South Africa Research Articles

Young people becoming intimate on social media: Digital desires and gender dynamics

Digital technologies are shaping young people’s intimate relationships in profound ways, yet we have little knowledge of these experiences from the Global South. Drawing from a qualitative study, this article examines how 16-19-year-old South Africans make meaning of gender and sexuality through digital intimate practices. The study finds that digital intimacies are facilitated through producing and sharing of sexual content through sexting, video calls, selfies, nudes and emojis. Together they serve as affective entities in enhancing intimate connections expanding what we know of young people’s online sexual activities. However, we also draw attention to enduring patterns of male dominance within digital practices where girls’ online activities are curtailed by heterosexual oppressive relations of power. We contribute to the emerging research in South Africa advocating for the need for greater emphasis on young people and digital sexual intimacies beyond the current framing of risk and danger in order to promote healthy young sexualities.

The Impact of Education and Employment on Economic Competitiveness: A Comparative Analysis of South African Provinces

This study examines the economic competitiveness of South Africa’s nine provinces in terms of job creation and the role of education in enhancing economic development. Utilizing data from the 2010–2019 Quarterly Labour Force Survey and GDP Quarterly Estimates per Region Reports, regression and correlation analyses were conducted. Results revealed a significant correlation between education, economic competitiveness and employment in Western Cape, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Limpopo. These results highlight the importance of investing in education. By prioritizing educational investments in provinces where significant positive correlations have been observed, targeted interventions can effectively drive regional economic development and job growth.

Effect of a cash transfer intervention on memory decline and dementia probability in older adults in rural South Africa

Effect of a cash transfer intervention on memory decline and dementia probability in older adults in rural South Africa

Artificial Intelligence as an opportunity or a curriculum trajectory in the 21st century? Towards embracing unfamiliar discourses

This theoretical paper contributes to the ongoing debate on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in relation to curriculum and implementation in post-colonial South Africa. We contend that AI, as perceived, conceived, and implemented within the curriculum space, presents an ambivalent terrain marked by fear, uncertainty, and anxiety among stakeholders, as its presence has interfered with the everyday work of educational practitioners. Cognizant of this problem, we locate our theorisation within the framework of Sustainable Learning Environments and address two questions: (1) What are the opportunities of AI in relation to the curriculum in post-colonial South Africa? (2) What challenges are faced in the implementation of AI, especially in rural contexts where technological opportunities are not equivalent to those in urban areas? In this paper, we highlight that while AI tools like ChatGPT may appear daunting for integration into teaching and learning—potentially undermining educators' authority and raising ethical concerns—there is an urgent need to rethink and restructure teacher education. This restructuring should align with the evolving demands of an AI-enhanced curriculum and address the shifting expectations in educational contexts.

The price of fairness: Experimental evidence on the limits to demand for redistribution

How far are people willing to go to reduce inequality and enact what they perceive as a fair distribution of income? We address this question in South Africa, one of the most unequal countries in the world, where questions of fairness and redistribution are part of everyday considerations. We carry out an experiment where a third-party stakeholder is paired with two “workers” and makes a series of redistributive decisions over their earnings. These redistributive decisions carry varying personal costs to the stakeholder, and the inequality in worker payout is also varied. Additionally, we randomly vary the source of inequality: luck or merit. We show that stakeholders’ willingness to redistribute increases with initial pay inequality and decreases with personal cost to redistribute. The source of inequality also makes a difference, with higher redistribution in the luck treatment. The source matters less at higher levels of inequality, suggesting a degree of aversion to extreme disparities, even when payouts are seen as rightfully earned. On the other hand, the effect of stakeholders’ personal cost does not interact with the source of inequality, indicating a robust self-interest motivation. The interplay of these effects can result in significantly different levels of post-redistribution inequality. We suggest that substantial redistribution might be acceptable to most as a tool for reducing high inequality - such as that observed in South Africa - especially when income allocation is deemed unfair. However, self-interest may be a significant limiting factor.

