Academic literature on the topic 'Informal sector (Economics) – Limpopo – Polokwane'

Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2006
The study entitled The Role of Women’s Economic Contribution in the informal sector of the economy: A case study of women in Mankweng area in the Limpopo Province focuses on the participation of educated women in the Informal Sector of the economy. The participation of women in the economic development has been found to benefit a lot of families headed by women, Black women in particular. In Mankweng, the study found evidence of increased number of women’s participation in the economic development. This mini-thesis is comprised of four chapters. Chapter 1 This chapter is mainly introduction to the study. The chapter includes the problem statement, motivation for the study, aims and objectives and the importance of the study. The chapter also outlines the methodology of the study, the definition of key concepts used in the study and the limitations of the study. Chapter 2 Chapter 2 comprises the literature background for the study. The literature focuses largely on women in the informal sector, their employment opportunities, marginalization in economic activities and constraints on growth that are faced by women in small business enterprises. The literature also reflects on the challenges and limited achievements of women in their respective trading occupations. Chapter 2 looks at the state of women in the economy. The labour market segment theory attempts to explain gender inequalities in employment on the basis that the labour market is compartmentalized. The chapter also looks at the definition of the informal sector. The division of labour and the informal sector focuses on the areas women concentrate in the labour market. Positioning women in the informal sector and the labour market focuses on the role women play in the informal sector. The last part of the chapter deals with the challenges women are faced with and the opportunities available for them in the informal sector. Chapter 3 Chapter 3 focuses on data analysis and interpretation of the findings of the study. The analysis focuses on the respondents’ personal background and their economic activities as recorded during interviews. Chapter 4 Chapter 4 concludes the study by discussing and presenting a summary of the findings of the study and the implications thereof. A conclusive report is made and recommendations for improving the informal sector and for further research are made.

A county's level of development is measured by poverty, unemployment and inequality. Strategies and development plans must address these three elements. The informal sector is an important part of the economy, contributing to the social and economic development of countries. Despite its importance, the management of the informal sector has not taken central place in most countries, probably because there is still the subconscious belief that the sector will disappear if sufficient levels of growth are reached. The sector is still being viewed as temporary and transitional. Research has however shown that the sector is permanent, and that there are those who enter the sector by choice (voluntary informal employment) and those who participate in the sector involuntarily. Despite the reason for participation, the sector should be taken seriously as it continues to grow and is permanent. As a result of the permanent nature of the informal sector, debates have moved from focusing only on informal enterprises to include the workers themselves, thereby giving birth to the notion of informal economy. The most visible activity in the informal economy is street trading. Street trading is a source of livelihood for the majority of the urban poor, but if not properly managed, can be problematic. Actually, street trading is associated with various urban management problems such as crime, grime, dirtiness, and many other issues, in some instance badly affecting the ability of the formal sector to grow. Due to its direct effect on the formal economy and communities, as street traders use public space, the study focuses on the management of street vendors. The study argues that while it is true that street vendors are a contributing factor to most urban management challenges in urban areas, the main cause is lack of proper systems and processes designed to manage the sector. The study argues further that the problems associated with street vendors are a symptom of systematic problems in public institutions, especially municipalities that are mandated by the Constitution to manage street trading. It maintains that the majority of the problems associated with informal trading can be addressed by adopting relevant policies that would guide and delimit the actions and behaviours of both the public officials and the traders. Such policies should, however, not equate management to regulation as has been the case. The policies should instead be developmental in nature, thereby recognising and acknowledging that street trading is an important component of the economy. This is not an easy task. The most fundamental challenge is the conflicting objectives between the street vendors and the authorities. While the street vendors focus on their right to trade, the local authorities focus on the right to enforce safety and health regulations. It is therefore important for municipalities to adopt a balanced approach to street trading as a phenomenon. This fact is also exacerbated by local authorities' limited understanding of the size and the contribution of the informal sector generally, and street vendors in particular, to the economy. This results in the adoption of public policies, urban plans and other development plans that counter rather than support the informal economy. Another critical finding that emerged from the study is that street vendors are generally not organised, and therefore have limited bargaining power. Due to this fact, they are unable to participate in the decision-making processes of the authorities even when decisions that affect them are taken. Even in instances where there are trader's associations, it has been indicated that they are weak and unable to assert any influence. On the local authority's side, the lack of proper traders' organisational structures makes it difficult for the municipalities to engage them and jointly develop strategies that will enable the sector to grow and become sustainable. It is therefore important that the authorities play a critical advocacy role with regard to the issue of association. Although various organisations such as SEWA, StreetNet or WIEGO are present, this is at local level, and hence their effect has not been felt. Another element that has emerged is that street vendors are harassed and do not enjoy any benefits, even in areas where it is legal to engage in street trading. One contributing factor to this could be that the management of the sector is not properly institutionalised. The study argues that where proper institutional mechanisms are put in place, and roles clearly defined, the sector is better managed and supported. Singapore, for example, established a hawker's department to deal with issues of licensing, support, monitoring and personal hygiene. This approach enabled Singapore to manage the sector better. Analysis of the policies of various municipalities in South Africa indicated a shift in this regard. The municipalities analysed acknowledge the fact that management of the sector requires a multidisciplinary approach, and have attempted to clearly define the institutional model for managing the sector. The question, however, would be if the state of street vending in some of the cities continues as it is, whether the lack of effectiveness of the policies is due to lack of resources and capacity to implement such policies or whether the policies are not appropriate for the environments which exist. The conclusion arrived at indicates without any doubt that the informal economy is here to stay, and is a critical component of the economy. It is therefore important that like the formal economy that is regulated and protected, the informal economy, is managed in a way that can make it one of the levers to address poverty, unemployment and inequality. The study also concluded that the formal economy remains the backbone of the economy. As a result, the informal economy should not be regarded as a solution to the problems in the formal economy. Instead, the informal sector is complementary and supplementary to the formal economy. As a result, it is prudent to have proper polices and strategies that put the informal economy at the centre and not at the periphery of economic development. Indeed, such policies and strategies should not affect the formal economy negatively. The recommendations provided in the study indicate that when developing a policy for managing street trading, such a policy should be developed taking into account the various policy-making stages. The municipality should also conduct a thorough environmental analysis in order to determine the external and internal factors that will affect the policy in order to develop an implementable and effective policy. The study concludes that issues such as infrastructure provision, safety, organisation, proper institutional model and capacity-building are critical intervention mechanisms that can enable the municipality to manage street vending effectively. Once these issues are addressed, the municipality will be able to manage street trading effectively.
Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2010.

