UNAM Gā-aisib Repository (University of Namibia)
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Assessing availability of managerial employment opportunities for disabled persons in Omusati Town Councils
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Business Administration (Public Sector Management)This study assessed the employment opportunities at management level for persons with
disabilities at town councils in the Omusati Region. This was with a particular focus on
examining organisational factors of importance for the employment of persons with
disabilities and assessing the effects of these factors on town councils' hiring practices. The
study used the convergent parallel mixed methods research design employing both
quantitative and qualitative methods to collect the data. Simple random sampling was used
to select 92 staff members to complete the questionnaire, whilst purposive sampling
method was used to select 4 Human Resources Managers/Officers to participate in the in depth interviews. The questionnaires were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social
Sciences (SPSS) software while qualitative data from interviews was summarised using
Microsoft Office. The major finding of this study is a non-representation at management
level and a low representation at the entry level for persons with disabilities at the four
participating town councils. In addition, the study revealed that town councils do not have
in place, workplace diversity policies or plans for the inclusion of persons with disabilities
and no reasonable accommodation is provided to persons with disabilities. However, the
study noted a positive perception towards persons with disabilities as well as knowledge of
disability legislation among participants. The inferential statistical results do not show any
significant effect of organisational factors on the employment of persons with disabilities.
The study recommends that town councils should establish and execute diversity
management policies and initiatives to improve the recruitment, promotion and retention of
employees with disabilities. Town councils should further identify positions that can be
reserved for persons with disabilities and collaborate with disability recruitment agencies or
the Namibian National Disability Council to determine if suitably qualified people with
disabilities can be placed in these role
Developing a framework for corporate environmental sustainability strategies for the Namibian industries
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Business Administration Management StrategyThe significance of environmental sustainability has emerged increasingly in the 21st Century. The
aim of this study was to develop a framework for corporate environmental sustainability strategies
for the Namibian industries through the identification of the adopted environmental sustainability
strategies and challenges encountered in implementing environmental sustainability programmes by
the selected industries. This study applied a qualitative research apvroach using a case study from
21 corporate industries by applying a purposive sampling method. The study used thematic analysis
to analyse the data and descriptive analysis to interpret differences in the results. The findings of
this study presented environmental sustainability measures to be adopted through strategies of
awareness and education, product development, design and infrastructure, financial, supply chain,
resource efficiency and technology. The challenges found to affect environmental sustainability
adoption consisted of financial, technological, capacity, legislation and guidelines, increasing
complexity, long-term business strategy and security. The proposed framework consists of five
classification themes; strategic planning and development, corporate materiality assessment,
strategy description, support structures and systems, including implementation tools. For future
research related studies in other geographical regions and industries shall complement the
understanding of the environmental sustainability concept as well as studies quantifying the
economic beneficiation of corporate sustainability adoption. The study suggests the need to
financially invest in corporate environmental sustainability promotion and improving 011 corporate
responsibility requirements with regards to environmental sustainability adoption at country leve
An investigation of the information and communication technology (ICT) integration strategies used by junior primary teachers in teaching phonemes in the Oshana region
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Education (Literacy and Learning)The Namibian government has invested considerable resources in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) development to enhance teaching and learning. Technology is the science or knowledge put into practical use to solve problems or invent useful tools for classroom purposes. The study investigated ICT strategies used by teachers in teaching Phonemes in English and has adopted a qualitative research method or approach. The study comprised of 15 English teachers for junior primary schools in the Oshana Region. Few schools from Oshana region were purposefully selected and took part in the study. A purposeful sampling technique was used to select the teachers for teaching English and that allowed each of the participants to have equal opportunities to participate in the study. The qualitative data was collected by means of in-depth face-to face interviews and questionnaires. The data was analyzed by means of transcribing the data and developing themes. Some major findings showed that teachers working conditions pertaining to ICT use in the teaching and learning need improvement, ICT use is low in some schools due to a lack of professional development courses, support and ICT related resources and more ICT resources need to be deployed to schools to help mitigate this problem. Further, the study suggested better ways to improve the ICT integration strategies for teaching English phonemes such as conducting teacher’s training or workshop on the use of digital tools in education sector for the benefit of all teachers
The synthesis and investigation of alizan-based functional chromogenic probes for heavy mental sensing in aqueous medium
No full textA thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Science (Chemistry)Heavy metal contamination of drinking water is a global concern. Conventional analytical techniques that are commonly used for metal ion detection in water, such as atomic absorption spectrometry and mass spectrometry, are not suitable for mass monitoring purposes. Suitable chromogenic probes could provide an alternative to conventional methods. Moreover, chromogenic probes such as off the shelf, commercially available organic reagents enable rapid and cost efficient in situ monitoring of water sources without the requirement of laborious sampling. Sensor AB and EF, an alizarin derivative was synthesised and characterised using UV-vis, 1H-NMR and FT-IR spectroscopy. The aim of this study was to investigate a colorimetric method based on Schiff base synthesised sensors and other probes such as ready-to-use alizarin organic dye, as well as two organic reagents, dithizone and phenylfluorone for heavy metal detection in borehole water and commercially available water.