Total electricity generation dynamics analysis and renewable energy impacts in South Africa

AbstractThis research explores the dynamics of total electricity generation (TEG) in South Africa through an analysis of data from the International Energy Agency database from 1990 to 2020. A comprehensive examination of various energy sources, including coal, oil, biofuels, nuclear, hydro, solar photovoltaic (PV), solar thermal, and wind, is conducted to ascertain their respective contributions to TEG. Employing the R software environment, the study employs a methodical analytical framework encompassing meticulous data preparation, statistical analysis, and model formulation. The data preparation phase involves intricate processes such as structuring, cleansing, and visualization aimed at eliminating stochastic variables and outliers. Missing data are addressed through the application of the Piecewise Cubic Hermite Interpolating Polynomial method. Subsequent statistical analyses are informed by tests for normality and homogeneity of variance, revealing deviations from normality and disparate variances across energy source groups. Consequently, non‐parametric methodologies such as the Kruskal–Wallis test are adopted. Findings underscore the significant role of nuclear energy in TEG despite facing challenges. Model development entails the construction of multiple linear regression models with varying predictor sizes, with Model m06 emerging as the optimal choice, incorporating key predictors such as coal, nuclear, and solar PV. Rigorous diagnostic assessments confirm the robustness of Model m06 and its suitability for TEG prediction. Comparative analysis against actual data validates its superior performance, characterized by minimal errors and high predictive accuracy. The efficacy of Model m06 in capturing TEG dynamics underscores its utility for informing energy planning initiatives. Recommendations derived from the study advocate for prioritizing renewable energy integration, infrastructure investment, research endeavors, monitoring mechanisms, and public awareness campaigns to advance sustainable energy development goals in South Africa.

How to Assess Livelihoods? Critical Reflections on the Use of Common Indicators to Capture Socioeconomic Outcomes for Ecological Restoration workers in South Africa

AbstractSocial outcomes from conservation and development activities on a local scale are often assessed using five livelihood assets—Natural, Physical, Human, Financial and Social—and their associated indicators. These indicators, and the variables used to measure them, are typically based on ‘common practice’ with limited attention being paid to the use of alternative indicators. In this article, we present a typical survey of socioeconomic benefits for ecological restoration workers in South Africa, and ask whether the common livelihood indicators used are adequate and sufficient, or whether any relevant indicators are missing. Results from the livelihood survey show the value of income, food and education as strong indicators of financial and human assets, and the importance of open-ended questions in eliciting details of workers’ perceived changes in their livelihoods. However, by complementing the survey results with qualitative data from semi-structured interviews and stakeholder workshops, we show how unconventional livelihood indicators and aspects provide a deeper understanding of changes in livelihoods that are tied to restoration projects. We guide scholars and practitioners to advance their process of selecting livelihood indicators, in particular to include three additional types of indicators: intangible indicators to assess life quality; relative indicators reaching across spatial and temporal scales to capture community outcomes and livelihood resilience; and, political indicators to uncover causal relationships.

Implementing B-BBEE: Leader Experiences in the South African Banking Industry

Orientation: Large banking institutions in South Africa remain complex organisations facing a myriad of challenges as they navigate the Fifth Industrial Revolution (5IR) and strive to remain relevant. A significant challenge relates to how these organisations can utilise Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) to create diverse and inclusive teams for organisational success and sustainability.Research purpose: To explore the experiences and sense-making processes of senior leaders tasked with the implementation of affirmative action as part of a B-BBEE strategy as they navigate this responsibility within a South African bank.Motivation for the study: To shine on the complex experiences of senior leaders tasked with implementing affirmative action within a B-BBEE strategy in a large financial institution.Research approach/design and method: A qualitative interpretivist case study was applied to explore senior leaders’ negotiation of their perceptions and experiences of leading the implementation of B-BBEE in a large bank. Ten semi-structured interviews were utilised as the main data generation tool.Main findings: Study reveals how senior leaders hold strong convictions about the value of diversity and inclusion in the workplace. This included the continued necessity for legislation such as B-BBEE given South Africa’s racial history and existing personal biases that impact workplace diversity and inclusion. The study further reveals that senior leaders believe that B-BBEE is poorly implemented and attribute this to the tension leaders experience between diversity and performance, a lack of organisational policies and practices required to hold leaders accountable for B-BBEE implementation and leaders who lack the skills and expertise required to successfully create diverse and inclusive work environments.Practical/managerial implications: Positive contributions to diversity and inclusion policies and practices, leadership development and transformation of the banking organisations in South Africa and the industry at large.Contribution/value-add: Banking institutions as large market players can play a significant role in leading workplace transformation through improved implementation of diversity and inclusion legislation and principles within B-BBEE.

