State of the Gauteng City-Region review 2011

This report is associated with an online interactive website which provides the State of the Gauteng City Region review 2011 in full. Link to http://2011.legacy.gcro.unomena.net/This 'State of the GCR' Review aims to contribute to ideas around how to build an integrated, sustainable and globally competitive city-region which provides more equal opportunities and a better quality of life for all its residents. The Review offers image- and map-rich representations of the considerable datasets and information that GCRO has collected and produced on the GCR, providing an overview of the key dynamics and trends affecting the economy, society, governance and environment of a city-region that is predicted to be the twelfth largest in the world by 2015. The State of the GCR is intended as both an information base and a platform for debate for all stakeholders in the region – government, business, academics and residents – around how to build on the region’s advantages and address its challenges, including rapid urbanisation and migration, poverty, and unequal distribution of wealth. GCRO’s 2011 State of the GCR Review was formally launched on Monday 17 October 2011. A second review, State of the GCR Review 2013, was launched in October 2013.Gauteng City-Region Observatory: the city-region review 2011 © GCRO / Authors: David Everatt, Graeme Gotz, Annsilla Nyar, Sizwe Phakathi and Chris Wray with editorial support from Maryna Storie. Conceptual design and execution ITL Communication & Design./The GCRO is a partnership of the University of Johannesburg, the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and the Gauteng Provincial Government

THE ALEXANDRA TOWNSHIP DE DENSIFICATION PROJECT DURING THE COVID 19 CRISIS: CHALLENGES AND POTENTIAL LESSONS

In response to the Covid-19 (hereafter referred to as ‘virus’) pandemic, the South Africa government established different measures to try to slow down the spread of the virus. One of the strategies was to focus on population density, specifically in informal settlements. The argument was that high population density in informal settlements could increase the risk of transmission of the virus. The Bloomberg CityLab reported in 2020 that urban density does play a role in the transmission of the virus.1 South Africa is no exception, as its major metropolitan areas have borne the brunt of Covid-19 infections, with Cape Town and Johannesburg classified as epicentres. However, there is debate amongst scholars and policy-makers as to whether de-densification is a good strategy, given the various ways in which urban life benefits from higher population densities, and whether density does or does not increase the spread of the virus

Perioperative outcomes of women with advanced ovarian cancer: A comparison of two historic cohorts at Tygerberg Academic Hospital

Thesis (MMed) -- Stellenbosch University, 2024.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Aim: To review the perioperative mortality and morbidity in the treatment of stage IIIC/IV epithelial ovarian cancer by comparing the number and the type of perioperative complications occurring in patients who were treated with primary cytoreduction followed by chemotherapy vs patients who were treated with neoadjuvant therapy followed by interval debulking surgery. Method: It is a quantitative descriptive retrospective study that will compare two cohort groups. The first group will consist of patients that were treated with primary cytoreduction followed by chemotherapy between 2007 to 2010. The second group will consist of patients that were subjected to neoadjuvant chemotherapy before cytoreduction between 2017 and 2020. Approximately 50 patients are diagnosed with and treated at Tygerberg Academic Hospital per year. Women who were admitted to Tygerberg Academic Hospital with stage IIIC/IV epithelial ovarian cancer in a period between 2007 and 2010 and 2017 to 2020. The study was conducted at the oncology unit which serves as a secondary and tertiary referral Centre. The drainage area has a catchment population of 2.5-3 million. The population size will be 60 per group. All patients with advanced ovarian cancer who were diagnosed in the specified period were included in the study. Data was collected using a data collection tool from the patients' files and oncology booklets. Participants were allocated numbers to maintain confidentiality and anonymity. Perioperative parameters that determine survival were looked at. Results: The mean age of patients at diagnosis was 50-59. Most of them were postmenopausal. Eighteen percent had a family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer. Most of the patients did not have co-morbid conditions and had a good functional status (ASA1). Patients were mostly diagnosed with stage IIIc disease. They had a good nutritional status as indicated by haemoglobin and a good renal function. The study showed that patients who received neoadjuvant therapy had a higher chance of complete cytoreduction at surgery and that the blood loss was less than in patients who had primary cytoreduction. However, there was increased chance of adhesions in the NACT. Conclusion: Ovarian cancer has the highest mortality among the gynaecological malignancies. It is often diagnosed when patients have advanced disease already, as it does not have specific symptoms. There are no screening tests. The standard of care is primary surgery with the aim of removing all visible tumor R0. However, if the tumour cannot be completely excised at surgery, neoadjuvant chemotherapy has a role to play. Identifying and optimizing patients before surgery can assist in improving the perioperative morbidity and mortality.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Geen opsomming beskikbaar.Master

