UNAM Gā-aisib Repository (University of Namibia)
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An investigation into the impact of budget cuts on the operational performance of the Namibian police: A case study of Oshikoto Regional Headquarters
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Business Administration (Public Sector Management)The Internal Audit report of the Namibian Police (NAMPOL) for the 2018/19
Financial Year reported a reduction of the Namibian Police Force budget
from N5.1 billion. Budget cuts differ across sectors of the
economy as well as the magnitude of their impact on organisational
performance. This study aimed at investigating the impact of budget cuts on
the operational performance of Police in the Oshikoto Region. A sample of
150 participants from a population of 950 was selected using the stratified
random sampling technique. The researcher had applied descriptive research
design as it eliminates the constraints of rigorous academic methodologies,
allowing researchers to see how others experience an event. The study
adopted a quantitative approach which involved the use of closed ended
questionnaires. The researcher's function in positivist studies was confined
to data collection and objective interpretation. The strategy was based on
reality's nature. Additionally, the data were analysed quantitatively using the
excel spreadsheet package to generate tables and graphs .. The results of the
study revealed that budget cuts lead to more crimes as Police is incapacitated
in terms of mobility. This incapacitation could also be due to lack of vehicles
and other important resources. Furthermore, top management in the
Namibian Police Force is continuously faced with making difficult decisions
on how to protect and serve their communities with fewer resources at their
disposal. It was observed that, budget cuts had a negative impact on the
operational performance of the police. It is therefore recommended that
Oshikoto NAMPOL management should come up with policies which serve
as a guiding principles to help with the operational performance of the Polic
Omayeletumbulo [wisdom sayings] as a pathway to school engagement for young mothers in rural Namibia
No full textA Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Social workSchool leaving is a significant social problem that undermines the short and long-term developmental goals of young mothers and their children. Informed by the ubuntu perspective, an Afrocentric philosophy, I employed a qualitative, postcolonial indigenous research paradigm to explore the experiences of young mothers who successfully reentered school, postpartum, in rural Namibia. My aim was to better understand their experiences of challenges and facilitators to school engagement to inform culturally relevant interventions. This study was conducted in two, rural, public high schools with a sample of 13 young mothers (17-23 years), of the Aawambo ethnic group, in 8th to 12th grade levels. A personal history questionnaire characterized participants and talking circle interview guide identified omayeletumbulo [wisdom sayings] for school engagement. The conversational individual interview guide elaborated, contextualized, and provided in-depth understanding of school engagement experiences. Using thematic analysis, adolescent and emerging adult young mothers revealed common and culturally distinct experiences. They described school engagement challenges across sociocultural contexts including vulnerabilities due to lack of caregiver support, loss of ohungi [evening-talk], sexual coercion, and othering through stereotypes. Young mothers’ descriptions included sources of resilience facilitated by extended family including fathers of the baby, educators, and peers. Subsequent analysis focused on wisdom sayings as a pathway to school engagement through four emerging themes: self-efficacy around school engagement, assertion of identity, successful parenting, and spirituality. I conclude with a discussion of implications for culturally relevant social work to promote high school completion of young mothers who reenter school following childbirt
Cowpea production challenges and contribution to livelihood in Sub-Sahara Region
No full textCowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] is an important grain legume mainly grown in tropical and subtropical regions for vegetables, grains, and fodder. The crop is grown predominantly in the dry savannahs to the Sahel in the fringes of the Sahara Desert where the annual rainfall is around 300 mm or less. Cowpea provides shelter as a cover crop and improves soil fertility by fixing atmospheric nitrogen. Its grain is preferred for high levels of protein, energy, micro-and macronutrients. Cowpea belongs to the family Fabaceae and sub-family Faboidea, and it is a self-pollinating crop with low and narrow genetic diversity, making it susceptible to various environmental factors. Various research projects have been established on cowpea, and as a result, various cowpea germplasm is stored at Africa International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)—Nigeria, the USDA repository in Griffin, GA (USA), the University of California, Riverside, CA (USA), and at the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) in New Delhi, India. Despite the available germplasms, cowpea productivity remains very low in many countries due to a wide array of abiotic and biotic stresses and socio-economic constraints. This review summarizes some aspects of cowpea, including origin and history, challenges, economic importance, and constraints to production, providing possible useful information for cowpea researchers, agronomists, and producers in SSA
An assessment on users’ perception on the implementation of application software for benefits claim process within the Government Institutions Pension Fund
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for Degree of Master of Business Administration (Management Strategy)Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can help in benefit claim
processing. To improve service delivery, Government Institution Management
Information System (GIMIS) integrates the methods utilised by the Government
Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF) to process benefit claims. Despite the
implementation of GIMIS, the GIPF continues to have challenges in improving
internal benefit claim processes due to the lengthy claim processes and system down-times that frustrate employees when processing benefit claims. As a result, the goal of this research was to assess the implementation of application software
on benefit claims procedures inside the GIPF. The researcher reviewed user satisfaction with benefit claim processes at the GIPF Operations Department using the user's GIMIS experience. DeLone and McLean's Theoretical Framework theory on the Success Model of Information Systems is used in this study.