The study focuses on the regulation of informal trading, specifically street traders, within Polokwane Local Municipality. Municipalities required to manage street trading, and to deal with the challenge of increasing numbers of informal traders, which is affecting the formal trading economy. A small income and the limited ability of the government and the formal business sector to provide sufficient employment opportunities to people in the economically active age categories are two of the main reasons for informal trading in South African cities. As a result, the informal street trading sector plays an important role in providing a security net for millions of unemployed in the South African economy. However, informal street trading is not without its problems (Willemse, 2011:7). Often people blame government for not creating employment. When government is unable to provide sustainable employment to all the people, informal jobs emerge. Thus informal trading has become the only option for survival. Informal trading is a major source of income for the majority of the urban poor and therefore requires a properly regulated environment to address issues of income and unemployment for the poor. This study undertook to investigate how Polokwane Local Municipality regulates informal trading in the city of Polokwane. The research method employed in this study is qualitative. The main finding of the study is that because informal trading plays a significant role in creating employment, it must be well regulated and supported by the municipality in order to be organised. The main recommendation on the basis of this finding is that there should be a new approach, especially in terms of enforcement of by-laws. Most informal traders have applied for permits and have been waiting for a response from the Polokwane Local Municipality for years. In this regard, most of the informal traders are dissatisfied with municipal treatment of informal trading in the city. This dissatisfaction is also caused by lack of consultation.

MCom
Department of Business Management
Government regulations are needed to achieve a range of economic and social objectives which are beneficial to the nation as a whole. However, many countries experience problems with their regulatory systems as they invariably impose costs on businesses. In South Africa, it comes in the form of red tape, high taxes, labour laws and corruption. This places various regulatory burdens including compliance, administrative costs and other costs that may adversely influence firms’ productivity and frustrate their overall business performance and growth, particularly the small business sector. Given this sector’s indisputable contribution towards the overall economic health of the nation, it is important to address its concerns regarding the issue of the regulatory environment and government policy, in order to initiate corrective action and introduce regulatory reforms. Again, it is important to point out that not all businesses within the small business sector suffer under the weight of regulation. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which South Africa’s regulatory environment curtails the growth of the small business sector as well as determine whether the different categories of firms within the Small Business Sector (micro, very small, small or medium) bears different regulatory burdens. This study was carried out in Polokwane, Capricorn District Municipality, Limpopo Province, South Africa. To address the research problem, the positivist paradigm was used. The study used the mixed research method and the descriptive research design. The stratified sampling technique was used to determine various characteristics of the study population, while the convenience sampling technique was used due to constraints in reaching everyone in the population. The aim was therefore to find a representative sample of that population. Thus, to ensure that the population was representative, a sample size of 121 participants was derived using the Raosoft sample size calculator as well as other criteria. Questionnaires were utilised as the data collection tool and the collected data were analysed using SPSS version 25. Descriptive statistics, cluster analysis and Kruskal Wallis were also used to analyse the collected data. Results indicate that to a certain extent, the regulatory environment influences the small business sector negatively. On the other hand, the efforts and skills of the business owner influence their success and ability to remain in business, thus influencing the growth of the sector. The results also show that different categories of businesses within the small business sector bear different burdens, owing to certain characteristics they are defined by.
NRF

