up to the implementation of the LGMPRA. The study then identifies the economic effects of a land tax, highlighting issues such as the capitalization of a land tax, relevant views of this tax, valuation methodologies, the advantages and disadvantages of a land tax, and the effects of a land tax on future capital investment on farms. Thirdly, the study presents key provisions in the LGMPRA pertaining to farmers with regard to land tax rebates, reductions and exemptions, farmland valuations and the determination of a land tax rate. The effect and applicability of these rebates, reductions and exemptions on the effective land tax rate are also discussed. Fourthly, the study uses a Residual Income Methodology (RIM) framework to estimate the annual economic profit (return to risk and land excluding capital gains) for five different case study farms in the Mtonjaneni and Umgeni municipal districts of KZN. This RIM framework makes allowance for the opportunity cost of management in estimating annual economic profit. These case studies are typical of the main farming enterprises in KZN such as sugarcane, timber, intensive poultry, intensive dairy, cattle, maize and potatoes. Sensitivity analysis is then applied to assess the effect of land tax rates ranging from 0.5% to 5% of the market value of land and fixed improvements on the five farms’ ability to pay a land tax after accounting for rebates proposed by the Department: Provincial and Local Government (DPLG). The estimated mean annual rate of return to risk and land (excluding capital gains) prior to the land tax for the five case study farms during 2001-2006 ranged from -8.50% to 2.94%, with an average of -1.74%. The case farms’ ability to pay a land tax rate of 1% on the value of improved land with and without proposed DPLG rebates from annual current operating returns ranged from zero to five out of five years, with an average of two out of five years. A 2% land tax rate with such rebates could be financed using annual current operating returns also only in two out of five years on average. These results suggest that land taxes at the proposed rates of 1.5% (Mtonjaneni) or 1% (Umgeni) on these specific farms would markedly reduce the incentive to invest in farm improvements These results also indicate that further research in KZN and other provinces in South Africa needs to be conducted to help ascertain the effects of the implementation of the LGMPRA in other municipalities.
Thesis (M.Agric.Man.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007.

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Sekgetle, Sandra Galeiphiwe. "Land redistribution for agricultural development : an evaluation of stakeholder responses in KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/3821.

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The objective of this study is to research how the slow process of land redistribution in South Africa can be accelerated, given the urgency of land resettlement. A subprogramme of redistribution, Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development (LRAD), was launched by the Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs in A1.}gust 2001. A redistribution project goes through five phases (refer Appendix A for LRAD project cycle). Each phase has different steps, which is an LRAD project cycle. Firstly, the thesis analyses the project cycle - the aim was to establish how long it would take a farmer to obtain ownership of land and how the process can be expedited to settle more farmers. Secondly, it studies the role and views of stakeholders involved in the programme (such as NGOs, financial (nstitutions, design agents and governmental departments). Thirdly, it examines the performance and progress made since the implementation of the programme In KwaZulu-Natal. Lastly, the study focuses on problems and general concerns regarding the policy. Some policy recommendations on the need and performance of land redistribution in South Africa are made. The LRAD project cycle could take at least nine months or more. During this period beneficiaries cannot buy land from auctions, while some landowners are reluctant to go through with this long process, because it may not result in a land sale. Engaging property owners in the process can accelerate land delivery. In addition, government must try to streamline its policies and procedures, so that landowners who wish to sell do not perceive it to be such a serious disadvantage to engage in selling to redistribution applicants. The LRAD programme started slowly in KwaZulu-Natal and by the end of 11 April 2002, the DLA had received only 105 applications for the grant. By May 2003, out of 1 300 applications only 169 had been transferred since LRAD started. According to experience by Ithala Bank, many projects are delayed and sales collapse. Long delays are a major problem, because many projects are approved but few transferred. A recommendation is that commercial banks be given a chance to approve LRAD grants, contingent on loan approval. Extending approval powers to commercial banks has the advantage of identifying creditworthy projects quickly and accurately, as private lenders are putting their own resources at risk. Some of the problems and concerns identified around LRAD are: disposal of state land and unresolved land-claims. The Department of Land Affairs (DLA) needs to integrate the new programme with other programmes of land reform, especially in cases where different communities are competing for the same land, but through different programmes. Another problem is that the programme has missed market opportunities because landowners are reluctant to sell due to delays and uncertainty. The DLA has consistently been under-spending their budget, leading to their budget being cut. Financial assistance to farmers with no own collateral is insufficient. The farmers are not being placed in a financial position to purchase a viable farm and they will experience serious cash flow problems if maximum loans from the Land Bank are accessed. The Department of Agriculture (DoA) has postponed the training programme several times and to date it is not yet implemented. It is highly recommended that the issue of mentorship be addressed, as a matter of urgency.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

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Mac, Nicol Richard. "Sources and management of risk in large-scale sugarcane farming in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa." Thesis, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/4502.