A qualitative approach was utilised to collect primary data through interviews, and the data was analysed using thematic analysis. The findings of the study established that user satisfaction with GIMIS is reliant on a variety of variables, with user experience and flexibility playing a considerable role.
Findings show that the usage of a technology influences experiences and these experiences, in turn, alter the perception of the technology. Challenges to the implementation of GIMIS include: errors, unplanned interruptions, manual
completion of tasks, unplanned and inadequate training, multiple unnecessary
steps, system freezing, recurrent windows system shutdown, and login time.
These challenges have influenced user satisfaction on GIMIS implementation
and in conclusion addressing the challenges identified to the implementation
process could enhance service delivery with GIMIS. Nonetheless, the effect of GIMIS implementation on GIPF clients' service satisfaction was not assessed and recommended for further studies. The highlight of the recommendations is
that there is a need to upgrade the GIMIS into a modern system by making it
Web-Based to ensure improved system delivery
Factors affecting lecturers’ decision to stay or leave academia, Namibia
No full textOrientation: Attracting and retaining academic staff needs to become a priority for tertiary institutions. Research purpose: Instead of spending funds on replacing staff members, tertiary institutions need to invest in interventions to keep staff committed to and embedded into the organisation. Motivation for the study: Lecturing staff are valuable resources that need to be nurtured, taken care of, and retained to keep tertiary institutions functioning effectively. This study focused on factors that impact lecturing staff’s decision to stay at or leave the University of Namibia. Research approach/design and method: Making use of quantitative research (a questionnaire), data was collected from lecturing staff (n = 242) to investigate the relationship between organisational commitment, job embeddedness and turnover intention. Main findings: Affective commitment, normative commitment, organisational fit and organisational sacrifices reported significant negative relationships with turnover intention. Affective commitment, organisational fit and organisational sacrifice were found to be significant predictors of turnover intention. Practical/managerial implications: Including lecturing staff in the decision-making process, ensuring that there is an equitable exchange for their labour and being fair during interactions enhances psychological meaningfulness and affective commitment. Providing career development opportunities enhances organisational fit, effectiveness of staff and reduces turnover intention. Assessing the job demands-resources relationship remains of cardinal importance. Contributions/value-add: Provision of benefits, employees identifying with the organisation and having the needed resources mitigate the demands of the job, reduce exhaustion, enhance levels of commitment and decrease turnover intention
An assessment of the impact of public service delivery on customer satisfaction: A case study of Okahandja municipality, Namibia
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of master in business administration- Public sector managementThis study sought to assess the impact of public service delivery on customer
satisfaction at Okahandja Municipality in order to determine whether the residents of
Okahandja are satisfied with the services being rendered or not, such as good
sanitation, clean, healthy and reasonable water bills, uninterrupted or blocked sewage
systems, healthy road networks, working street lights and collection of rubbish by the
Municipality. This study utilised mixed methods through administering
questionnaires with structured questions to the residents of Okahandja and conducting
one-on-one interviews with employees of the Okahandja Municipality. Fifty-five
participants were selected for inclusion in the study of which 51 were customers, and
4 were employees of the Municipality. Quantitative data was analysed through
frequency tables, descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and multiple regression
analysis using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 27.
