ResearchSpace
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The impact of independent smallholder irrigation on rural livelihoods in Msinga local municipality, KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa.
(2022) Dube, S'nethemba Valencia.; Caister , Karen Fern.
Independent irrigation is becoming more recognised in the research community and policy worldwide, apart from South Africa. It is associated with improving rural livelihoods by boosting household incomes and reducing poverty and food insecurities. South African literature sources on these irrigators do not present enough evidence to consider independent irrigation a reliable investment for irrigation development. In filling this gap, this research aimed to describe the livelihoods of independent irrigators and their contribution to rural livelihoods in Msinga Local Municipality. The study collected survey data from 101 irrigators selected using snowball sampling and four Focus Groups Discussions with participants chosen using a homogeneous purposive sample technique. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, inferential statistics, the Probit model, and Thematic Content Analysis.
The study revealed that irrigator households in this Msinga had a weak asset base. Irrigators had restricted access to agricultural land, and most irrigators suffered severe limitations in irrigation water availability due to the unpredictability of their irrigation water source, hampered by periodic droughts in the research region. Msinga’s restricted land access meant crop production activities were limited to microscale production, and irrigation water shortcomings further hindered Msinga's independent irrigation land productivity. In Msinga, the study found that the crop production physical assets were limited to hand tools, implying that the physical assets were sufficient for independent irrigators’ current production spaces but needed to be improved to engage in crop production on a larger scale. Typical of the livelihoods of rural households in South Africa, Msinga households were ‘diversified’ because they typically contained multiple ways of obtaining income but centred around claiming against the state. Production of independent irrigated land was the second most important income source. Despite all its shortcomings, independent irrigation increased average annual household income by R8 156.90, 15.3% of the total average household income. Crops harvested at the irrigation plot were also consumed at home, forming part of the food expenditure and the money from sales was used to purchase other food items. Even though the contribution was "limited", independent irrigation improved Msinga irrigator households’ livelihoods through income generation and security of food. With relevant interventions in supporting these irrigators, independent irrigation could be an appropriate development path for rural households with proper interventions.
Citizens’ movement and COVID-19 in Senegal: textual analysis of songs concerning COVID-19 by Y’en a marre and other Senegalese musicians.
(2026) Nomvete, Asithandile.; De Meyer, Bernard Albert Marcel Sylvain.
Y’en a marre is a social movement that emerged in Senegal in 2011 in reaction to widespread social injustices, corruption, and the inefficacy of President Abdoulaye Wade’s administration. Founded by rappers Thiat and Kilifeu together with journalist Cheikh Fadel Barro, the movement initially responded to recurring power outages in Dakar caused by state mismanagement of the energy sector. It rapidly gained momentum, mobilizing youth against unemployment, inequality, and corruption through grassroots activism and politically engaged music. Their civic interventions contributed significantly to Wade’s electoral defeat in 2012, cementing Y’en a marre as a central actor in Senegalese civil society. The Covid-19 pandemic marked a new stage in the trajectory of this movement. Restrictions on gatherings limited its traditional forms of protest, but Y’en a marre and affiliated artists adapted by channelling their activism into public health awareness campaigns. They composed songs that promoted hygiene, mask-wearing, and social distancing, thereby making crucial information accessible to populations with varying levels of literacy. In this way, music became both a medium of resistance and an instrument of health communication. As Ndiaye and Rowley (2022) argue, Senegalese musicians collectively contributed to a form of “COVIDliteracy” through songs that addressed preventive measures, symptoms, and broader social meanings of the pandemic. Building on this scholarship, my dissertation focuses on the
contributions of Y’en a marre and other Senegalese artists in order to examine how music was mobilized during the crisis.
The study pursues two central lines of inquiry: first, how Y’en a marre positioned itself in relation to state power during the pandemic, shifting from an oppositional stance to a more collaborative role in public health efforts; and second, what discursive strategies were employed by these artists to transmit preventive messages and encourage civic responsibility. By engaging these questions, the research highlights the adaptability of Senegalese musicians and activists who transformed cultural practices into tools for collective resilience. This dissertation thus situates Y’en a marre within the broader landscape of Senegalese musical activism during Covid-19, illustrating how art and activism intersected with public health. More broadly, it contributes to discussions on the role of social movements in times of crisis, 6 showing how music can transcend its artistic function to become a form of civic engagement and a vehicle for social change.
