North-West Province Of South Africa Research Articles

Assessment of Fire Safety Management for Special Needs Schools in South Africa

The safety and well-being of learners with special educational needs in South Africa remain a paramount concern, significantly impacting their constitutional rights and dignity. Despite legislative commitments aimed at fostering inclusive education, a pervasive absence of adequate fire safety measures in special needs schools (SNSs) in South Africa has persisted, leading to the vulnerability of these learners. Tragic incidents, such as fatal fires in these schools, as reported in the literature, underscore the urgent need for immediate intervention to ensure the safety and security of these learners, especially with regards to fire hazards. This study, conducted within the Northwest Province of South Africa, assessed the state of fire safety management in SNSs by applying a series of chi-squared (χ2) tests of independence for categorical variables, descriptive statistics, and regression analysis using the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS), Version 20 and found that limited access to power is the potential root cause of fires in these schools; also, the limited amount of fire safety initiatives was a problem. In addition, the ordinal regression showed a statistically significant relationship when the question of to what extent the learners in the sampled schools are involved in fire safety programs was regressed with the questions of whether management and stakeholders were involved in fire safety programs and also on taking part in the physical fire safety programs (χ2 = 47.412; df = 2; p < 0.001; R2 = 70.5%). Furthermore, fire safety management was not sufficiently implemented in the sampled schools and the safety legislations of the country were not implemented accordingly when it came to fire safety. This study identified root causes of fire risks, gauged stakeholders’ awareness and involvement in fire safety management, and advocated for more stringent safety policies and practices within the SNS based on the above findings.

Experiences of Women regarding Accessibility of Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Services in Northwest Province, South Africa

Background Poor access to choose on termination of pregnancy services remains a disturbing health challenge to women, mostly in developing countries. In rural provinces of South Africa, this hurdle is manifested by, amongst others, fear of stigmatisation and failure to access the services due to a lack of trained staff and transport. Objectives This study is designed to explore and describe women’s experiences regarding access to choice on termination of pregnancy services, subsequently describing recommendations to improve access to choice of termination of pregnancy in a sub-district of Northwest province of South Africa. Methods A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual design was used to assess the experiences of women regarding access to termination of pregnancy services. The population included women of childbearing age with a history of legal or illegal termination of pregnancy at selected public health care facilities. Purposive sampling was used to identify participants for the study, and 10 women were interviewed using unstructured in-depth face-to-face individual interviews. All ethical principles were adhered to throughout the study, and thematic analysis with six phases was utilised in evaluating the data generated. Results Difficulties in accessing choice of termination of pregnancy services and strategies for improvement of accessibility emerged as the two themes. Amongst others, pervasive negative attitudes of nurses, fear of stigma, and lack of psychological and social support were reported as cumbersome experiences in trying to access the service. To improve access, women recommended that more nurses should be trained and deployed to render choice of termination of pregnancy services to women. They also recommended advertising choice of termination of pregnancy services available on various platforms. Conclusion Based on the findings, women in the North West Province face challenges in accessing Choice of Termination of Pregnancy services.

Empirical Discussion of a Multisectoral Approach to Improving Service Delivery in the North-West Province of South Africa

The conception of development, principally rural development, conveys into view government responsibilities, more precisely, local government. The South African government founded the National Development Plan (NDP) Vision 2030 to improve service delivery and development for its constituencies. This article thus sought to emphasise the position of communication in developing rural societies and the condition of nurturing a favourable association and atmosphere for effective and efficient communal expansion. A multisector method as an interaction approach can generate conditions for distributing information linking the provincial government, community, and private sectors, generating requirements for public participation. Development communication as a theory was used to provide a theoretical background for the article, emphasising the responsiveness of developmental initiatives towards the community’s needs and that communication and community participation can only foster social change and economic development. The article employed qualitative approaches to garner and evaluate the data to determine how the system performs optimally. Convenience sampling was used by employing a questionnaire with the 182 community members. As with convenience or opportunity sampling, a sample is extracted from elements of analysis that are opportunely obtainable. The matters recognised as challenging regarding harmonisation and association within the district and local communicator’s forums in assisting the progress towards rural development. It is recommended that a Multisectoral Planning Forum (Encompassing SALGA, HoDs, SOEs, GCIS) is established, a forum which will be able to create the policies to help increase the interaction between diverse kinds of purposes through the interdependence, airing, position, and encoding of involvement. The study will contribute to participatory governance, using a multisector approach to development. Keywords: Multisector Approach, Participatory, Rural Development, Governance, Collaboration, Collaboration, Public Participation and Coordination