Exploring the Implementation of UNESCO's MAB Program in South Africa: A Case Study of the Cape Winelands Biosphere Reserve.

The Man and the Biosphere Program (MAB) responds to challenges of the Anthropocene through an explicit social-ecological approach. Implemented as a world network of biosphere reserves, MAB aims to increase [eco]system sustainability and resilience globally, via individual model sites for learning and sustainable development. This research provides an in-depth case study of MAB implementation in South Africa using the Cape Winelands Biosphere Reserve (CWBR), established in 2007 when a key MAB guiding policy, the Madrid Action Plan came into effect. The study utilized semi-structured in-depth interviews with strategic and operational management, and document analysis. The CWBR prioritizes their role as a landscape coordinator, a driver of socio-economic development and site in which humans derive benefits from healthy natural environments. The CWBR have adopted a non-profit organization cooperative governance model in support of this vision, fulfilling the socio-economic development function primarily through successful international partnerships. Challenges faced include a perceived lack of sufficient government support, limited stakeholder awareness and insufficient resources for project implementation. Over reliance on the pillar of their model, the chief executive officer in the current governance form, is an instrument in their effectiveness, yet carries significant risk. These are learnings useful for other biosphere reserves translating an international designation for a local context.

South Africa’s Haymarket: the Knights of Labor and political violence in the United States and South Africa, 1886–1892

Abstract This article compares and connects two episodes of political violence in the late nineteenth century: the Haymarket Affair in Chicago in 1886 and the bombing of the offices of the De Beers Company, chaired by Cecil Rhodes, at Kimberley on the South African diamond fields in 1891. These episodes were connected by the existence in both countries of an American and then global movement, the Knights of Labor/Labour. The Knights’ American history was shaped by Haymarket. Their South African history was radically altered by the De Beers explosion, which both the Knights and their enemies interpreted through the prism of Haymarket. They drew lessons from it that determined their own conduct and may have contributed to the demise of the South African Knights less than two years later. This article charts those connections and the context to the De Beers explosion, the trial that followed, and the lessons that South African Knights drew from the experiences of their American brothers and sisters.

Evaluation of Drug and Herbal Medicinal Promotions on Social Media During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Relation to World Health Organization Ethical Criteria and South African Health Products Regulatory Authority Guidelines in South Africa: Cross-Sectional Content Analysis.

Consideration of ethics in the promotion of medications is essential to safeguard the health of consumers, particularly during health crises. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) have established stringent standards to ensure the integrity of pharmaceutical promotions and safeguard public health, including advertisements on the internet and social media platforms. However, the dynamic nature of online advertising poses challenges for monitoring and enforcing ethical standards. The study aimed (1) to examine the COVID-19 drug and medicinal promotions across online platforms and social media from 2020 to 2022 in South Africa and (2) to ensure that drug promotions adhere to ethical guidelines outlined by the WHO and SAPHRA. A cross-sectional content analysis was conducted to assess drug and medicinal advertisements across various internet and social media platforms. A systematic approach was used to identify and analyze promotional content, focusing on adherence to ethical guidelines outlined by WHO and SAPHRA. Data were collected and analyzed to determine the extent of compliance and identify any potential violations or areas for improvement. A total of 14 online drug advertisements were included in this analysis. Our findings show that most of the drugs advertised did not meet the regulations and guidelines provided by WHO and SAHPRA. There were omissions about active ingredients, proprietary names, adverse drug responses, precautions, and overdosage and adverse drug reactions. Traditional medicines were not fully consistent with the approved WHO ethical criteria data sheet. Our analysis highlights the critical importance of ensuring compliance with ethical guidelines in drug promotions on the internet and social media platforms. There is a need for continued vigilance and enforcement efforts to uphold ethical standards and protect the health of the public. Ongoing monitoring and collaboration between national drug regulatory agencies, pharmaceutical companies, and online platforms will be essential for promoting responsible advertising. In addition, safety monitoring and pharmacovigilance systems for herbal medicinal products are yet to be established.