Qualitative data was analysed using thematic analysis in which occurring themes and
patterns in information gathered were identified. Findings revealed that the
respondents mainly disagreed with the quality-of-service delivery at the Okahandja
Municipality, in terms of water supply, electricity supply and fares and taxes charged,
as well as their overall satisfaction. The results also revealed that financial constraints,
community participation, inadequate employee capacity and poor planning are some
of the challenges faced by the municipality in delivering quality public service. The
study recommends that the Okahandja Municipality look into practicing and
implementing the five dimensions of quality service in its organisation as well as to
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try to utilise the Gap Analysis Theory yearly, in order to develop the organisation and
promote employee trainin
Investigating the influence of leadership styles on work stress, job satisfaction and work engagement of health care professionals within the Khomas region, Namibia
No full textA mini thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts (Industrial Psychology)Within the sub-Sahara context where resources are limited, strong and committed
leadership is important for the positive functioning of health care facilities. This
study investigated the impact of leadership styles on the work stress, job satisfaction and work engagement of health care professionals within the Khomas region, Namibia.
This study aimed at determining the prevalent leadership styles, work stress levels, job satisfaction and work engagement of health care professionals within the Namibian healthcare sector. Furthermore, this study provided practical recommendations to help improve medical care by enhancing the leadership styles,
engagement, job satisfaction and decreasing work stress levels of medical
professionals. A quantitative research approach via a questionnaire was used to
collect data on the biographical details, leadership styles, work stress, job satisfaction and work engagement of employees. The sample consisted of n=179 healthcare professionals working within private and state facilities within the quantitative research method. Correlations were found between the subconstructs of leadership styles and the subconstructs work stress, job satisfaction and work engagement.
Negative relationships were found between intellectual stimulation and role ambiguity (r = -.37, p ˂ 0.05; medium effect); intellectual stimulation and coworkers (r = -.37, p ˂ 0.05; medium effect); transformational leadership and coworkers (r = -.31, p ˂ 0.05; medium effect); laissez-faire and dedication (r = -.31, p ˂ 0.05; medium effect); laissez-faire and work engagement (r = -.30, p ˂ 0.05; medium effect). Laissez-faire reported a positive relationship with work stress (r = .42, p ˂ 0.05; medium effect). Practical implementations include encouraging supportive leadership, implementation of protocols to reduce stress levels and recognising high performance can increase engagement. Social projects and prioritising the physical and mental health of employees may enhance the well-being of employees. This novel study is the first of its kind to investigate these dimensions within the healthcare sector in the Khomas region and adds to the existing knowledge within the healthcare sector for future researchers. This study will assist healthcare facilities to develop interventions to enhance job satisfaction, work engagement and decrease job stress
Analysis of operational performance of savings and credit cooperatives during COVID-19 pandemic in Manzini region Eswatini
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the master of business administration management strategySavings and Credit Cooperatives Organisations (SACCOs) suffered the
maelstrom of the COVID-19 PANDEMIC which disrupted the SACCO model
to its core. This study carried out an analysis of the operational performance of
SACCOs during the COVID-19 PANDEMIC in Manzini, Eswatini. With the
guidance from the Resource Dependency Theory (RDT), this study sought to
equip SACCO managers in developing resilient strategies and empower the
SACCO movement to lobby for recognition as an essential service during a
lockdown. A qualitative research with a case study research design was carried
out. Seven SACCO managers under the Manzini region in Eswatini were
interviewed to analyse the impact of COVID-19 PANDEMIC on the operational
performance of SACCOs. Findings of this study included: the participants’
acknowledgement of the arduous operations during the lockdown; SACCOs had
to seek authorisation from the Ministry of Trade and Commerce to open business
as an “essential service”. The use of technology became inevitable for SACCOs,
since working from home became the new normal. Also, the election of the
BODs could not occur in the year, 2020. SACCOs’ innovation strategies
included embracing technology, active communication with the members; via
bulk SMSs, cell phones, emails, WhatsApp and through SACCOs
representatives in the periphery and holding regional meetings. Internal
communication was mostly, virtual. This study recommends that Eswatini
SACCOs should adopt the Six Sigma strategy, monitor customer satisfaction,
strengthen SACCOs’ IT systems, develop Risk management and Business
Continuity Plans (BCPs) and ensure preparedness for future pandemic
Vulnerability assessment of information systems based on end-user actions: A case of University of Namibia
No full textA mini thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Information TechnologyNowadays, data protection is of paramount importance to every institution of higher learning.