Teachers’ perceptions of the psycho-social effects of COVID-19 on learners’ well-being in South African schools

The lockdown the South African government implemented in 2020 to contain the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in school closures. During this time, and also when learners were allowed to attend school again, the focus was on the physical health and safety of the learners. However, in the process, schools might have neglected the psycho-social and mental well-being of learners, which is a state in which learners are able to manage stress and function optimally. This paper reports on a study that investigated teachers’ views on how learners’ psycho-social and mental well-being was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews to gather data from 17 teachers from five schools in two districts of the North-West Province in South Africa. The school mental health theoretical framework was used for the study because of its focus on the psycho-social mental health of learners and the role of institutions in supporting mental health. The findings indicate that learners experienced a higher level of emotional distress during the lockdown. This was caused by an increase in fear, stress, anxiety, uncertainty, frustration, anger and aggression during the pandemic. Although learners from all the schools were negatively affected by COVID-19, learners from low-income schools that had limited access to resources were affected more due to the limited professional psycho-social support they received. This highlights the need for Education Departments to build the capacity of all South African schools to address the emotional and psycho-social well-being of their learners. It is vital that schools commit themselves to enabling learners to develop a high level of resilience and antifragility at all times, not just during major crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Teachers and principals’ assessment of schools as professional learning communities in a district in the North-West Province of South Africa

As researchers continue to seek strategies to bring systemic change in schools, many have turned to professional learning communities due to the valuable possibilities that these communities offer in reforming schools. The study aims to analyse how teachers and principals in the Dr Kenneth Kaunda District in the North-West Province of South Africa perceive their schools as professional learning communities. A quantitative approach was used to sample 87 schools for this study. Questionnaires were given to 1,260 teachers and principals in this district. The questionnaire was based on the conceptual framework of professional learning communities. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software program was used to analyse the data. Assessing schools as professional learning communities remains a significant way to re-examine educational institutions to determine their performance outcome. The main findings included respondents who strongly agreed to all the core components ranging from 21% (Supportive conditions – structures) to 28% (Shared supportive leadership and Supportive conditions – relationships). Respondents who agreed with all the core components rated all the components above 50% and ranged from 55% (Supportive conditions – structures) to 65% (Additional statements). While respondents who disagreed ranged from 9% to 18%, respondents who strongly agreed only ranged from 1% to 6%. Principals rated their schools as professional learning communities more than the teachers. This study also established other problems facing educational institutions in this district, adding to those already highlighted by previous researchers. Schools should be encouraged to use this self-assessment method for their respective evaluations. This article is intended mainly for teachers and principals and all those who are involved in schools' reconstruction, including the Ministry of Education

The relationship between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and iron status and anaemia in undernourished and non-undernourished children under five years in South Africa

BackgroundVitamin D (vitD) plays a role in iron metabolism by the suppression of hepcidin, while iron deficiency also impairs vitD metabolism. In undernourished children, iron and vitamin D deficiency are common. There is little knowledge of the inter-relationship between these two nutrients in undernourished and non-undernourished children. AimTo assess the association between 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and iron status, and the effect of 3 doses of 50,000 IU of vitD on iron status in undernourished and non-undernourished children. MethodsWe measured serum 25(OH)D, haemoglobin (Hb), ferritin and soluble transferrin receptor in 121 undernourished and 51 non-undernourished children in clinics in the North-West Province of South Africa. Three doses of 50,000 IU/week of vitD was supplemented to children with suboptimal vitD levels. ResultsThe overall prevalence of suboptimal vitD concentration (25(OH)D < 30 ng/mL) was 20.3 %. Anaemia and iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) prevalence were 62 % and 49.2 % in the undernourished and 56.9 % and 42.9 % in the non-undernourished group. In the overall group, 25(OH)D < 30 ng/mL was associated with significantly higher IDA prevalence compared to those with 25(OH)D ≥ 30 ng/mL (64.7 % vs 43.0 %, p = 0.023), and was associated with an increased risk of IDA in the crude analysis (OR: 2.434 1.114, 5.318, p = 0.026). Serum 25(OH)D < 30 ng/mL was associated with 4 times (OR: 4.046, 95%CI: 1.022, 16.009, p = 0.046) and greater than 5 times (OR: 5.386, 95%CI: 1.528, 18.985, p = 0.009) increased odds of anaemia and IDA in the undernourished children, respectively. VitD supplementation resulted in a significant reduction of 55.9 % in TNF-α concentration (p = 0.008) in the overall group. ConclusionSuboptimal vitD concentration is associated with increased odds of anaemia and IDA. VitD status should be considered in anaemia prevention strategies, especially in populations where both vitD and iron deficiencies co-exist.