The Role of the U.S. Dollar in Global Trade Finance: A Study of Its Dominance and Future Prospects

This paper digs deep on what reason has led the U.S. dollar to be a dominant force for years mainly due to its stability, liquidity, and greater usage within international markets. It has made it the world's reserve currency did not just serve as an enabler for far-flung international trades and investments but also led to the establishment of the United States in terms of standing in economic and geopolitical standing. Historical factors concerning the dollar's increasing popularity over time are addressed in this paper-from the post- WWII establishment of the Bretton Woods system to the moments well after the death of the gold standard. It further explores shifting threats to the supremacy of the dollar and key drivers that might change the financial environment in the world. These are the economic ascension of emerging markets, particularly China, seeking to internationalize the yuan; extension of the BRICS bloc, composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, and their joint thrust toward depolarization. Digital currencies and blockchain technology provide an emerging alternative that would allow countries to bypass traditional banking systems or lessen their dependency on the dollar when making cross-border transactions. The discussion explores how geopolitical stress - whether a trade war or the imposition of sanctions, as examples - may push the shift away from the dollar, based on a focus on increasing foreign reserves' diversity and insulation against the over-reach of the US. In addition, the paper went through how adjustments in global financial regulation, technological innovation, and central banks' policies may have an impact on the safe-haven status the dollar enjoys. Through a combination of both quantitative and qualitative methods, this paper examines the continued relevance of the dollar at the international level in terms of trade and finance. Indeed, it envisions possible scenarios: the continued reign of the dollar, the emergence of rival currencies, and the new politics of global economic crises over currency dynamics. But if nothing else, it provides a more refined and multi- dimensional view of what is going on with the dollar today and what may go on in the future in an increasingly multipolar world economy. These insights will be critical when policymakers, financial institutions, and global businesses negotiate their way through uncertainty in changing currency landscapes. Keywords: U.S. dollar, global trade, finance reserve, currency economic, uncertainty emerging economies, digital currencies, geopolitical shifts currency competition.

Environmental DNA metabarcoding in the Cape Fold aquatic ecoregion: Opportunities and challenges for eDNA uptake in an endemism hotspot

Abstract Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding has the potential to significantly improve surveys of biodiversity in freshwater systems. However, this methodology is still infrequently used in global hotspots of endemic species, in part because of two major barriers to the success of eDNA metabarcoding: (1) insufficient regional taxonomic representation in public reference sequence databases; and (2) inconsistent species incidence and abundance estimates when compared to conventional surveys. We sampled eDNA and conducted visual surveys in the headwaters of two rivers in the Cape Fold aquatic ecoregion, South Africa. A reference sequence database was generated for the regional diversity of fishes to improve taxonomic classification of endemic species. We also compared the consistency of incidence data and relative abundance estimates of fishes from eDNA metabarcoding sequencing results and visual surveys (snorkel and underwater cameras) at each site sampled. Only 1% of eDNA metabarcoding reads could be classified to fish species without the supplementation of reference sequence databases for local endemic species. Once regional reference sequences were added, a total of nine species were detected and >99% reads classified. A strong positive relationship (Φ = 0.75) was observed between the patterns of detections using eDNA and visual approaches. However, eDNA metabarcoding detected more species than visual methods. In addition, the relative read frequency and abundance observed in visual surveys was significantly correlated (R2 = 0.85–0.88, p < 0.001) in the majority of the small pools surveyed. Incomplete public reference sequence databases hinder the use of eDNA metabarcoding in regions of high endemicity. Local reference sequence libraries can overcome these challenges. When appropriately implemented, eDNA metabarcoding shows promise, producing results consistent or better than the more frequently used and labour‐intensive visual surveys. Efficient survey methods like eDNA metabarcoding are urgently needed to improve aquatic monitoring efforts globally. Understanding how eDNA metabarcoding sequencing results relate to conventional survey methods is a key step in its implementation in ecoregions with high endemicity.