The exploration of FDI dynamics and economic growth in the context of South Africa.
(2024) Mbili, Thanduxolo Theophelus.; Tipoy, Christian Kakese.
The relationship between Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and economic growth has been the subject of extensive theoretical and empirical inquiry. While FDI is widely viewed as a potential catalyst for economic development through capital inflows, technolog ical spillovers, and productivity enhancements, the strength and direction of this relationship remain context dependent. In South Africa, a country characterized by structural inequalities, economic volatility, and a highly concentrated investment landscape, the role of FDI in stimulating sustained growth warrants closer examination. This study investigates the dynamic interrelationship between FDI and key macroeconomic variables-GDP, trade openness, real effective exchange rate, and household consumption-in South Africa over the period 1990Q1 to 2022Q4. Using a Bayesian Vector Autoregression (BVAR) framework, the analysis accounts for the complex, interdependent nature of macroeconomic interactions under conditions of limited sample size and parameter uncertainty. Impulse Response Functions (IRFs) are employed to evaluate the short- to medium-term effects of shocks to FDI on the broader economy. The results indicate that FDI shocks in South Africa exert limited and statistically weak effects on GDP, trade, exchange rates, and consumption. Forecast Error Variance Decomposition (FEVD) further confirms that FDI contributes marginally to explaining fluctuations in macroeconomic aggregates, with only a small and gradually increasing influence on GDP. These findings suggest that while FDI has some positive association with growth, it does not act as a dominant driver of macroeconomic performance. Consequently, policy strategies should focus not only on attracting FDI but also on improving domestic absorptive capacity, enhancing trade integration, and ensuring that investment inflows align with inclusive and sustainable development goals.
The relationship between marital status and wellbeing over the life course in South Africa.
(2025) Mazibuko , Samkelisiwe.; Vermaak , Claire Lauren.
Marriage has historically been the key institution for household formation, and research has shown a strong relationship between marital status and subjective well-being (SWB). Married individuals have consistency reported having higher levels of SWB than non-married, with marriage providing both economic and emotional support. The objective of this study is to investigate how marital status is related to SWB within the South African context where marriage rates are low and declining, and to investigate if this relationship changes over the life course. This research analyses five waves of panel data from the National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS). The analysis of this dissertation is done using transition matrices to observe how individuals switch between the different marital statuses, ordered logit models for the regressions and the fixed effect ordered logit estimator as a test of robustness. Demographic variables such as age, importance of religion, number of children and education were controlled for. The results suggest that individuals do not frequently transition between the different marital statuses in SA, which adds to the body of literature that suggests that in SA marriage or cohabiting rates are on a decline. Results also suggest that fundamentally, there is a significant relationship between marital status and SWB with those who are married reporting higher levels SWB. The significance of this relationship varies across genders, age cohorts and races. The significance also varies according to methodology and regression analysis used. Different possible mechanisms for the observed results are discussed in this dissertation including discussions on matters marital quality.
Monetary and macroprudential policy adopted in a model with house price booms.
(2025) Matambele , Arehone.; Msomi, Simiso Sinqumo Sanele Gary.
The coordination of monetary and macroprudential policies in stabilising housing market shocks continues to be a critical unresolved debate. This leaves Africa's high-debt emerging markets vulnerable to systemic risks and housing wealth volatility. There is a growing body of literature exploring new policy instruments that could be more effective in achieving financial stability. This need for efficiency and the correct macroprudential instrument underpins this study, which focuses on testing the joint use of two macroprudential instruments alongside monetary policy. To address
this gap, the study employs a DSGE model calibrated for South Africa’s literature. Furthermore, the study assumes a closed economy and thereby assesses the effectiveness of monetary policy and the macroprudential tools (LTV and CCyB) during house price booms. Findings suggest that coordination reduces house price volatility, where LTV is more effective in stabilising domestic credit and countercyclical buffers addressing external shocks; however, South Africa's housing market differences result in uneven effectiveness across income groups.