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The South African (SA) sugar industry supports approximately 50,940 small and large scale producers who collectively produce 22 million tons of sugarcane seasonally, on average. SA farmers face many challenges that lead to an uncertain decision making environment. Despite a general consensus among agricultural economists that risk constitutes a prevalent feature of the production and marketing environment, various authors have recently stated that risk-related research has failed to provide a convincing argument that risk matters in farmers' decisions. The various shortcomings of previous research have been identified and recommendations for the future proposed. Recommendations include that the focus of future risk research should be on holistic risk management. This study firstly identified the perceived importance of 14 separate sources of risk for a sample of 76 large-scale commercial sugarcane farmers in KwaZulu-Natal. Once a sufficient understanding of the risk perceptions of respondents had been attained, their use of 12 risk-related management strategies was determined. Principal components analysis (PCA) was used to investigate how individual management instruments are grouped together by respondents into choice brackets in order to make use of complementary and substitution effects. The study then proposed and demonstrated a technique that may be used in future research to isolate the effects of risk on individual risk-related management responses by modelling the management strategies contained within individual choice brackets with two-stage least squares regression analysis (2SLS). The most important risk sources were found to be the threats posed by land reform, minimum wage legislation and the variability of the sugar price, in that order. PCA identified seven risk dimensions, collectively explaining 78% of the variance in all 14 risk sources considered. These dimensions were: the "Crop Gross Income Index", "Macroeconomic and Political Index", "Legislation Index", "Labour and Inputs Index", "Human Capital and Credit Access Index", "Management Index" and the "Water Rights Index". Respondents were also asked questions regarding risk-related management strategies, including diversification of on-farm enterprises, investments and management time. PCA identified six management response brackets, collectively explaining 77% of the variance in the 12 responses considered. These response indexes were: the "Mechanisation and Management Bracket", "Enterprise and Time Diversification Bracket", "Insurance and Credit Reserve Bracket", "Geographic and Investment Diversification Bracket", "Land Trade Bracket" and the "Labour Bracket". Lastly, the study proposed a methodology for investigating the role of individuals' risk preferences in decision making. The recommended technique involves the simultaneous modelling of the major risk-related management strategies within each management response bracket, using 2SLS. A measure of risk preference was included in the 2SLS analysis to establish the influence of risk on decision making. By applying this methodology to the data obtained in this study, respondents were shown to be taking advantage of various complementary and substitution effects that exist between management responses. This was evident from the PCA and confirmed for the first previously identified management response bracket using 2SLS regression analysis. Risk attitude was shown to be a significant determinant of management decisions regarding the extent to which back-up management is kept in reserve. Important policy recommendations stemming from this study include that government review restrictive labour legislation and decrease the uncertainty surrounding new land redistribution legislation. Farmers need to make better use of available information by considering the effects of any single management decision on separate decisions, enabling them to take further advantage of substitution and complementary effects that may exist between management strategies previously considered in separate decision brackets. The fact that mechanisation and labour use occur in separate risk-related management response brackets in this study is an example of one such substitution effect that farmers do not seem to be utilising in terms of their management decision making. Future research using time series data is important in order to identify how risk perceptions and management portfolios change over time. Also, further research using the methodology proposed in this study may prove to be a useful means of more adequately addressing the question "Does risk matter in farmers' decisions?"
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007.

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Essa, John Abdu. "Adoption of hybrid maize seed, fertilizer and machinery technologies by communal farmers in KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/5519.

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This study investigates the characteristics of technology adoption by small-scale farmers, notably the factors influencing the adoption of hybrid maize seed, inorganic fertilizer and machinery technologies. The study also on the basis of socio-economic and institutional factors, identifies the dimensions of small-scale farmers. Data for the study were obtained from a sample survey of 160 households in the Amangwane and Amazizi wards, located in the Okhahlamba magisterial district of KwaZulu-Natal during August 2000. The chief aim of this study is to generate empirical information that can be used to devise programs to encourage small-scale farmers to adopt agricultural technologies. The motivation of the research emanates from the fact that there is limited empirical information as to the actual adoption patterns of agricultural technologies by small-scale farmers. The nature and relative importance of factors associated with technology adoption is time and location specific. The study by using more recent and broader information builds on previous studies in order to complement technology adoption research on small-scale farmers. Understanding what factors influence the adoption of farm technologies and categories or dimensions of small-scale agriculture should provide information on policy options to stimulate technology adoption and improve growth in agricultural productivity. A categorical dependent variable was specified to identify farmers' adoption pattern of hybrid maize seed and fertilizer. Seventy-two farmers were adopters of both hybrid seed and fertilizer, 56 were adopters of either hybrid seed or fertilizer while 32 farmers were non-adopters. The results of binary logistic regression analysis indicate the adoption of hybrid maize seed and fertilizer is positively associated with, in order of importance, larger farms, older household heads, more value of livestock and better access to information sources. An index that indicates farmers' status of adoption of machinery technologies was constructed using a principal component analysis technique. The analysis showed that the adoption of machinery technologies can be represented by the single index which could be used as a dependent variable. A principal component regression analysis was subsequently used to determine factors contributing to the adoption of the machinery technology index. The results indicate that adoption was higher for (1) older and male headed households in general and residents of the Amangwane ward in particular; (2) operators of more arable land, owners of more livestock and earners of more non-farm income; and (3) households with large family labour, and households that made use of extension services and information sources. These results are consistent with hypothesised relationship between technology adoption and the predictors and are supported by previous empirical findings. Priority should be given to policies that alleviate the tenure insecurity problem on arable land and this in turn promotes a land rental market. This would involve an institutional change and legal infrastructural support services. Arable land holding is highly skewed within the communal setting and the state needs to address this equity issue on arable land through redistribution or reform policies. The state needs also to invest in public goods that alleviate the problems of private investors for example by encouraging credit providers or promoting rural financial markets to alleviate liquidity constraints and enhance adoption. Investment in farmer training and education should therefore, be seen as priority if higher adoption rates and an improvement in income are to be achieved. Inadequate and poor extension and information services imply an urgent need for the formation of community and farming associations and for the provision of extension services to groups of farmers. Investment in these areas may reduce the cost of technology transfer programmes. The results of a principal component analysis to identify the dimensions of small-scale farmers in communal areas of KwaZulu indicate that farmers fall into distinct categories. Component 1 is an emerging commercial and a more mechanised household while component 2 is a land-less farm household that is more educated and earns more non-farm income largely from contractor services. Component 3 is a non-farm female headed household that depends on income from land renting and non-farm jobs. Component 4 is a small intensive garden farmer, headed by a relatively educated female who has access to institutional services. Component 5 is relatively less educated, a female-headed and land-poor household that rents land and produces intensively. It is concluded that a single policy measure cannot do justice to the needs of all of the farmers since it would affect different households differently. An integrated and a comprehensive programme is needed that would promote agriculture; facilitate income transfer or safety nets to alleviate poverty and the relief of short-term stress; address the problems of tenure insecurity; overcome the gender inequalities in accessing resources; and restructure institutional supports by providing rural finance, and an extension and legal infrastructure.
Thesis (M.Sc.Agric.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2001.

