KwaZulu-Natal Province Of South Africa Research Articles

Race, space and place in suburban Durban: an ethnographic assessment of gated community environments and residents

This paper explores gated community culture and development in the suburbs of North Durban in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. Using perspectives from the anthropology of space and place as a theoretical and methodological framework, ethnographic fieldwork in one community in this area explores the cultural reasoning behind the movement to a fortified suburban enclave in South Africa by problematizing why, in a newly democratic society based on an ethos of desegregation, do individuals feel the need to segregate themselves along class and racial lines in fortified developments in a fashion reminiscent of homeland demarcation during apartheid? And, is the movement to gated communities within post-apartheid South Africa solely a white cultural and class phenomenon? While these questions are necessary, and perhaps commonsensical in terms of the unique social history of South Africa, research also attempts to complicate these lines of inquiry to apprehend the cultural reasoning and lifestyles of gated community residents to move past racial and class stereotypes and delve into the complex culture of these environments and the different rationalizations that individuals work with to justify their surroundings.

Isolation of Lagos Bat Virus from Water Mongoose

A genotype 2 lyssavirus, Lagos bat virus (LBV), was isolated from a terrestrial wildlife species (water mongoose) in August 2004 in the Durban area of the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. The virus isolate was confirmed as LBV by antigenic and genetic characterization, and the mongoose was identified as Atilax paludinosus by mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence analysis. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated sequence homology with previous LBV isolates from South African bats. Studies performed in mice indicated that the peripheral pathogenicity of LBV had been underestimated in previous studies. Surveillance strategies for LBV in Africa must be improved to better understand the epidemiology of this virus and to make informed decisions on future vaccine strategies because evidence is insufficent that current rabies vaccines provide protection against LBV.

Preliminary investigation of catchment hydrology in response to agricultural water use innovations: A case study of the Potshini catchment – South Africa

Water use system innovations encompass various techniques for storing and conserving water resources in different mediums for domestic and livestock use including agricultural production. Although, several authors have indicated that rainwater harvesting techniques, especially for upgrading smallholder farming systems, are not new but have been practiced since ancient civilizations, the impacts of such water use innovations on eco-hydrological systems are rarely assessed, especially from a cascading spatial and temporal perspective. The need to quantify the supposedly potential and related hydrological impacts of water use innovations on a catchment and river basin at large, led to the on-going research study aimed at investigating the biophysical consequences at different spatial and temporal scales in the Thukela river basin, of increased productivity in smallholder rainfed agriculture enabled through adoption at larger spatial scale of integrated land use management and water use system innovations. In this paper we discuss and outline the approach used in setting up the research study in one of the catchments in the Thukela river basin, the Potshini catchment, in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa in an effort to seek answers to the question: “What is the impact of adapting water use innovations in a predominantly agricultural area on catchment ecology and hydrology?” The approach incorporates a catchment monitoring network, hydrological modelling and application of a remote sensing technique, the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL), for spatially estimating the total evaporation in the region covering the Potshini catchment and beyond. Preliminary results indicate that water use innovations in the Potshini catchment have influenced the partitioning of rainfall, by significantly reducing surface runoff over agricultural lands under conservation tillage practices, with a reduction of above 100%, while encouraging infiltration and deeper percolation into the soil. It is envisaged that, on accomplishment, the study will contribute to formulation of sustainable adaptation of water use innovations and up-scaling strategies to enhance food production and hydro-ecological balance in semi-arid savannahs of Africa, at which stage hydrological modelling will form an important part of the study.

A Java-Based, Object-Oriented Modeling System for Southern African Hydrology

An object-oriented modeling system, ACRU2000 (Agricultural Catchments Research Unit 2000), was created to enable users to simulate the hydrological and environmental effects of various land uses in the Republic of South Africa. The ACRU2000 modeling system was entirely re-designed and re-coded from the concepts used in the previously developed ACRU agro-hydrological model. The model was designed in the Unified Modeling Language (UML) and implemented in the Java programming language. The ACRU2000 model was designed to process distributed catchments in a parallel manner during each simulation time step to facilitate the modeling of artificial water flows, particularly with regard to the implementation of the South African National Water Act of 1998. The object-oriented design methodology used to restructure the ACRU model produced a more flexible and extensible model structure, which will facilitate future model expansion. The ACRU2000 modeling system was then tested in the Mgeni River watershed, a medium-sized (4387 km2) watershed in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. The ACRU2000 model was parameterized for 137 sub-catchments to simulate daily streamflows. Monthly totals of simulated flows were compared with observed data from several management catchments for a 15-year period (1979-1993). The model gave satisfactory results in simulating upstream management catchments with the variable high and low flows that are endemic to southern African hydrology. The model had less success in areas encompassing large reservoir and transfer schemes combined with urban and peri-urban areas. Coefficient of determination, model efficiency, and root mean squared error of monthly totals of daily streamflow ranged from 0.43 to 0.85, -4.17 to 0.81, and 4% to 51% of median observed streamflow for individual management catchments, respectively. Further study is necessary to determine whether the differences between model and observed results were caused by model inadequacies, poor estimates of crucial input parameters, or faulty/missing flow data.