The Epistemic Codification of Satiric Indictment and the Decrying Gender Grotesque in Winnie Madikizela-Mandela’s 491 Days and the Zimbabwean Maverick Movie Neria

Language, law, and literatures have at times discernibly and theatrically attempted the development of satire in academic discourses. They have raised a poignant question on the articulation of gender in society. Critical discourses have valorised the epistemic exegesis on how language is transfigured and re-interpreted to spur the dramaturgy and trajectory of gender through autobiography, biography, fiction, and movies. This article crystallises the societal perception of how satire has been used to ridicule and make distinctions by invoking scorn and pity on both men and women in society. The article probes the sensitivity of contemporary male obsessions with phallic power under an apartheid government. It dovetails through the existing epistemic configurations exhibited to recuperate women in revoking the phallocentric codifications in Winnie Madikizela-Mandela’s epoch-making autobiography, 491 Days (1969). With the symbolic, ironic, iconic, and satiric prison number of “1322/69,” Winnie Madikizela-Mandela’s anti-apartheid autobiography re-invokes the male imperative devices built up for years against vulnerable Black females and weak Black males in the apartheid South African regime. Similarly, the same epistemic vein and codification are obsessively projected by possessed and aggressive phallic patriarchs in the Zimbabwean film Neria (1992). The article relies on the theory of Nawal El Saadawi, which proposes confrontation on the questions of female polarisation, women’s objectification, and the quest for resistance against legally recognised social exegesis. This includes the application of coercive force and the rejection of satiric linguistic indictments against women and the weak as exemplified in the autobiographic and filmic works from South Africa and Zimbabwe.

Investigating Radon Concentrations in the Cango Cave, South Africa

Investigating Radon Concentrations in the Cango Cave, South Africa

Two hundred years of indigenous literature in South Africa

As far back as the 1860s, Tiyo Soga wrote about the need to collect and write stories about African pasts so that they could be deposited in newspaper archives, which could become a ‘big corn pit’ of knowledge for the nation. His biographer noted that he was sometimes up after midnight in a hut, ‘notebook in hand’, learning from ‘wrinkled countrymen of his own’ about the past. Izibongo zoogxa, a compilation of some of the writings of Samuel Edward Krune (S.E.K.) Mqhayi, one of the most important figures in the history of Xhosa literature, is part of the multigenerational harvest that Soga envisaged, and there are two special reasons to celebrate its publication.

Miscegenation Madness

Abstract In this article, I examine how the fear of miscegenation developed as a raison d’être for the construction and maintenance of apartheid. I argue that despite its efficacy at reproducing racial-caste formations, miscegenation taboo ultimately undermined its own hegemonic mythology by constructing contradictory erotic desires and subjectivities which could neither be governed nor contained. I consider how miscegenation fears and fantasies were debated in public discourse, enacted into law, institutionalized through draconian policing and punishment practices, culturally entrenched, yet negotiated and resisted through everyday intimacies. While crime statistics show that most incidences of interracial sex involved White men and women of color, the perceived threat to “White purity” was generally represented through images of White women—volks-mothers and daughters—in the Afrikaner nationalist iconography. White women’s wombs symbolized the future of “Whiteness.” This article offers a critique of the prevailing South African “exceptionalism” paradigm in apartheid studies. Detailed analyses of government commission reports (1939, 1984, 1985) and parliamentary debate records (1949) reveal considerable American influence on South Africa’s “petty apartheid” laws, and especially the Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act (1949) and Immorality Amendment Act (1950). While these “cornerstone” policies of apartheid developed from local socio-political conflicts and economic tensions, they were always entangled in global racial formations, rooted in trans-oceanic histories of slavery, dispossession, and segregation. This historical anthropological study of race/sex taboo builds on interdisciplinary literatures in colonial history, sociology, postcolonial studies, literary theory, art history, cultural studies, feminist theory, queer studies, and critical race theory.