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Nganwa, Peace. "An institutional analysis of South Africa's new cooperative act : evidence from selected case studies in KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/5306.

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Cooperatives are a means through which farmers may gain economic power by reducing unit transaction costs associated with production, marketing and distribution of products. In South Africa, cooperatives are promoted as a means of advancing economic development in rural areas through empowerment, development of income generating activities, improvement of human resource capacity, and increased savings and investment. The new Cooperatives Act 14 of 2005 was enacted in August 2005 to promote the role of cooperatives as organisations for pro-poor development in South Africa and to increase their chance of survival in the economy. This study uses a New Institutional Economics (NIE) framework to analyse the Cooperatives Act and its worth as a vehicle for promoting pro-poor development. A hypothetical cooperative, predicated by the new Act, was analysed using the NIE to identify institutional problems likely to constrain the collective efforts of small producers. A case study approach was then used to analyse three production cooperatives in KwaZulu-Natal that were registered post August 2005 and still operational in 2008. Interviews were conducted with individual members, directors and project managers (where applicable) between May and July 2008. Open-ended questions provided the flexibility needed to explore the institutional roots of problems identified by respondents. Free-rider, horizon, portfolio, control and influence problems were identified in the case studies. These problems, which stem from ill-defined voting and benefit rights, resulted in low equity investment, low investment in long term assets, a preference for current cash flows rather than future investment, and social conflict – all of which constrained the competitiveness and growth prospects of the cooperatives studied. In an attempt to mitigate these problems, two of the cooperatives shed their poorest members, a solution which is not consistent with the objective of pro-poor economic development. Additionally, two cooperatives opted to create their own rules to reward investors with capital gains - an institutional arrangement that is not permitted by the new Act. It is concluded that the new Act should be amended to give cooperatives greater flexibility in their institutional arrangements. In particular, cooperatives should be allowed to issue tradable equity shares that offer benefits proportional to shareholding. If these tradable equity shares carry voting rights and are offered to non-patron investors, aggregate voting rights conferred on these non-patron investors should be capped to prevent loss of control by patron members. It is further recommended that the same level of start-up support should be made available to all producer groups that formally register their business, regardless of the business model chosen, and that member empowerment should be an essential requirement for registration and public funding. Keywords: Agricultural Cooperatives, Cooperatives Act, New Institutional Economics, Case Study
Thesis (M.Sc.Agric.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

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32

Bailey, Daniel. "Land reform in South Africa : a qualitative analysis of the land redistribution for agricultural development programme using experiences from a case study in KwaZulu-Natal." 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/3330.

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Land reform in South Africa has not been very successful. The process of land delivery has been slow and livelihoods in South Africa are becoming increasingly vulnerable as land reform fails to meet its objectives. Since 1994, millions have been made homeless due to farm evictions that have counteracted the positive impact of land reform. Intensive debate has been initiated about the approach to land reform; however, current programme-specific information has been unreliable in providing insight into the impact of land reform projects that have been implemented. This thesis exammes the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development (LRAD) programme, to determine how it can be enhanced to improve the lives of the programme's intended beneficiaries. Monitoring and evaluation is examined as a tool for improving programmes. This research also explores some of the shortcomings of the current monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for land reform. It is proposed that the LRAD programme should have a comprehensive ME promulgation of appropriate new land reform policy. An LRAD project at Loteni in rural KwaZulu-Natal is used as a case study and exposes some of the contextual challenges for LRAD policy. The qualitative analysis given provides insight into some of the problems of implementing the programme and reveals challenges for extension support. As a result of this critique, some recommendations are provided for improving the performance of LRAD. Key among the recommendations made to enhance LRAD is a set of measurable indicators for each of the stated objectives of the LRAD programme. Adopting such indicators will enable the programme to contribute to the improvement ofthe lives and livelihoods of the intended beneficiaries ofLRAD.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007.

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33

Ruddle, Lynne Michelle. "Ecological characterisation and effects of fire and grazing on Cyrtanthus nutans (R.A.Dyer) in North-Western Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa." Diss., 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/24856.