MAdmin
Department of Public and Development Administration
This study focused on The Integrated Development Plan as a strategy to empower informal traders using Thohoyandou as the case study. The study was conducted at Thulamela Municipality and at the informal markets of Thohoyandou. The researcher used two population groups; the municipal officials and the informal traders. The researcher made use of both qualitative and quantitative methods as the study was explorative in nature; 50 informal traders were sampled and took part in the study and on the other hand, 20 municipal officials were sampled and participated in the study. The researcher made use a pilot survey to two groups of population to test the efficacy of the interviews schedule as well the questionnaires as data collection instruments. SPSS and Microsoft excel were used as tools for data analysis. The results show that Thulamela Municipality’s IDP strategy is not doing enough for the informal markets in Thohoyandou. However, respondents indicated that shortcomings such as Limited Budget affect the success of IDP on informal trading. Initiatives such as the provision of loans, workshops, training and promotion of LED programmes were indicated as having been put in place in an effort to empower informal traders, although a number of informal traders in the Thohoyandou area are forever increasing, through urbanisation and migration which pose serious control challenges to the municipality. To manage informal trading in Thohoyandou, the researcher recommended that there could be: preferences on trading fee/levies; provision of services and infrastructures to informal traders; enhancing public participation; limiting overtrading, integrated management planning, policy formulations and that future researchers can be more specific on aspects such as: situation of foreign traders; constitutionality of by-laws and trading at intersections.

Institute for Rural Development
PhDRDV
Studies conducted in some parts of the world have highlighted the fact that Asian-owned small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) always thrive better than those that other racial groups own. For example, a Global Entrepreneurship Monitor study revealed that in South Africa, Blacks owned few businesses and rarely took advantage of the entrepreneurial opportunities available to them even though there are policies that underpin the promotion of SMME. The aim of this study was to compare the determinants of performance of Asian and Black-owned small supermarkets in Thulamela Local Municipality. Specific objectives of the study were to: (1) assess the indicators of performance of small supermarkets; (2) compare the performance factors of Asian- and Black-owned small supermarkets; and (3) suggest intervention strategies to improve the performance of the small supermarkets. A cross-sectional study underpinned by a mixed methods approach and techniques was applied in two sequentially integrated phases. The first phase was qualitative in nature and participants were officials from the Local Economic Development units in Thulamela Local and Vhembe District Municipalities, representatives of Associations of Business Owners, Blacks (Venda and Shangaan speaking) small supermarket owners and Asian (Indians/Pakistanis and Chinese) small supermarket owners. Snowball sampling was used to select interviewees. Data was analysed using the Atlas- ti.7.0.81 software. The second phase was quantitative in nature. Small supermarket owners who were involved during qualitative phase also participated in phase two. Data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) ver 24.0 for windows. Mann-Whitney tests were conducted to establish if there were differences in the perceptions of participants due to race, gender and geographic location. The indicators of success commonly mentioned were number of employees, profit, survival of the business over a long period, and stock or inventory and growths. Asian-owned small supermarkets were performing better because they used more effective and efficient purchasing plus supply systems. Their collectivist culture and networking abilities made them realise higher levels of efficiency when purchasing goods compared to the Black entrepreneurs. Black-owned small supermarkets were performing poorly because of their weak entrepreneurship culture, human capital and business ties. Unfair competition from spaza shops negatively affected their performance. Other factors hindering the performance of the latter were crime and rigid labour laws. In small supermarkets owned by Asians, shoplifting and burglaries were monitored using surveillance cameras during the day. Security companies were deployed during night hours. iii Regarding perception of motivation to start a business, there were significant differences due to race of small supermarket owners and location or area of operation (P < 0.05). Significant differences in perception (P < 0.05) among the races and due to gender and location were attributed to the culture of business owners. Effects of social capital on performance of small supermarkets were reported (P < 0.01). Based on the findings of this study, small supermarket owners should strengthen their human capital through participating in training programmes, especially on supply chain management, marketing and financing. The need for creating networks that help to access information needed to take advantage of the support from the state institutions and the non-governmental sector was evident. Thus, it was concluded that improved performance of small supermarkets could be realised through strengthening human capital, joint purchasing, establishing effective networks and diversifying business activities.