Browsing by Author "Vilakazi, Blessing Fika Mlondi."
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Item Exploring innovation platforms for local economic development in KwaZulu-Natal: an analysis of the Ugu South Coast Development Agency.(2021) Dube, Thabiso Brighton.; Vilakazi, Blessing Fika Mlondi.Challenges facing economies around the world have compounded the societal problems that have plagued communities. Developing economies have been advocating for local economic development as a solution to addressing some of the scourges brought about by stagnated growth. The negative impact of poverty, inequality and unemployment have been more entrenched in the less-developed world economies in the Global South. South Africa’s society has not been spared from the brunt of the stunted growth. It is one of the most unequal societies in the world with the unemployment rate now at 32.6% (Statistics South Africa [StatsSA], 2021). The study argues that innovative endeavours in Local Economic Development Agencies (LEDAs) ought to play a significant role in the advancement of localised economic development. The study, hence, sought to explore the extent to which innovation as a concept is employed across the entire operational spectrum of the Ugu South Coast Development Agency (USCDA). By understanding the LEDAs’ operational model, the research questions were answered. The central argument was that the USCDA needs to adopt innovation concepts in strategy formulation, fundraising, project implementation and in its monitoring and evaluation activities. Qualitative research methods were adopted in exploring the extent to which innovative endeavours are employed in the USCDA. In order to realise the research objectives, a combination of methods was applied in order to explore the South African context of LEDAs. This included the comprehensive review of literature on innovation for LED, analysing policy and legislative frameworks for LEDAs in South Africa and the examination of survey material and the application of case study methodology to intensify the understanding of USCDA. The research report was able to highlight the challenges faced by the USCDA in carrying out its mandate as seen by the agency’s leadership and other key stakeholders. The study revealed that inadequate funding, lack of capacity, lack of strategic direction, lack of innovative endeavour, and limited collaboration amongst all the relevant stakeholders were the fundamental challenges faced. The study concluded that, there is a need for the government in general and local municipalities to review the operational modal of USCDA and to clearly articulate its levels of autonomy and outline a sustainable funding mechanism for its operations. Title: Exploring innovation platforms for Local Economic Development in KwaZulu- Natal: An analysis of the Ugu District Municipality South Coast Development Agency.Item Investigating the progression of South Africa’s developmental state through the Black Industrialist Programme.(2021) Vilakazi, Blessing Fika Mlondi.; Moore, Candice Eleanor.South Africa has made considerable progress in terms of economic development since the dawn of democracy in 1994. However, the pace and distribution of that progress have not been equitably reflected across all demographics, especially between blacks and white. With a decline of manufacturing, the ‘developmental state’ has featured as a strong theme in the ruling African National Congress's discourse to try and reignite industrialisation in the country. Under this framework, one of the policies driven by the South African government is the Black Industrialist Programme that aims to increase the manufacturing output whilst empowering black people. This research article investigates this programme as an industrialisation vehicle and seeks to understand its contribution to advancing South Africa’s developmental state framework. The study employed qualitative research methods using open-ended interviews for primary data; documents collected from various sources for secondary data. The study draws from the rich existing body of literature on the developmental state and compares it with the series of overarching policy initiatives that have been enacted in South Africa. It uses the framework of the developmental state to investigate whether BIP is positioned to reignite South Africa’s industrialisation. Findings show that the BIP policy will have an impact as its funding model is a significant shift from past practices by assisting aspiring industrialists through grants and preferential procurement measures. However, the study argues that the shift from focusing on general industrialisation to narrowing it to black industrialisation brings with it new constraints in advancing a developmental state. Using race to promote a course towards industrialisation will have long-term detrimental effects, and also the ruling party’s cadre deployment policy, challenges with education and skills training, and economic planning imperatives will all militate against the assumed positive impact of the BIP. The research concludes that the programme will contribute to the developmental state concept's progress but will be limited in praxis because the state does not possess a holistic overarching economic developmental plan. The study contributes to the analytical discourse of developmental states by offering context-specific analysis in industrialisation paths for societies addressing racial, economic inequality.Item Understanding the role of knowledge management on organisational functionality at Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife.(2020) Ndlovu, Mlungisi Cyprian.; Vilakazi, Blessing Fika Mlondi.The study explores the role of Knowledge Management (KM) on organisational functionality at EKZNW organisation. The main research questions of the study are establishing if EKZNW has the KM practices, what they are, and if they have been and are of any benefit to the service delivery efficiency and strong competitive advantage of the organisation in the market. The main aim of the study is essentially exploring the role of all the KM practices of the organisation as to how they impact on the overall functionality of the organisation. It can therefore be briefly highlighted that KM translates into how the organisation attracts talent, how it preserves such talent, and how it ensures a smooth diffusion of such talent amongst the employees, which all ideally must result in heightened levels of innovation and efficiency, and sustained customer satisfaction and strong competitive advantage for the organisation. The data was collected from the employees of this (EKZNW) organisation. The employees that formed the population of the study were exclusively those who occupy management positions within their respective departments. The research methodology the study adopted is the qualitative approach with constructivism as the research paradigm. The researcher’s decision opting for the combination of these two elements of research, the qualitative method and the constructivist paradigm, has been motivated by the nature and purpose of the research study. It was therefore ascertained through the study, inter alia, that the incentive programmes and the reward systems of the organisation, almost invariably, yield positive results in the employees’ execution of their work, and heightened levels of motivation to share their knowledge and empower one another. This therefore underpinned the significance for the organisation to establish and institutionalise relevant and likely-to-yield-positive-outcomes KM practices which, inter alia, are exemplified by the training and skills-capacity-enhancing programmes. The study further reveals the importance of the time that the employees stay with the organisation and how that positively impacts on the overall performance of the staff. It transpires that the longer the employees stay with the organisation, the more knowledge and experience get acquired over time, and that essentially translate into the elevated overall productivity of the staff. This therefore necessitates that establishment of a highly conducive and encouraging working environment by the top management to ensure that the entire staff relish working for the organisation, and therefore get encouraged to stay longer with the organisation.