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Cyrtanthus nutans (RA Dyer) is a KwaZulu-Natal Province near-endemic species, classified as vulnerable in South Africa (IUCN Red Data categories). Literature references suggest that no recent ecological research has been conducted on Cyrtanthus nutans. Last assessed in 2007, the current study determined the demographics and the abiotic and biotic factors that influenced the distribution and range of Cyrtanthus nutans. Key determinants influencing the autecology, distribution and population dynamics of Cyrtanthus nutans were investigated. Anthropological factors influencing the decline of populations were addressed. Two investigations were undertaken for the current study on Cyrtanthus nutans in Dundee in North-western KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa namely a survey to determine the population dynamics and autecology of the species and the effect key determinants have on the recruitment and survival. Sites of occurrence and the ecological and anthropological factors that influence the existence of plants were documented. Experimental plots were conducted to determine the influence of climatological factors, fire and defoliation on the emergence and survival of Cyrtanthus nutans plants. A preference was found for soils with high nitrogen and organic carbon, low phosphorus and acidity levels situated on slopes of < 10% on mid to lower terrain slopes within an altitude range of between 1 100 and 1 300 m (a.m.s.l.) in the Sour Sandveld and Moist Tall Grassveld Bioresource Groups. The influence that climatological factors, fire and defoliation had on the emergence and seed recruitment of Cyrtanthus nutans were determined through a small plot experiment in the Dundee area. Mean relative humidity (%) and mean rainfall two weeks before emergence in conjunction with treatments were highly significant (P<0.001). Burning treatments B (fire inclusion and defoliation inclusion) and BC (fire inclusion and defoliation exclusion) were more highly significant on the emergence of Cyrtanthus nutans plants than any other treatments. ii | P a g e Increasing fragmentation of thriving populations of Cyrtanthus nutans populations is occurring through landuse change, mismanagement of veld and non-compliance of legislation. Continued monitoring and awareness is essential in the survival of this species.
Environmental Sciences
M. Sc. (Environmental Sciences)

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34

Mashatola, Mopai Clement. "Economic and institutional factors affecting the performance of the graduated mortgage loan repayment scheme used by medium-scale sugarcane farmers in KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/5506.

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Private sector sugar millers and Ithala Development Finance Corporation (Ithala) implemented a graduated mortgage loan repayment scheme in the 1995/96 sugarcane production-season to try and improve access to farmland by aspirant commercial farmers in KwaZulu-Natal. By March 2001, the scheme had financed 106 "medium scale farmers" (MSFs), 99 of whom were still in the scheme (one loan had been repaid from own funds, and another six from the proceeds of life insurance policies). The first aim of this study was to analyse factors affecting whether or not the MSFs were current or in arrears on loan repayments as at 31 March 2001. A logit model based on full information for 83 MSFs shows that the estimated probability of a MSF being current on loan repayments was higher for clients with higher levels of average annual gross turnover relative to loan size, and for clients with access to substantive off-farm income. This suggests that farm size (proxied by annual farm gross turnover) does matter when policymakers in South Africa consider future similar schemes designed to improve access to commercial farmland by people that previously could not buy farmland. Smaller-sized, creditworthy farms with loan sizes that are relatively low compared to the expected average annual gross income may also be viable. Access to off-farm income could also be considered as a criterion in selecting potential farmers for future similar schemes, as it helps to provide additional liquidity to fund future operations and debt repayments, and can reduce leverage levels. The second aim was to conduct personal interviews with the 99 MSFs between July and September 2001 in order to identify what aspects of the scheme could be improved for new members . Responses from 88 of these MSFs show that 68% of them would opt to first rent land before purchasing, while 78% of them recognize, or have experienced, the cash flow problem associated with land purchase. Most of the MSFs felt that long-term sugarcane supply agreements constrain enterprise diversification, and that the quality of mentorship that they currently received was not satisfactory. Industry players could consider leveraging donor funding for empowerment projects to improve the quality of future mentorship programmes. There is also some scope for Ithala to improve the client-lender relationship by better clarifying the structure of the graduated repayments, sending loan statements on time, and helping clients to interpret loan statements. Growers perceive the need for a coordinator to monitor, and advise on how to improve, their financial performance this could be a new commercial service opportunity. Using an independent valuer to conduct farm valuations may also be necessary to avoid perceptions of bias in the value of farms offered for sale by the millers. A logit model of the MSFs' preferences for first renting land before purchase shows that new growers joining this scheme, or similar schemes for other farm products, with relatively less liquidity and less farming experience should be given the choice to rent land with an option to purchase. The preference for first renting by most of the surveyed MSFs could indicate that many very highly leveraged MSFs still experience cash flow stress despite the interest rate subsidy. A second policy implication, therefore, is that the current subsidy level, which reduces the effective starting interest rate level to about ten per cent relative to a typical five per cent current return on land, could be increased to promote access to farmland markets. Alternatively, loan terms in the next round of the scheme could be changed to require higher proportions of own equity (lower leverage levels), or to permit the deferral of principal payments, or to permit the purchase of smaller farms by creditworthy, part-time farmers. Another strategy to improve liquidity is to advise growers to limit family drawings in the early years after farmland purchase.
Thesis (M.Sc.Agric.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.

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Msomi, Emelda Thoko. "The potential impact of the Cara legislation (for guava as an invader species) on selected disadvantaged communities in KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/5357.