Evaluation of Customers’ Expectations and Perceptions of Service Quality Dimensions: A Study of South African Post Office in the North-West Province

The study seeks to measure customers' expectations of service quality provided by managers and frontline employees against their perceptions of service quality in Post offices in the North-West Province of South Africa and to determine the gap between customers ‘expectations and their perceptions of service quality using the five service quality dimensions. Data were collected by SERVQUAL questionnaire to examine the areas of tangibility, reliability and responsiveness, assurance, and empathy from 384 post office customers. To select respondents for this study, non-probability sampling techniques were used, mostly convenient approaches. Using factor analysis, five characteristics of service quality were identified: tangibility, reliability and responsiveness, assurance, and empathy. According to the study's findings, A negative gap was observed in consumer expectations and perceptions of the quality of postal services delivered to consumers. This means that the quality of services delivered to postal consumers in the five-post offices was less than what they expected. The highest gap was related to tangibles and assurance. Therefore, it is mandatory for management to focus on tangibles and assurance in order to improve postal services. The study argues that managers should strive to improve the frontline employee’s willingness to help, respond quickly to queries, competence in providing efficient services, making customers feel secure when receiving services, schedule appointments on time, having customers' best interests at heart, and be of good behaviour. These qualities instils confidence in customers. These qualities that need to be renewed are categories under the post office's reliability, tangibility, responsiveness, and assurance characteristics.

The influence of the immediate environment on parolee rehabilitation

In democratic South Africa, there has been a shift from the punishment of offenders to the rehabilitation approach and a change from prisons to correctional centres. Once someone becomes an offender, the person goes through rehabilitation and not punishment. This paper discusses the influence of the immediate environment on the rehabilitation of paroles in Brits area of North-West Province in South Africa, a poverty-stricken area with limited resources. A qualitative approach and an exploratory descriptive design were utilised to describe the parolees’ experiences of parole in a low-resourced community. One-on-one in-depth interviews were used to collect data which were then analysed thematically and backed by existing literature. The findings of the study showed that environmental factors play a role in offending and rehabilitation of offenders in low-resourced areas. The paper makes critical recommendations for consideration by parole officials and researchers to facilitate the effective rehabilitation of offenders in low-resourced areas.

Xenorhabdus bakwenae sp. n., associated with the entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema bakwenae

Summary The bacterial strain SF857 was isolated from the entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema bakwenae SF857, found in soil samples of St Lucie cherry, a species of cherry tree, from the Muriti farm, close to Kroondal (25°44′E, 59°99′S) in the northwest province of South Africa. Strain SF857 is Gram-negative, catalase and oxidase-negative, and lecithinase-positive. Strain SF857 shared the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity (97.7%) with the type strain of Xenorhabdus ishibashii. However, a comparison of housekeeping gene sequences showed that strain SF857 grouped closer to X. griffiniae, X. ehlersii and X. thuongxuanensis than to X. ishibashii. Digital DNA-DNA hybridisation (dDDH) between strain SF857 and all Xenorhabdus spp. is less than the 70% species threshold, confirming that the strain belongs to a separate species. Furthermore, the biochemical characteristics of strain SF857 differ from other Xenorhabdus spp. Based on these findings, strain SF857 represents a novel species within the genus Xenorhabdus, for which the name Xenorhabdus bakwenae sp. n. (type strain SF857T) is proposed. Pathogenicity bioassays with last-instar Cydia pomonella showed S. bakwenae to be highly virulent, with potential use as a biocontrol agent in apple orchards.