A new approach to measure the impact of sanitation programmes

A new approach to measure the impact of sanitation programme

Institutional innovations for improved water security in smallholder irrigation schemes in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape Provinces, South Africa

Smallholder irrigation schemes are regarded as a key strategy to eliminate poverty and increase food security in rural areas in South Africa. While the South African government has invested heavily in rural development schemes, most irrigation schemes face a myriad of challenges, including deficient infrastructure, weak institutional arrangements and water insecurity. Weak institutions have been identified as a major bottleneck in the performance of smallholder irrigation schemes in developing countries, including South Africa. Two main reasons have been identified for this challenge. Firstly, the agency of the irrigators was ignored during the design of the schemes. Treating farmers as passive rather than active agents resulted in institutional arrangements that were not context-specific, as well as weak farmer commitment to the ownership and management of the schemes, leading to system breakdown. Despite being noble in intention or design, institutions designed by outsiders often fail due to a lack of legitimacy. Secondly, institutions have failed to evolve to cope with dynamic challenges and opportunities in the sector. Stability over a reasonable period is required for institutions to effectively perform their crucial role of establishing reasonable expectations in dealings among people. Institutional innovations are required to keep up with the changing nature of development. In particular, farmer-led institutional innovations have been touted as key to improving the management of water resources in irrigation schemes. Farmer-led institutional innovation refers to a process, in which farmers themselves initiate, establish, and improve institutions based on their context-specific challenges or opportunities. Farmers’ groups are regarded as an important institutional arrangement to reduce transaction costs, improve social networks, and increase livelihood outcomes. However, little is known about the internal dynamics of these farmer groups, how they operate, and whether or not they are inclusive and innovative, as well as what makes certain groups more successful than others. Furthermore, there is a paucity of research on whether these farmer groups embrace institutional innovations to improve water security and strengthen their design principles that are crucial for collective action. It is against this background that this study aimed to examine the internal group dynamics within the farmer groups; determine whether smallholder farmers are capable of implementing institutional innovations that are novel, useful and legitimate; determine the nature of these innovations (incremental or radical) and their role in improving water security. The main theories that underpinned the study were induced institutional innovation theory, collective action theory, random utility theory and Ostrom’s eight design principles. Multistage sampling was used to collect data from 28 farmer groups and 401 irrigators in smallholder irrigation schemes in KwaZulu-Natal (Tugela Ferry and Mooi River) and the Eastern Cape (Qamata and Zanyokwe). Data were gathered by means of focus group discussions, key informant interviews and household surveys. Several empirical tools were employed to analyse the data (descriptive statistics, thematic analysis, logit model, propensity score matching, PCA and OLS). The study found that group membership was associated with higher levels of water access, adoption of inorganic fertiliser, incomes and assets. Group members had an additional four days’ access to water in a month and applied at least 130 kg/ha more inorganic fertiliser than non-group members. Group members also had a higher household income per capita and more assets than non-group members. However, the results revealed a heterogeneous effect among group members, with the benefits varying according to members’ socio-economic characteristics as well as internal group dynamics. The results suggest that organising farmers into groups should be promoted to improve farmers’ access to productive assets such as water, technology adoption and welfare outcomes. However, the study findings also indicate that smaller groups should be promoted, programmes targeted at empowering women should be prioritised, and that it is imperative to invest in improving farmers’ human capital through various training initiatives. The results indicated that farmers could develop and implement institutional innovations that are novel, useful and legitimate. Of the 28 groups, 21 (75%) had implemented institutional innovations in the past three years. Examples of innovations include, among others, the introduction of a secret voting system to improve marginalised people’s participation in decision-making processes, designing daily rotation rosters to reduce conflict, using an attendance register for participation in group activities, and rewarding members according to their participation levels. Most of these innovations were designed to improve the graduated sanction mechanism (22.2%), enhance the penalty system for non-compliance; improve collective action arrangements (27.8%); monitor attendance of group meetings (18.5%); democratise decision making; and ensure equitable water distribution. However, they mainly focused on addressing challenges rather than exploiting opportunities and were largely incremental (94%), involving an adjustment or reinterpretation of rules and regulations. Furthermore, the innovative groups were small in size and were dominated by male farmers. Based on these results, it is recommended that the government should build on the irrigators’ agency to improve the effectiveness and legitimacy of institutional arrangements in irrigation schemes. The findings also suggest that small groups should be actively promoted, while tailored training should be offered based on the groups’ specific needs to improve institutional innovations in the smallholder irrigation sector in South Africa. A positive association was established between belonging to an innovative group and water security, highlighting the importance of institutional innovations in water security. The propensity score matching indicated that water secure irrigators produced an additional 569-622 kg of maize and earned additional income of R2 037.81. The study’s findings suggest that organising farmers into groups is a promising strategy to improve farmers livelihoods and water security. The government and private donors should thus continue to promote the formation and organisation of farmers into groups. The innovative agency of the irrigators should be acknowledged and harnessed to strengthen institutional innovations. The focus should be on strengthening the institutions designed by farmers themselves, as these are locally contextualised and socially embedded, and hence legitimate. It is recommended that small groups should be actively promoted, while tailored training should be offered based on groups’ specific needs to improve institutional innovations in the smallholder irrigation sector in South Africa.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Commerce, Economics and Economic History, 202