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The aim of the study was to find benefits derived from the natural propagation and the use of guava plants and fruit by people living in rural areas of KwaZulu-Natal, looking at guava as a source of food, income, medicinal uses, shade, a source of fuel and use for agricultural purposes like fencing; and also assessing Conservation of the Agricultural Resource Act (CARA), Act 43 of 1983 relating to guava plant as invasive species. The Act states that all alien invader species and weeds should be controlled or removed depending on the category. CARA states that plants in category one are declared as alien invasive plants and are not allowed to grow on the land or appear on the water surface. Plants under this category may not be transported or allowed to disperse e.g. Psidium x durbanensis (Durban guava). Category two plants are invader species that have a potential value, plants that are used by the people as a source of income and food. These species can be retained if they grow in special areas demarcated for the purpose (an orchard). If these species are found outside demarcated areas they are to be removed e.g. Psidium guava (guava). Category three species are mostly plants with ornamental value which are not allowed to occur anywhere unless they were already in existence when the regulation came into effect e.g. Psidium guineense (brazillian guava) and Psidium cattleianum (strawberry guava). The study focused on selected areas of KwaZulu-Natal,: Umgungundlovu district municipality (Richmond local municipality) and Uthungulu district municipality. Richmond represented the midlands areas and Uthungulu the coastal areas to reflect two different areas of KwaZulu-Natal. To investigate this study the researcher used telephonic interviews with 23 Extension officials, questionnaires to guide focus group discussions which were conducted with 28 community groups that were involved in guava usage. Informal observation surveys were also carried out with five markets (stall holders) selling guava and guava products. Informal observations in two supermarkets and two home industries were also conducted. The results showed that people in rural areas still use this resource (guava) as a source of fuel (wood), medicine (especially the leaves and bark), fruit for own consumption (either processed or raw) and income generation. The impact of the legislation on rural poor communities is negative as guavas sustain livelihoods and the costs of applying for permits are prohibitive. People are illiterate yet they have to apply for special permits to plant this useful species because the regulation stipulates that guava plants must be controlled if dispersed outside demarcated areas.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2008.

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Namoobe, Belvin. "Enhancing competitiveness of wine through empowerment labels : a case study of wine prices and consumer preferences at two wine retail outlets in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands." Thesis, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/8529.

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South Africa’s history of the disempowerment of black people (Africans, Coloureds, Indians, and Chinese), presented the post apartheid government after 1994 with problems of policy formulation around empowerment of the previously disadvantaged groups (PDGs). In the wine industry, one possible way of addressing inequality in the access to economic resources and racially skewed land redistribution is through empowerment labelling of wine. Empowerment labelling of wine may promote competitiveness of wine businesses owned by the PDGs. This will help to address inequality problems in the sector. Skinner (2007) demonstrated that empowerment labelling can benefit South African wine firms in international wine markets because empowerment and Fairtrade labelled wines benefit from import preference in most European Union (EU) countries. This study investigates one possible way in which empowerment labelling may benefit wine firms on the domestic markets for wine. Several wine brands with empowerment attributes are currently traded in domestic wine retail markets in South Africa. Very few of these wine brands are broad-based black economic empowerment (BBEE) brands. If South African wine consumers value black economic empowerment in the wine industry, empowerment attribute labelling may be used to identify empowerment products, and thereby promote the competitiveness of Black Economic Empowered wine businesses. This study sets out to quantify South African wine consumers’ willingness to pay (if any) for empowerment labelled wines. Data for the study were collected in 2007 and 2008. Two methods were used for this purpose using two case studies in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands. The first method used a revealed preference technique to determine whether a price premium exists on the current wine prices or not. Using the hedonic price analysis technique, linear and log-linear hedonic price functions for wine for two wine retail outlets in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands were used to estimate the price premium paid for empowerment attributes in this domestic wine retail market. Explanatory variables which were found to influence wine prices were Platter’s Wine Guide quality rating, Reputation of the winery, and BBEE. Tests on the statistical fit of the models using the Park Test and residual scatter plots indicated that the log-linear model had better data fit. These two models could not be compared using the more traditional R squared and F-statistics as they had different dependent variables. The second method used a stated preference technique to estimate wine consumers’ willingness to pay for empowerment attributes of wine in the Kwazulu-Natal Midlands. Personal interview surveys of consumers at a wine cellar were conducted. The monetary value of these consumers’ willingness to pay was quantified using conjoint analysis and the conditional logistic model. Although the revealed preference techniques for consumer willingness to pay for empowerment labels showed that a negative price premium exists for these wine attributes, the stated preference technique revealed a positive willingness to pay for empowerment attributes. The monetary values could not provide the actual willingness to pay as they tended to be close to the hypothetical price of wine used in the questionnaire. This might be attributable to the prices used in the questionnaire not capturing the average actual wine prices for this specific wine retail outlet. Therefore, the monetary values were used as indicators of the ordering of attribute importance by the consumers. The results also indicated that an information gap between consumers and producers may exist. This implies that, provided that consumers are made aware of these attributes, there may be potential for wine producers to earn a price premium on empowerment attributes. Further research is required to determine whether South African wine consumers (a) value empowerment attributes (using stated preference techniques), and (b) are aware of wine brands that have empowerment attributes. The results of this study would aid government in formulating policies that promote the competitiveness of empowerment attributes such as giving machinery or inputs procurement rebates to wineries that are broad-based empowerment compliant, and in so doing, improve the economic position of previously disadvantaged groups.
Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

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37

Chatikobo, Stanslous. "A critical policy analysis of the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development Programme in KwaZulu-Natal : a case study of the Sibonginhlanhla Communal Project." Thesis, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/4650.