Balancing policy objectives: Cambodia's COVID‐19 emergency cash assistance scheme for workers

AbstractWelfare programs in emerging economies are, in most cases, highly selective. This article illustrates this point by exploring Cambodia's emergency cash assistance scheme coverage for workers affected by the COVID‐19 pandemic. Drawing on policy analysis and interviews with government officials, industry representatives, and garment and tourism unions, it analyzes the level of benefit and efficacy of the initiative for different groups of workers. Based on this analysis, we find that garment factory and tourism workers received better support than workers in other sectors as a consequence of industry lobbying and strategic decision‐making on the part of the government designed to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on those sectors. Our analysis also reveals, however, that the relatively informal nature of even formal‐sector workplaces in Cambodia meant that the scheme's impact was highly varied even among these targeted groups of workers. We conclude with a discussion of the findings' broader implications.Related ArticlesAsongu, Simplice, and Nicholas M. Odhiambo. 2023. “The Effect of Inequality on Poverty and Severity of Poverty in Sub‐Saharan Africa: The Role of Financial Development Institutions.” Politics & Policy 51(5): 898–918. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12558.Lachapelle, Erick, Thomas Bergeron, Richard Nadeau, Jean‐François Daoust, Ruth Dassonneville, and Éric Bélanger. 2021. “Citizens' Willingness to Support New Taxes for COVID‐19 Measures and the Role of Trust.” Politics & Policy 49(3): 534–65. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12404.Onyango, Gedion, and Japheth Otieno Ondiek. 2022. “Open Innovation during the COVID‐19 Pandemic Policy Responses in South Africa and Kenya.” Politics & Policy 50(5): 1008–31. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12490.

Assessment of SADC Countries’ National Adaptation Planning Health Impacts Inclusion: A Thorough Review

Background: The impacts of climate change are recognised as a key challenge of the 21st century. By 2030, Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to have the globally highest burden of disease due to climate change. Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), a sub-region under-represented at a global level, in addressing current and future climate change–related health impacts. It specifically assesses the NAPs of Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. Methods: A thorough review was conducted, analysing articles, government reports, and national communications related to NAPs and climate change health outcomes in the selected countries. Sources were evaluated against pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Main findings: All five countries prioritised health in their NAPs; however, health departments were excluded from assessments in two of the countries. Although health surveillance and early warning systems were included in the NAPs, there was limited evidence of their integration into broader climate, health, economic, and labour policies. National climate change focal points were identified, but governance and implementation at district and local levels were not well-documented. This review highlighted a need for greater inclusion of Indigenous and locally led knowledge. Common barriers identified included the lack of data with appropriate frequency and scale. Governance and implementation difficulties were also identified in all five countries; these difficulties included both a lack of coordination and a lack of institutional capacity. These challenges, especially a lack of political will to address the compound impacts of altered climate and health on all earth systems, are also found at the regional level. Conclusions: National strategies and implementation programs in SADC countries need to be agile in their ability to scale and adapt, yet they also need to include measurable actions and timeframes. Given the shared climate and health trends and the interconnected socio-economic, environmental, and political landscape, there is significant potential for regional coordination to address cross-border climate change impacts and to optimise resource use.

Determinants and convergence of biodiversity or extinction disclosures of mining firms in Africa

This study probes into the biodiversity disclosure practices of mining firms in Africa, the determinants and the evidence of convergence using information economics analysis. Data was sourced from 21 mining firms covering the period 2006 to 2019 operating in Morocco and South Africa with various mine sites owned in other countries like Ghana. Using a combination of panel-corrected standard errors regression, logistic regression and the test of beta and sigma-convergence, the study found that there is a moderate level of biodiversity disclosure across African mining firms and there is both beta and sigma-convergence. The study found that board size enhances disclosures on all biodiversity indicators, viz, biodiversity disclosure index, 304-1 (proximity of sites to biodiversity hotspots) being the most disclosed, followed by 304-3 (habitats protected or restored), 304-4 (IUCN Red List Species) and 304-2 (impact of activities on biodiversity). Generally, board size drives biodiversity disclosures but board independence does not. Additionally, the membership of the United Nations Global Compact, a multistakeholder initiative significantly affects every disclosure indicator. Financial leverage drives the disclosure of 3 indicators. Other factors like firm size, multinational enterprise status, profitability, cross-listing, human capital development, and gross domestic product were explored. The results of the analyses are relevant for practitioners, policymakers, regulators and academics alike.