Efficacy of teachers in a number of selected schools in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa

The construct has become sufficiently sophisticated for it to be used as the theoretical base for an empirical survey. A survey of teacher efficacy in a number of selected schools in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa revealed that teachers perceived school context effects as preventing them from functioning efficaciously, that although the general teaching efficacy (GTE) beliefs of the teachers in the sample were strong, they were mostly negative, in the sense that the respondents tended to blame the environment and others for teachers' non-achievement, their personal teaching efficacy (PTE) beliefs were not as strong as could be expected, and their GTE and PTE beliefs did not allow them to perform the tasks normally expected of teachers efficiently. Recommendations to improve the situation are made.

BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS CONTROL AND DISEASE SURVEILLANCE

In a workshop of the Biological Weapons Prevention Project (BWPP) held at the South African Centre for Conflict Resolution in Cape Town on 12 October 2004, a presentation was made by ILIAAD (International Lookout for Infectious Animal & Anthropo-zoonotic Disease) entitled ‘Animal disease outbreaks as a metaphor for managing biological weapons attacks on human populations’. The presentation explored the crucial role of strict quarantine in the successful containment of the outbreak of an exotic type of foot and mouth disease (FMD) in KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa in 2000, and argued that strict quarantine could be similarly effective in controlling disease outbreaks caused by the intentional use of pathogens. Thus emerging disease outbreaks were linked with the threat of biological weapons. This commentary will review the origin of that linkage, how it evolved, and what lessons the media and information strategies of that evolution may have for current efforts in preventing the development, production and use of biological weapons.

Entrepreneurial networks: Findings from a South African study

The purpose of the empirical study is to make intelligible how entrepreneurs use networks, as well as describe the characteristics of these networks. A survey of 325 entrepreneurs from the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa was conducted. Results indicate that although South African entrepreneurs have more contacts in their networks, they spend less time in developing and maintaining contacts when compared to their international counterparts. Results show that South Africans have established their network ties for a long time, although most of the contacts were met through the entrepreneur’s own effort rather than through referrals. Results also show that most of the network members are either friends or family members, which is different to international findings where most network members are business associates.

Impediments to mortgage borrowing for the under-served urban household in South Africa

This paper examines impediments to mortgage borrowing in South Africa. The analysis is premised on the fact that, despite South Africa's relatively sophisticated financial system compared to other countries in sub Saharan Africa, its housing finance system has not been able to replicate for the low to moderate income families a system that allows them access to adequate formal housing finance. The paper is in three parts. Firstly, it gives an overview of the current demographic and housing situation in South Africa and provides an awareness of developments in the housing market, especially for the suburban sector, which helped to ascertain the nature of the housing finance problem. Secondly, empirical findings on the impediments to household borrowing are presented in the context of a case study of Umlazi, near Durban in KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. This helps in identifying what needs to be done to improve institutional mortgage borrowing by the under-served urban market. Based on this analysis, the paper suggests measures that could enhance the affordability and access to adequate institutional finance in the study area and economies in similar situations. Key Words: affordability, household, mortgage, suburban, under-served Jnl of Social Development in Africa Vol.19(1) 2004: 7-30

Ptilophora leliaertii and Ptilophora coppejansii, two new species of Gelidiales (Rhodophyta) from South Africa

Ptilophora leliaertii Tronchin et De Clerck sp. nov. and Ptilophora coppejansii Tronchin et De Clerck sp. nov. are described from Protea Banks reef situated off the southern coast of the KwaZulu-Natal Province in South Africa. They have thus far been collected only on this reef system. Ptilophora leliaertii is distinguishable by its compound pinnate branching and the concave nature of its flattened branches. Ptilophora coppejansii is distinguishable by short, closely spaced pinnae in its distal parts, arising from irregularly arranged indeterminate branches with broad flexuous alae and a distinct midrib. Analyses of rbcL and LSU gene sequences resolve both species as distinct, well-supported taxa, with P. coppejansii sister to Ptilophora diversifolia (Suhr) Papenfuss, and P. leliaertii sister to Ptilophora helenae (Dickinson) R. Norris. The reinstatement of P. helenae, a species recently placed in synonymy with Ptilophora pectinata (A. Gepp & E. Gepp) R. Norris from Australia, is proposed here based on molecular, morphological and biogeographical evidence.