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This research project examines the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development Programme (LRAD) in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in terms of a public policy framework, which includes policy implementation. In analyzing the nature of the LRAD Programme the project investigates the issues of governance, development, the policy agendas, policy actors and policy subsystems in South Africa (the executive; the legislature; the appointed officials; research organizations; the labour; civic organizations; the mass media; and the electorate). The relationship between the national government and provincial government has also been discussed. The reasons for adopting the land reform policy have also been examined which include the need to address the past legacies of apartheid; to demonstrate democracy and good governance as a way of upholding the human rights principles; to develop the previously disadvantaged poor communities through acquisition of land as property; to address the unemployment problem. through agricultural development; and to broaden the base of agricultural industry in South Africa. The project further investigates the history of land in South Africa. The author has given an analysis of the new Government's LRAD policy; the systems of land acquisition in South Africa; the beneficiaries and their contribution; and the problems encountered in the implementation of the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development Programme. In understanding the progress of the LRAD Programme an area of Moshesh in Loteni (in KwaZulu-Natal) which has a Communal Association Project known as Sibonginhlanhla Communal Project has been studied. Issues such as the objectives, the financing, the nature, the management of the project, and the project evaluation and monitoring systems have been considered. The project critically analyzes the LRAD Programme in KwaZulu-Natal where some issues of good governance and development have been looked at including elements of good governance in South Africa, such as being a responsive government, coordination and network, transparency, efficiency and accountability, the exercise of discretion, and the challenge of policy implementation. The writer has also looked at elements of development in South Africa, namely, women empowerment, youth participation, the collaboration of national and provincial government. Finally, the project proposes areas of further research. These are: effective and efficient implementation of the LRAD Programme to ensure that more people are engaged in agricultural development; transparency in the allocation of land to project participants to ensure that the programme benefits more people; and training programmes in various areas of need should be established for the benefit of upcoming farmers. The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Department of Agriculture and Land Affairs should coordinate and implement the training programmes before the projects start. There is need to encourage cooperation between government and some NGOs that are involved in land reform and farmer support programmes, especially in the area of training, to drive and to give priority to the youth in agricultural development programmes, and to empower women. Finally, there is a need for capacity development through institutional reforms, human resource development and organization strengthening.
Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

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38

Kuhn, Manfred Edmund. "Improving access of low-income people to formal financial services : evidence from four microfinance organisations in KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/5502.

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The first aim of this research was to examine the current financial technologies, outreach and fmancial viability over time (from 1997 to 2002) of four MFOs providing agricultural, microbusiness and consumption credit in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa (SA). Understanding the limitations and advantages of these financial technologies could facilitate institutional reform to improve access by low-income people to viable formal financial services in KZN. The second aim of this study was to estimate factors that affect the credit rationing decision and applicant loan default at the MFO providing consumption credit (MFOI), and the factors affecting default on medium-term agribusiness loans provided by MF02 which was one of the agricultural MFOs. These analyses were intended to help to improve client selection procedures and to reduce loan default rates at these MFOs. Study results show that institutions that finance specifically agricultural activities could improve the quality of their services by providing better access to branches and reducing loan approval times through improved screening and administrative procedures. Making financial services (consumption and production loans) available to both non-agricultural and agricultural sectors would also help to reduce portfolio risks resulting from the covariant incomes of small farmers. Savings mobilisation should also be considered, although institutions need to develop appropriate capacity to handle savings before mobilising deposits. The study shows too that the rural poor in SA have the capacity to save (for example, the average number of active savings accounts held by individuals at MF02 rose to 474 052 in 2002). Study results also suggest that the provision of both savings and loan services helps an institution to reduce borrower transaction costs in accessing financial services and means that savings can serve as a form of collateral and borrower information for lenders. Lenders need to charge interest rates that reflect the true cost of lending in order to cover costs, given that small loans to the rural poor in SA are risky and costly to administer. Charging a suitable interest rate, however, is not a sufficient condition for achieving financial self-sustainability. Reducing high arrears through stricter loan contract enforcement will also promote the financial self-sustainability of MFOs in SA. Moveable assets, such as vehicles and equipment, were not effective sources of collateral due to the high costs of attaching these assets in rural parts of KZN. Cessions on sugarcane crops were often constrained by flaws in collection mechanisms, where borrowers could deliver sugarcane to sugar mills on non-borrower quota numbers. Secure and transferable property rights were important preconditions if land was to have value as collateral. Collateral substitutes such as joint liability mechanisms were less effective when lending to large farmer groups (30 - 60 members) compared with small groups (4 - 6 individuals) of micro-entrepreneurs operating in urban areas in SA. Costly legal action to recover debts further undermined borrower accountability for loan repayment and thus did not discourage morally hazardous activities. Reputational capital was an integral part of the financial technology successfully used by MFO1, and could be more effectively developed by agricultural lenders in SA if they strictly enforce the policy of denying borrowers access to future funds if they default on previous loans. Based on data over the period 1998 to 1999, less contactable borrowers that were employed in sectors with a high likelihood of retrenchments, with higher debt-to-income ratios and with more defaults and payment profile arrears, were more likely to be credit-rationed by MFO1 staff. Applicant contactability was another key part of MF01's monitoring intensive financial technology, but constrains MFO1 from broadening its financial services to small businesses if these are not easily contactable. Credit bureau information on previous loan default was critical in this microfinance market where it is difficult to obtain formal collateral. The policy implication is that lenders need to share default information and credit bureaus need to correctly capture this information. Borrowers with higher debt commitments, previous loan defaults, who were less contactable and who worked in sectors where employment was less secure, were more likely to default at MFO1. Low-income borrowers had lower levels of liquidity that reduced their ability to repay debt. The influence of contactability in loan repayment highlights the trade-off between monitoring-intensive and collateral-intensive technologies. Although MFO1 used reputational capital as a collateral substitute, the imperfect nature of this collateral type necessitated intensive client monitoring. Lender MFO1 also needed a well-diversified portfolio across employment sectors to reduce the impact of systemic income risks. The impact of previous credit history on loan repayment suggests again that this information can be an effective collateral substitute if information is shared between lenders, and the rule of not granting credit to defaulters is strictly enforced. Based on data over the period 1993 to 1994, borrowers with smaller loans (lower asset bases and smaller businesses), lower own equity contributions, engaged in contract ploughing and cartage or broiler production ventures, with lower liquidity and with no previous borrowing experience, were more likely to default of MF02's medium-term agricultural loans. Larger borrowers had well-diversified asset bases that enabled them to better withstand negative income shocks and reduced the need to divert funds for loan repayment to current consumption. Improved liquidity generated from other sources of income (such as wage remittances and other business ventures) also improved loan repayment ability. Lenders thus need to focus on all sources of income, not just on the income generated by the investment project for which finance is provided, in assessing client repayment capacity. Ploughing contractors probably need closer monitoring to ensure that equipment is properly maintained and that sufficient income can be generated from the business to repay loans. These contractors could also be encouraged to diversify into contract transport activities that provide more regular income. Given the increased competition and periodic outbreak of disease in the chicken industry when the study was conducted, borrowers should be encouraged to diversify to reduce price risk. Increasing the owner's equity stake in the investment, while a second-best option, may be a suitable alternative where collateral is ineffective in enforcing loan contracts. Borrowers that had an established record with the lender tended to repay their loans, again highlighting the importance of reputation in a borrower-lender relationship.
Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.