Small-scale irrigation water use productivity and its role in diversifying rural livelihood options : case studies from Ndumo B and Makhathini irrigation schemes, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Master of Science in Agricultural Economics. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 2016.Abstract available in PDF file

Genetic characterization of pro-vitamin A and quality protein maize inbred lines and their derived hybrids.

M. Sc. Agric. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 2015.Maize is one of the most important crop plant, valued both as cereal and forage crop because of high nutrition and palatability. Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries are highly dependent on maize compared to other African countries and there is preference of white maize over orange maize, which leads to Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) crisis. Vitamin A deficiency can be alleviated by increasing pro-Vitamin A maize consumption rate in the population. In orange maize, Vitamin A is in the form of pro-Vitamin A, therefore crops with high content of pro-Vitamin A carotenoids are a promising strategy to alleviate Vitamin A content among disadvantaged populations. Lack of quality proteins in maize is another challenge faced the consumers of this staple crop in SSA. Therefore maize requires improvement in this regard. Quality protein maize (QPM) was developed from mutant maize with an opaque- 2 gene that improves amino acids; lysine and tryptophan. Lysine and tryptophan allow the body to manufacture complete proteins, and tryptophan lessens the prevalence of kwashiorkor in children. Studies clearly show that QPM could be superior to normal maize (NM) if used in the diet of humans. The objectives of this study were therefore to analyze the genetic diversity among the Pro-Vitamin A lines, Quality Protein Maize lines, and Normal Maize lines; to identify potential heterotic groups, and to evaluate their F1 hybrids. Twenty maize inbred lines were used in the study, comprising 13 Pro-Vitamin A; four QPM and three normal lines. The lines were genotyped with 93 SNP markers at the DNA Landmarks Laboratory in Canada. Data was analyzed using the PowerMarker version 3.25 statistical package. The hybrids were generated in a 4 X 10 North Carolina design II with reciprocal mating which resulted in 78 experimental hybrids with adequate seed for planting in trials. Three commercial hybrids were included as controls. The 81 hybrids was evaluated in a 9 x 9 alpha-lattice design with two replications at four sites in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The data collected was analyzed using Genstat. Out of 93 SNPs markers used, six of them were monomorphic and 87 polymorphic. The use of SNP markers was effective; the data set reflected the homogenously homozygous state of inbred lines and was able to determine the genetic diversity and distance. Inbred lines that showed the highest genetic distance were normal maize (DPVA17) and pro-Vitamin A (DPVA12) which was 0.54; and lowest genetic distance was observed between normal maize (DPVA19) and normal maize (DPVA18) which was 0.11. In the current study the higher genetic diversity was observed between previously identified groups and six potential heterotic groups were identified. Grain yield of the hybrids was highly significant at Cedara and Dundee, and not significant at Jozini and Ukulinga. The three economic traits (ear aspect, number of ears per plant, and grain moisture content) were significant at all sites. Genotype x environment interaction effects were observed. Performance of hybrids varied with sites. At Cedara, the highest performing experimental hybrid was 14PVAH-29, Dundee; 14PVAH-166, Jozini; 14PVAH-8, and Ukulinga; 14PVAH-50, respectively. Hybrid 14PVAH-139, 14PVAH-129, 14PVAH-149, and 14PVAH-10 were placed by three methods in top 10% stable hybrids, thus they are considered as the most stable hybrids. The current study showed that traits such as number of ears per plant, plant height, and ear aspect are strongly associated positively with yield, and that stem lodging, root lodging, and ear rot are negatively associated to yield. Although DNA molecular markers can be used in identifying heterotic groups, the relationship of genetic distance and hybrid vigour is still not well understood. Therefore, both molecular markers and conventional field trials (phenotyping) must be used to identify heterotic groups among pro-Vitamin A and quality protein maize. This would be crucial for devising breeding strategies for developing nutritionally rich maize hybrids