First Report of Powdery Mildew of Cashew Caused by Oidium anacardii in South Africa.

The cashew plant (Anacardium occidentale L.) (family Anacardiaceae) is native to Brazil. It was introduced in East Africa by the Portuguese in the 16th century where it is now widely cultivated, especially in Tanzania, Kenya, and Mozambique. The processed kernels are the most important product derived from the plant, although in Brazil and India, juices, jam, and alcoholic and soft drinks are also made from the pear-shaped edible receptacle. The plant is currently being evaluated in South Africa for commercial production. During May 2002, at least 25% of 5-year-old cashew trees grown from seed in the northern KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa were infected with powdery mildew. Signs included extensive growth of white, superficial mycelium bearing upright conidiophores on young shoots with tender leaves, inflorescences, and young receptacles. In severely affected trees, approximately 35% of young shoots and 45% of young receptacles displayed signs of powdery mildew. Severely infected young leaves were brown and deformed in contrast to older leaves that were unaffected. Microscopic examination of diseased tissue revealed hyaline, cylindrical-to-slightly doliform, single-celled conidia (10 to 17.5 × 2.5 to 5 μm) borne in chains. The pathogen was subsequently identified as Oidium anacardii Noack on the basis of morphology (1). No other species of powdery mildew fungi have been reported on cashew. A pathogenicity test was conducted by gently pressing a heavily diseased leaf onto two healthy leaves of each of 10 cashew plants maintained in pots on open benches in the glasshouse at 22 to 25°C and mean relative humidity of 65%. Control treatments entailed pressing an asymptomatic leaf onto each of two healthy leaves per plant. The experiment was conducted three times. After 14 days, at least one powdery mildew colony had developed on 80% of inoculated leaves but were absent from all replications of the control treatment. The source of inoculum for this reported outbreak is unknown, although O. anacardii is known to occur in southern Mozambique less than 100 km from the infected site. Cashew powdery mildew was first officially reported in Tanzania in 1979 where significant crop losses, partially attributable to the pathogen, have been recorded since (3). No significant damage to production has been recorded in Brazil (2). To our knowledge, this is the first report of O. anacardii occurring on cashew in South Africa.

The Impact of Resource Inflows on Child Health: Evidence from Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa, 1993–98

This paper investigates changes to the health status of young children (aged 0–5 years) in the Kwazulu-Natal province of South Africa during 1993–98. In our estimation we explicitly take into account the potential endogeneity of household resources in affecting child health. In particular, we examine whether the effect of resources is differentiated by the source, the age and the sex of the recipient. Finally, we also take into account the panel structure of the data and conduct (household level) fixed effects estimation of the determinants of child health. The estimation results show that the state of child health has experienced marked improvement following the dismantling of apartheid. Our results point to the role of household resources and health infrastructure availability in improving the health status of children.

A Survey of the quality of nursing care in several health districts in South Africa.

BackgroundSouth Africa is currently focusing strongly on human resource development. The purpose of this study was to describe and compare the quality of nursing service and care in three health districts in the KwaZulu Natal Province. To identify deficiencies which could be addressed by education and training, it might be useful to measure the quality of care given by nurses.MethodsFrom March to August 2002 a survey was done in six hospitals and six clinics in three health districts of the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. Five different aspects of care was evaluated; hand-over from one nursing shift to another, implementation of universal precautions, patient satisfaction, nursing records, management of chronic illnesses. All these aspects were evaluated using checklists based on record reviews or direct observation, except for patient satisfaction, which was evaluated by questionnaires.ResultsThe average scores on the different aspects varied from 11% (for nursing records) to 73% (for management of chronic diseases). Specific problems became evident. In one district three out of four hand-overs between shifts of nurses scored less than 50%. In all three districts the use of protective gear scored low (43%). While the average score for management of chronic illnesses were high at 73%, the blood pressures of only 23% was within the target range, and the blood sugar of only 38% of patients were controlled. Patient satisfaction averaged 72% across the three districts.ConclusionThe quality of care measurements identified specific training needs, but other management strategies are probably also indicated.