Mentorship needs in an intrapartum setting – mentor-centred approach: A qualitative descriptive study

AimThe study aimed to explore and describe the needs of registered midwives in labour rooms in the North-West Province of South Africa with regard to clinical mentorship of student midwives to identify the strengths and gaps in the clinical mentorship programme and make recommendations to optimise clinical mentorship for student midwives in this setting. BackgroundThe South African healthcare system is overburdened by numerous problems, particularly in maternity services. It has been reported that nurses are not skilled enough to provide quality care to pregnant women. The onus is on nursing education institutions to produce competent midwives to improve the quality of care. Mentorship has been proven to improve competence among mentees and this strategy can be used to address this health problem in South Africa. DesignThe study employed a qualitative descriptive design and purposive sampling was used to select the participants from the level 2 hospitals in the North-West province in South Africa. MethodsData were collected using individual telephonic interviews and 14 participants from three level 2 hospitals in the North-West province participated in the data collection process. ResultsThree main themes emerged from interviews conducted with the participants. Their needs to successfully mentor student midwives in an intrapartum setting are a positive environment for learning, teaching and mentorship; a collaborative relationship between the nursing education institutions and the health facilities where they are employed as well as positive student conduct. The sub-themes under theme 1, a positive environment for teaching, learning and mentorship, are patience, teamwork, mutual respect and human and material resources. Theme 2, a collaborative relationship between the nursing education institutions and the health facilities, had three sub-themes, namely, presence, effective communication on students' objectives, activities and progress and opportunities for self-development and empowerment. Commitment to learning (presence, patience and pre-knowledge) is the sub-theme that emerged from the theme of positive student conduct. ConclusionsFor successful mentorship in the clinical setting, the focus should not just be on the mentees themselves and creating an environment where they can learn. There is a need to look into how the mentors, who provide learning opportunities and teach, guide and support mentees in order for them to be competent, can be assisted to enjoy mentorship.

The Experiences of Expectant and New Mothers in Accessing Maternal Healthcare Services during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Mmabatho, North-West, South Africa

Access to maternal healthcare has been a challenge for women of African descent. Similarly, to previous illness outbreaks such as the Ebola and Zika outbreaks, the Coronavirus pandemic effects vary from one demographic group to another. Women, compared to men, are left in a more vulnerable position due to long-existing social inequalities and disparities. Differentiated effects include, amongst others, access to health and healthcare, risk of infection and coping strategies. This study examined the experiences of expectant and new mothers in accessing maternal healthcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic. In-depth interviews were used, and participants were selected from Mmabatho, North-West Province in South Africa. The findings show that women accessing maternal healthcare services have had diverse experiences. Some expectant and new mothers experienced fear, anxiety, and frustration, while some had more positive experiences. The positive experiences included spending more time with their families and newborn babies. Some of the participants were worried because of the fear of being infected with the coronavirus. Furthermore, the unavailability and inadequacy of, as well as limited access to, maternal healthcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected some of the women in the study. This study recommends that public and private sectors responsible for providing maternal healthcare should have emergency preparedness measures in place to ensure the continuous provision of maternal healthcare and cushion women in future disease pandemics.

Self-Reported Level of Cultural Competence of Midwives in the North-West Province of South Africa.

Limited research on cultural competence in nursing, midwifery, and education exists within low- and middle-income countries such as South Africa (SA). This study aimed to describe midwives' self-reported levels of cultural competence toward women receiving maternal care. A descriptive, cross-sectional survey design and an all-inclusive sample of (N = 104; n = 82) midwives yielded a 79% response rate. Data were collected using the Transcultural Self-Efficacy Tool (TSET) questionnaire. Participants included midwives recruited from maternity units of five hospitals in South Africa: different hospitals that included one large district, two regional, and two tertiary hospitals in the North-West Province of SA. An all-inclusive sample of (N = 104; n = 82) midwives participated, representing a 79% response rate. Midwives reported an overall moderate level of competence regarding their knowledge and understanding of cultural factors; it was concerning that their confidence in interviewing patients from different cultural backgrounds on factors such as acculturation and worldview were the lowest. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this was the first study to assess the cultural competence of midwives in SA using TSET. The study highlighted the need for midwives' training to improve their cultural competence.

Job satisfaction among health professionals in a District of North West province, South Africa.