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Masuku, Bongiwe Thabile. "The potential of integrating structured experiential learning into the curriculum as a means of improving the agricultural extenstion curriculum : a comparative study of two programs in KwaZulu-Natal." Thesis, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/1255.

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The training of agricultural extension graduates is an important contributor to agricultural
The training of agricultural extension graduates is an important contributor to agricultural development in both developed and developing countries. Extension workers help small holder farmers uplift their food production. In most African countries, the curriculum of agricultural extension institutions has been adopted from other countries. This causes higher education institutions to produce graduates with inadequate skills to meet the needs of African countries. With the transformation in South Africa, and the resultant unification of the extension system, the curriculum needs to be reviewed to meet the current needs of the employers. This research explores the potential of including structured experiential learning into the curriculum with the aim of bridging the gap that exists within the extension training systems in South Africa. The alumni from two institutions, one with an unstructured experiential learning programme and the other with a structured experiential learning programme were interviewed to find out the skills that they feel are needed and whether those skills can be effectively taught during the academic training of students. A convenience sampling method was used. The employer’s perceptions regarding the skills for effective extension work were also solicited. Both the alumni and the employers indicated that well planned and supervised experiential learning would help students acquire practical agriculture skills, and also orientate them to the new work environment. The educators indicated that the curriculum structure at times impedes the effective implementation of an experiential learning programme due to semester system and demands from other courses The research revealed that for effective experiential learning, it is important that universities work with communities in development programmes and to forge links with the industry. Although service providers may be willing to offer experiential learning to students, they are also limited in terms of resources. They cannot always accommodate students from tertiary institutions as there are number of them requiring experiential learning opportunities.
Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

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Sibiya, Thandiwe. "An investigation to assess whether or not the employers of domestic workers do comply with the minimum conditions of employment as laid down in: Sectoral determination 7: Domestic worker sector." Thesis, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/2158.

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This research set out to ascertain whether the employers of domestic workers within the Msunduzi Area do comply with the requirements of Sectoral Determination 7: Domestic Worker Sector. For domestic workers who were exploited during the apartheid era, this determination was perceived as a mechanism that would liberate them (Department of Labour, 2005, p.7). Trade unions use collective bargaining as a tool to fight for employee rights. Domestic workers are unionised, but their trade unions are not as powerful as their counterparts in the private sector (Department of Labour, 2005, p.7). According to Huber (2001, p.20), one of the reasons domestic workers were excluded from most labour laws was the belief that it would be difficult to check whether or not each individual employer complied with the laws. This problem still exists and needs to be solved. Government laws were meant to protect vulnerable workers from exploitation (mainly farm and domestic workers), but what is actually happening is that, rather than protecting employees from exploitation, they serve as corrective action. They are only implemented when there is a case between an employee and the employer. The government has a responsibility to protect vulnerable employees such as domestic and farm workers. The mechanism instituted by the government to protect domestic workers was through the promulgation of Sectoral Determination 7: Domestic Service Sector, which lays down minimum working conditions for domestic workers (Department of Labour, 2005, p.9). The main aim was to alleviate exploitation of domestic workers by the employers due to the power imbalance between these two parties (Department of Labour, 2005, p.9). This study compares what the employer offers to an employee in terms of wages, working hours, meal intervals and leave. From the observation of the research, little research has been done on the compliance or non-compliance with Sectoral Determination 7: Domestic Service Sector, within the Msunduzi Region. The outcome of the findings from this research were that the minimum salary for those employees who work more than five days are R727,60 instead of R861,90 and for those domestic workers who work for five days a week it is an average of R528,93 instead of R567, 79. The results indicated that many of the standards set down by the government are clearly not being met by the employers of domestic workers, for example minimum wages are not being paid and maximum hours are being exceeded. The determination stipulated that the maximum hours that should be worked a week is 45 hours and a maximum of nine hours per day; this was not in line with the standards, seeing that the average amount of time worked per week by respondents was 46.9 hours and 9.3 hours per day. As far as meals are concerned Sectoral Determination 7: Domestic Worker Sector, indicated that the standard should be an hour meal interval for every five hours worked. Respondents from this study disagreed that they were given an hour-long lunch time and reflected that the average time taken for meals was only 30 minutes. Finally, domestic workers need to have annual leave of 21 consecutive days (Department of Labour, 2005, p.9). This standard was not being met, as the average number of days being given for annual leave is 16.5 days. Maternity leave should be given as four consecutive months for domestic workers. It was found that 89,3% of domestic workers were given maternity leave of less than the stipulated four consecutive months. Domestic workers should be given five days' leave for family responsibility (Department of Labour, 2005, p.9). The respondents indicated that this was not adhered to, as the average number of days being given to the domestic workers for family responsibility was 1.4 days. Only 13,8% of domestic workers were granted five days' family responsibility leave and approximately 67,6% received less than five days for family responsibility leave. The study recommended that there should be some kind of government policy of doing consistent spot checks in different areas in the Msunduzi Area and possibly the rest of the country. This will require the Department of Labour to increase its manpower. More labour inspectors will be needed to ensure that this whole area is sufficiently monitored. The study revealed that union officials need to devise means and ways of coming into contact with domestic workers. Employers were expected to have a copy of Sectoral Determination 7: Domestic Service Sector available, within easy access of domestic workers.
Thesis (M.B.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2006.