Identification of Mycosphaerella species associated with Eucalyptus nitens leaf defoliation in South Africa

Eucalyptus nitens is an important plantation tree species in South Africa, where it is grown for paper and pulp production. The growth and performance of E. nitens in South Africa is, however, reduced substantially by Mycosphaerella leaf blotch (MLB) disease. The aim of this study was to determine which species of Mycosphaerella are associated with MLB epidemics on E. nitens in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. Mycosphaerella species were isolated from leaves from two commercial E. nitens plantations by inducing the active release of ascospores onto agar. All isolates were identified according to their ascospore germination patterns, anamorph associations and sequence data generated from the Internal Transcribed Spacer region of the rDNA operon. From taxonomic and sequence data, M. nubilosa was identified as the main cause of MLB on E. nitens in commercial plantations in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. M. nubilosa is an important Eucalyptus leaf pathogen, and its correct identification in South Africa is important for the future planting of E. nitens. This is particularly true during the initial years of tree growth where MLB results in severe defoliation.

Does South Africa need trade promotion organisations?

This article analyses one aspect of export promotion that has come to be an important mechanism for public sector implementation of export promotion, namely trade promotion organisations. Drawing on the export experiences of firms in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa, we explore the possible role of a trade promotion organisation (TPO) in efforts to promote exports. Based on this, we conclude that services that may be offered by a TPO are already offered by a combination of private and public sector service providers; that the barriers to export growth in KwaZulu-Natal firms have little, if any, relationship to TPO services; and that, based on this evidence, there seems to be no case for public sector investment in TPOs. We do, however, find some weaknesses in export service provision, and suggest some policy changes in this regard.

WORLD BANK FUNDS PERUVIAN WATER UPGRADE

Schistosomiasis is a snail-transmitted parasitic disease endemic in most rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa. However, the currently used prediction models fail to capture the focal nature of its transmission due to the macro-geographical levels considered and paucity of data at local levels. This study determined the spatial distribution of Schistosoma haematobium and related risk factors in Ndumo area, uMkhanyakude District, KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa. A sample of 435 schoolchildren between 10 to 15 years old from 10 primary schools was screened for S. haematobium using the filtration method. Getis-Ord Gi* and Bernoulli model were used to determine the hotspots of S. haematobium infection intensity based on their spatial distribution. Semiparametric-Geographically Weighted Regression (s-GWR) model was used to predict and analyse the spatial distribution of S. haematobium in relation to environmental and socio-economic factors. We confirmed that schistosomiasis transmission is focal in nature as indicated by significant S. haematobium cases and infection intensity clusters (p < 0.05) in the study area. The s-GWR model performance was low (R2 = 0.45) and its residuals did not show autocorrelation (Moran’s I = −0.001; z-score = 0.003 and p-value = 0.997) indicating that the model was correctly spelled. The s-GWR model also indicated that the coefficients for some of the socio-economic variables such as distances of households from operational piped water collection points, distance from open water sources, religion, toilet use, household head and places of bath and laundry significantly (t-values +/−1.96) varied across the landscape thereby determining the variation of S. haematobium infection intensity. This evidence may be used for control and management of the disease at micro scale. However, there is need for further research into more factors that may improve the performance of the s-GWR models in determining the local variation of S. haematobium infection intensity.

Virginity Testing: Managing Sexuality in a Maturing HIV/AIDS Epidemic

KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa is currently the site of the world's fastest growing HIV/AIDS epidemic, where it is estimated that between 30 and 40 percent of the adult population is seropositive for HIV. With support from local politicians and members of various government ministries, several self-styled guardians of tradition have emerged to form organizations that advocate and conduct regular virginity testing of girls. Reference to the current HIV/AIDS epidemic is central to calls for greater support of this practice. Drawing on original research among Zulu-speaking people in the periurban communities of Durban, this article examines the sociocultural construction of HIV/AIDS and locates the growing popularity of virginity testing within a gendered meaning-making process consistent with commonly held beliefs that the epidemic is the result of women being sexually "out of control." With the social impact of AIDS starting to take its toll in the forms of increasing AIDS-related deaths and a growing population of orphans, I argue that virginity testing is an attempt to manage the epidemic by exerting greater control over women and their sexuality. In addition, virginity testing of girls helps to draw attention away from the role of men in the maturing epidemic, consideration of which has been conspicuously absent in the popular discourse on AIDS at all levels of South African society.

Regional flood frequency analysis in the KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa, using the index-flood method

A regional frequency analysis of annual maximum series (AMS) of flood flows from relatively unregulated rivers in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa has been conducted, including identification of homogeneous regions and suitable regional frequency distributions for the regions. The study area was divided into two homogeneous regions based on an index of monthly rainfall concentration. Region 1 covers the coastal and midlands area and Region 2 the west north-western parts of the study area. The General Normal, Pearson Type 3 and General Pareto distributions were found to be suitable for AMS of flood flows in Region 2. The occurrence of a few flood events of extreme magnitude in Region 1 resulted in no suitable regional frequency distribution for this region.