Job satisfaction has become an area of relevance and debate in public health as it is directly linked to staff absenteeism, retention and turnover of the workforce and as such, influences the organisational commitment of the workers and the quality of health services provided. It is therefore essential to discern what drives healthcare professionals to remain working in the public health sector. This study aimed to determine job satisfaction and its associated factors among healthcare professionals. North-West province South Africa. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 244 healthcare professionals of different categories in three district hospitals. A self-administered structured questionnaire with 38 questions to measure job satisfaction was used to collect data. The chi-square test was used to compare groups, and a p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Overall, 62% of the participants were not satisfied with their job. The most common factors that participants were not satisfied with include job security (52%), standard of care (57%), opportunity to develop (59%), payment or wages (76%), workload (78%) and working environment (89%). Job satisfaction was significantly influenced by age, job category and years of service. The predictors of job satisfaction include age, category of employees and years of service. Interventions are required to improve the degree of job satisfaction among health care professionals. Findings of this study will assist informing plans that are geared towards enhancing healthcare worker job satisfaction, retention and consequent health systems strengthening.

An Analysis of High Teacher Turnover and Attrition in the North-West Province of South Africa

In the past few years, there has been a shocking rise in the rate at which teachers are abandoning the teaching profession. What is more disturbing is the scenario that the numbers appeared to be increasing daily. This research used a mixed-method approach. The study provided information on the teacher profile, the capacity of staff in relation to workload and expertise, factors that influenced teachers to leave the teaching profession in the province, perception of the teaching profession and employment opportunities after resignation from 590 teachers in the province. The study found that there were several factors which have contributed to high teacher resignations in the North-West Province over the years. The study found that one of the main causes of attrition was the Government pension fund saga. On policy implication, the Department of Basic Education has been pushing for an increase in qualified teachers’ deployment to different schools due to the high demand from the increased number of students. However, due to high attrition, it has been difficult to fill the void created by teachers who have left as they take with them high-value experience leaving a high rift of inexperienced, less effective teachers in classrooms which leads to increased recruiting and training budgets. Participants indicated the existence of peers from colleagues who have resigned and are undertaking industrious projects with the Government pension money. Their desire to make money pushes them to want to do the same and this makes efforts to change their mindset quite challenging. The study concluded that the Department of Basic Education needs to focus on teacher welfare to reduce the high attrition rate and ensure student success in the long run. Keywords: Attrition, Resignation, Teacher Turnover, Teaching Profession, Pension Fund

Environmental justice in South Africa: the dilemma of informal settlement residents

The concept of environmental justice is well established in the literature; however, scholars still battle to agree on what it really means. This concept has become more relevant to the studies of informal settlements amongst others. The location and environmental variables in informal settlements suggests a variety of injustices that comes with location, limited access to water, poor or lack of sanitation, challenges with transport availability, accessibility, affordability, and lack of other social amenities. These and many other socio-economic needs forms part of the value chain of environmental justice debates across the world. This paper deals with environmental justice in the informal settlements of Kosmos, in the Madibeng Local Municipality, Bojanala Region in the North-West Province of South Africa. The paper highlights some of the environmental challenges faced by the informal settlement residents such as pollution, waste management (landfill sites, waste collection) sanitation and water provision. The paper explores how the Kosmos informal settlement community has been excluded from decision making processes regarding their own environment and considers the levels of environmental injustices commonly associated with this kind of practice.

Snakebite in South Africa: A retrospective review May 2015–June 2020

Snakebite envenoming in Sub-Saharan Africa present a significant public health problem. An investigation into how often species responsible for envenomation were correctly identified, as well as which venomous species caused the most frequent and problematic envenomation symptomatology were conducted to establish severity of this problem from a South African context. Descriptive statistics were used to quantitatively describe the variables in snakebite related Telelog call records reported to the Poison Information Helpline of the Western Cape (PIHWC) over a five-year period. A total of 1411 snakebite related calls were received. In 44% of all snakebite calls the bite was inflicted by an unidentified snake specie. The most snakebites occurred during the summer months from December–March. The most bites occurred in males (20–39 years). The incidence of snakebite in South Africa was 2.39 per 100 000 population, with the highest incidence of snakebite in North-West province of South Africa. In sub-Saharan Africa there is a major underestimation of the incidence of snakebite due to under reporting and absence of physical attendance to health care facilities. The PIHWC provides an invaluable service in assisting and in-forming medical personnel and the public on the management of snakebites. Data collected by centers provides a source of information on the prevalence of snakebites and medically important species that research should be aimed towards.