Unfortunately, most security breaches happen as a result of an end-user error(s). End-user
errors are unintentional actions of system end-users. This includes; weak passwords, clicking
links from unverified senders, and downloading attachments from unknown senders. Most of
the efforts aimed to address cybersecurity issues are either software-centered or hardware oriented. As a result, user mistakes are overlooked since they are considered infinite,
unpredictable, and remain part of human existence. Ignoring end-user error is a gigantic
mistake and could result in a higher number of cyber-attack incidents. Therefore, institutions
of higher learning where security is a top priority need innovative strategies to deal with end user errors. Given this, this study aimed to assess different types of end-user errors that could
affect the security triad of information systems. The study adopted the mixed-method research
approach to collect data from the University of Namibia (UNAM) staff members, who
frequently use information systems known as ITS. The quantitative dimension of the study
utilized a closed-ended questionnaire to collect data from 310 UNAM staff members, who were
randomly selected from the total population. Furthermore, an experimental design was also
used to collect data from the staff members. The qualitative dimension utilized an exploratory
research design where participants were selected through a purposeful sampling strategy. A
semi-structured interview instrument was also applied to collect data from 10 staff UNAM
Computer Centre staff members. The findings of the study revealed that end-user error is one
of the major threats to information security. End-user errors present several security
vulnerabilities and risks to information systems that could subsequently get data exploited by
attackers. In addition, the study also established that confidentiality, integrity, and availability
of information systems in an institution are also affected by end-user errors. Furthermore, the
unprecedented growth of internet interconnectivity has led to an enormous increase in cyber attacks. Personal security consciousness and security awareness training are some of the most
successful measures to mitigate end-user errors. Based on the findings of the study, it is
recommended that institutions enforce information security policy and provide security
awareness training to staff members to avoid data breache
Effects of telecommuting on employee motivation and productivity during COVID-19 pandemic: A case of New Era Publication Corporation, Namibia
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Business Administration Management StrategyThe Covid-19 pandemic brought global changes to all areas of life, including the world of
work. One of the major changes was the embracement of the telecommuting concept. The
employment field is highly regulated by contracts and policies and introducing changes
can affect production. This study investigated the effects of telecommuting on employee
motivation and productivity. The study involved 67 respondents. Mixed research study
(Pragmatism) was used for the study with questionnaires and interviews being the main
data collection instruments. The research findings showed that the majority ofrespondents
are in favour of telecommuting as a Covid-19 pandemic mitigation strategy because it
provides for social distancing and it gives work-life balance to employees. The study also
found that telecommuting, also called working from home (WFH), raised staff morale and
motivated employees. This increased productivity among employees. This research
concluded that telecommuting is the best mitigating approach to pandemics such as the
Covid-19. The study also concluded that while telecommuting motivates employees and
increases production, it only works best for a certain category of employees whose daily
duties are computer technology based. The study recommended that even in the absence
of pandemics, organisations such as New Era Publication Corporation can still resort to
telecommuting as one of the best corporate practices as it increases productivity and can
help with cost cutting in times of financial crisi