First report of Phytophthora nicotianae associated with Eucalyptus die‐back in South Africa

Eucalyptus species, hybrids and clones are planted commercially in South Africa for the production of pulp and paper and various other forest products. However, some species such as E. smithii are susceptible to root and collar rot associated with Phytophthora cinnamomi (Linde et al., 1999). Since 1999, P. nicotianae (synonym, P.n. var. parasitica), not P. cinnamomi, has been recovered from dead and dying Eucalyptus trees such as E. macarthurii and E. smithii. Phytophthora nicotianae is a soilborne pathogen often isolated from forest soils (Shearer et al., 1988). In South Africa it is well known as the causal agent of black butt on Acacia mearnsii (Roux & Wingfield, 1997). In the field, 1-year-old infected trees had typical symptoms of Phytophthora root and collar rot. First disease symptoms included chlorosis of the leaves as well as gum exudation through the cankers on the tree collar. As the disease progressed, the trees usually wilted and died due to girdling. Disease symptoms were reproduced on field-grown trees inoculated with different P. nicotianae isolates. Necrotic lesions with gum exudates were observed above the inoculation point, 30 days after inoculation. Subsequent to the discovery of the root disease caused by P. nicotianae, several recently established E. smithii plantations in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa were surveyed. P. nicotianae was recovered from 45% of soil samples and 60% of diseased plant material. P. cinnamomi was recovered from only 5% of soil samples and 12% of diseased plant material. Phytophthora isolates from soil and diseased material were identified using morphological features (Stamps et al., 1990). The A1 and A2 mating types were determined by pairing P. nicotianae isolates obtained with known tester strains using the method described by Erwin & Ribeiro (1996). Oospores were produced following pairing with tester isolates and all isolates proved to be of the A2 mating type. Isolates have been deposited into the culture collection of the Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria. Phytophthora nicotianae, rather than P. cinnamomi, is emerging as a more serious threat to a number of cold-tolerant Eucalyptus spp. in South Africa. Since 1999 P. nicotianae has been recovered from dead and dying Eucalyptus species such as E. fastigata, E. elata, E. macarthurii, E. nites, E. dunii and E. smithii.

Technical efficiency of public clinics in Kwazulu-Natal Province of South Africa.

In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) much of the attention of policy makers, health care managers, health systems researchers and donors is focussed almost solely on mobilising additional resources and not on efficiency in their use. To investigate the technical inefficiencies among 155 primary health care clinics in Kwazulu-Natal Province of South Africa; and to draw policy implications. Cross-sectional provincial health clinic survey. SELLING: Kwazulu-Natal Provincial Department of Health Clinics survey, 1996. The analysis is based on 155 public clinics. Non-intervention Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) study. Technical and scale efficiency scores. Forty seven (30%) were found to be technically efficient. Among the 108 (70%) technically inefficient facilities, 16% had an efficiency score of 50% or less. The presence of inefficiencies indicates that a clinic has excess inputs or insufficient outputs compared to those clinics on the efficiency frontier. To achieve technical efficiency, Kwazulu-Natal clinics would, in total have to decrease inputs by 417 nurses and 457 general staff. Alternatively, outputs would have to be increased by 115,534 antenatal visits, 1,010 births (deliveries), 179,075 child care visits, 5,702 dental visits, 121,658 family planning visits, 36,032 psychiatric visits, 56,068 sexually transmitted disease visits and 34,270 tuberculosis visits. There is need for more detailed studies in a number of the relativdy efficient clinics to determine why they are efficient with a view of documenting attributes of 'best practise' that other clinics can emulate. The potential benefit of replicating this kind of study in other provinces, and indeed, other SSA countries cannot be overemphasised.

Designing a Management System for a Rural Community Development Organization Using a Systemic Action Research Process

This paper describes the first phase, 'finding out', of a systemic participatory action research intervention in the management systems of a rural community development organization in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. The aims of the intervention were to (a) improve the management system of this organization, and (b) evaluate the usefulness of particular systems methodologies for the improvement of management systems of organizations involved in community development in under-resourced rural contexts. The second phase, "implementation," needs to be completed and thoroughly evaluated before any final conclusions can be drawn about the suitability of the chosen systems framework for Third World type rural contexts. However, the second phase is, at the time of writing, underway and all indications are that an interpretive ('Soft') Systems Methodology, combined with insights from a more functionalist ('hard') approach (with methods chosen through a Critical Systems Thinking framework) holds much promise for participatory systemic interventions in these contexts.