Indigenous Foods in Decline? A Study on Changing Consumption Patterns Within the Barolong Boo Ratshidi Community, Northwest Province of South Africa

ABSTRACT This study examines changes in food consumption patterns within African communities, with specific reference to the Barolong Boo Ratshidi community in the Northwest Province of South Africa. The study uses a qualitative approach through in-depth interviews conducted with members of this community (or participants) to understand their views of food and consumption patterns. It also sought to understand the participants’ understanding of the factors behind these changes and their effects as well as their understanding of the meanings underlying indigenous African foods. It was found that contrary to the widely held view that only the elderly members of communities are endeared to indigenous foods, this is not so because the youth also express preference for these foods while embracing changes that have effect on their consumption. This is so even though many of the youth are ignorant of the cultural meanings of indigenous African foods served on different occasions. Their enthusiasm for these foods is seen as an optimistic basis for future efforts meant to revitalize them.

The use of ICT resources to transform teaching at secondary schools in the Bojanala district, Northwest province

In the study reported on here I investigated how teachers used available information and communications technology (ICT) resources to transform teaching and learning in the Bojanala district in the Northwest province of South Africa. The Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework enabled understanding of how the use of available ICT resources transforms teaching and learning. I adopted a qualitative, multiple case study research design which was grounded in the interpretive paradigm. Eight teachers were purposefully sampled – 6 men and 2 women. Semi-structured interviews, non-participant observation and document analysis were the data collection strategies. Data analysis was done according to Creswell’s 4 pillars of data analysis. Ethics was maintained using voluntary participation, informed consent, confidentiality, and anonymity. The results reveal limited use of ICT resources to transform teaching. It is recommended that ongoing, in-service training on using ICT resources should be done to assist teachers to transform their lesson delivery. Again, schools should be provided with ICT policies to guide them on how to transform teaching using ICT resources.

Misogynistic Influences of Female Managers in Local Governments: A Social Construction or Lived Experience

There is a disdain for women in leadership positions in South African local government, and this can be attributed to manifold factors. Some of these factors may include distrust of women’s capacity or capability and leadership styles, flexibility and consultation in decision-making, issues of values and ethos, demography and social class, and political considerations in South African local government system. The objective of this article is to (1) explore gender roles in South African local government systems, (2) assess distrust of women in leadership positions in South African local government, and (3) explore how the male boss syndrome suppresses the creativity and efficiency of women in leadership positions in South African local governments. Data for this study were derived from female managements in several municipalities in the Northwest Province of South Africa. The findings demonstrate that innovation and a creative mindset are overlooked by male leaders in local government, simply because they emanate from a woman. Further, while women are hailed and acknowledged for their successes in business, science, technology, and innovation, and even have been considered for the presidency, at government levels, the sentiments are different, in that males in the sector consider the local parlance as a settlement for the liberation struggle. In conclusion, the transformation of gender relations may not be dramatic, but disruptions can quicken the process.

Maize rhizosphere modulates the microbiome diversity and community structure to enhance plant health

Metagenomic has been explored in investigating microbiome diversity. However, there is limited available information on its application towards securing plant health. Hence, this study adopts the metagenomic approach to unravel the microbiome diversity associated with healthy (LI and MA) and Northern corn leaf blight (NCLB) infected (LID and MAD) maize rhizosphere in the maize growing field at Lichtenburg and Mafikeng, North-West province of South Africa. The extraction of whole DNA from the respective healthy and diseased rhizosphere soils was conducted and sequenced using shotgun metagenomics. A total of 12 bacteria, 4 archaea and 2 fungal phyla were found as predominant across the fields with the use of the SEED subsystem database. The most predominant bacteria phyla included Proteobacteria, Dienococcus-Thermus, Gemmatimonadetes, Chlorobi, Cyanobacteria, Planctomycetes, Verrucomicrobia, Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, Chloroflexi and Bacteroidetes. Archaea consisted of Euryarchaeota, Thaumarchaeota, Crenarchaeota and Korachaeota, while Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were the dominant fungal phyla. Microbial abundance and diversity were higher in the rhizosphere of healthy maize (LI and MA) rhizosphere as compared to the NCLB diseased (LID and MAD), in the order LI > MA > LID > MAD. At phylum and genus level, alpha diversity index showed no significant (p > 0.05) difference in the abundance of the microbial community of healthy and NCLB infected maize rhizosphere, while beta analysis produced a significant (p = 0.01) difference in the microbial diversity in the soil. Taken together, the study revealed that the abundance of microbial diversity in the maize rhizosphere influences the efficacy of the rhizosphere microbiome to modulate microbial functions towards managing and sustaining plant health.