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Yeni, Sithandiwe. "Ideologies and discourses underpinning paradigms of small-scale farmer development: a critical analysis of state and non-governmental extension support programmes in uPhongolo, KwaZulu-Natal." 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/11394/3803.

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Magister Scientiae - MSc
As a means to reduce poverty particularly in rural areas, the South African government has placed great emphasis on the development of small-scale farmers into becoming commercial farmers. Central to this effort is the provision of agricultural extension support, as reflected in the 1995 White Paper on Agriculture (DOA, 1995), African National Congress (ANC) policy resolutions of 2007 (ANC, 2007) and a 2011 extension recovery plan (DAFF, 2011). Parallel to this policy process, a growing role of nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) in supporting small-scale farmers, and criticising the governmental approach is observed. Biowatch is one example of this kind of NGO that, aside from its direct support to farmers, advocates for an alternative approach that embraces ‘subsistence’ farming. The academic literature suggests that existing agricultural policies are too generic and therefore fail to accommodate the different types of small-scale farmers that are found in rural areas, resulting in poor policy impact. This thesis seeks to establish the ideological thinking underpinning two paradigms of small-scale farmer development in South Africa and explores what they look like in practice, while analysing how they produce and reproduce class differentiation, and the emergence of various livelihood trajectories. Through qualitative research conducted in one case study site (the village Emagengeni in Northern KwaZulu- Natal) the views of farmers (beneficiaries of extension support as well as non-receivers) have been elicited and so contribute to a clear picture of what is happening there. In addition, experiences and perceptions of government extension officers, provincial officials and a Biowatch official are taken into account. Theoretically, the study is framed using Cousins’ (2011) class analytical perspectives on smallscale farming in South Africa which distinguish between three types of ‘petty commodity producers’, i.e. (i) petty commodity producers that produce to meet most of their social reproduction needs, (ii) petty commodity producers producing to partially meet their social reproduction needs and (iii) petty commodity producers producing enough to sell and make profit and start to accumulate capital. In addition, the categories described by Dorward et al (2009) in the ‘stepping up’, ‘hanging in’ ‘stepping out’ and ‘dropping out’ theory, are used to analyse the broad types of strategies pursued by poor people. The sustainable livelihoods framework is used to classify the various types of farming households observed. The main argument is that since 1994 the nature of public agricultural support has not met the needs of the majority of farmers in the country, i.e. poorly resourced farmers mostly located in the former homelands. This is because it is trying to make them into something they are not, i.e. commercial farmers and is focused on on-farm productivity and does not address wider market conditions. Although Biowatch demonstrates a more effective response to farmers’ needs, it is limited in its approach to agrarian transformation. The conclusion is that government’s fixation on the commercialisation of small-scale farmers perpetuates the existing and already problematic dualism within the agricultural sector.

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Kubheka, Sipho. "The state of spatial information for land reform in South Africa : a case study of the Amantungwa Land Reform project." Thesis, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/1020.

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Many authors and practitioners involved in rural or local development agree that co-operation and the integration of efforts by the delivery agents is crucial for sustainable development programmes. The delivery of Land Reform as initiated by the new government in South Africa (SA) is one programme that has been faced by a number of challenges including the slow pace of delivery, lack of support and co-operation from the key stakeholders, negligible impact on the improvement in the lives of its beneficiaries and many others. Many Land Reform participants including the government argue that among the challenges facing this programme is a lack of co-operation between the key stakeholders including the different spheres of government involved or impacted upon by the delivery of the Land Reform programme. The Department of Land Affairs (DLA) which is responsible for Land Reform delivery is facing challenges in integrating Land Reform with the rural or local level development which is facilitated by the local and district municipalities through the Integrated Development Planning (IDP) process. This thesis seeks to look at how the Land Reform planning process and the internal spatial data systems within the DLA can be used to integrate Land Reform delivery with the municipal IDP processes to attain integrated rural development. There is a growing realization of the fact that the development of an integrated spatial data is critical for sustainable development in SA. A number of initiatives have been embarked upon by various organizations to establish the spatial data infrastructure. However these efforts have been reported to be often fragmented and isolated in the areas of operation and focus. Thus, the challenge is to develop a strategy to develop an integrated spatial data infrastructure that would be used to support sustainable development programmes such as the Land Reform programme. This thesis therefore proposes to look at the various data sources particularly within the DLA and from other organs of state involved in Land Reform and local development with a view to highlight the limitation and shortcomings that can be addressed in integrated spatial data infrastructure. To assess the current status of the spatial data sources and usage for Land Reform implementation, an analysis of the spatial data sources within the DLA was conducted to determine its suitability for the development of an integrated spatial data infrastructure. Different sections of the DLA responsible for acquiring and providing spatial data were assessed to ascertain whether their data can be shared, transferred or integrated to support the Land Reform implementation. An integrated spatial data infrastructure is then proposed as a solution to forge co-operation and collaboration among all users involved in Land Reform implementation.
Thesis (M.Sc.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2006.

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