Sensor AB and EF showed strong colorimetric response upon the molar addition of various cations (including Fe2+, Fe3+, Hg 2+, Co2+, Ag+, Zn2+, Cu2+) and anions (including AcO-, OH-, CN-) in DMSO, acetonitrile and DMF:water (1:9). Similarly, alizarin and phenylfluorone also showed strong colorimetric response in DMF:water (1:9) and ethanol solvent systems. Whereas vivid colour changes were observed when dithizone complexed with ions. Subsequently, in addition to sensing of cations and anions, all chromogenic probes were employed for signaling of commercial water and borehole water in different solvent systems. Sensor AB reported lack of sensitivity towards water samples, yielding in no colour change for water sensing. Furthermore, spectroscopy results of UV-vis and FT-IR as well as colorimetric results of sensor EF indicate close similarities to alizarin, demonstrating little to no effect of modification of alizarin. Solvatochromism effect associated with dithizone, alizarin and phenylfluorone was observed. Varied and sensitive chromic behaviour was observed in dithizone, displaying colour variances in DMF, methanol, acetonitrile, chloroform, acetone and ethanol
In vitro antimalarial properties and chemical composition of Diospyros chamaethamnus extracts
No full textDiospyros chamaethamnus, a low woody perennial, which is endemic to Namibia, Botswana, Angola, and Zambia, is used in the management of malaria. The current study aimed to assess the effectiveness of this plant against malaria parasites and to identify some of the compounds, which may be responsible for the therapeutic properties of this plant. Dried roots were macerated in dichloromethane-methanol (1:1 v/v) and water to isolate phytoconstituents, which were then screened for antimalarial activity using the P. falciparum chloroquine-sensitive strain, D10. Furthermore, the antioxidant activities of the plant extracts were deter-mined using the DPPH method. Lastly, the plant extracts were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Moderate in vitro antiplasmodial activity (IC50 < 50 mg/ml) was observed for the D. chamae-thamnus organic (19.51 mg/mL) and aqueous (18.30 mg/mL) extracts. Antioxidant activity based on DPPH scavenging potential showed that D. chamaethamnus aqueous and organic extracts exhibited significant anti-oxidant activities with IC50 values of 7.63 and 10.74 mg/mL, respectively. Some of the biologically active com- pounds found in the extracts of D. chamaethamnus include lupeol, palmitic acid, stigmasterol, and pyrogallol. These findings support the use of D. chamaethamnus against malaria and/or malaria-associated symptoms and provide a foundation or guide for further studies of this plant as an alternative treatment option for malaria
Analysing the fiscal sustainability of Namibia`s old age grant
No full textA thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science (Development Finance)Countries across the globe strive to address and achieve the welfare goals, one of which is the right to income security and sufficient social security pension in old age. In Namibia, Article 95 of the Constitution guarantees all senior citizens a regular pension sufficient to maintain a decent standard of living. The provision of a universal non-contributory social pension is critical in addressing elderly poverty. However, this provision comes at a cost and has fiscal ramifications if the necessary parameters are not kept in check and balanced on time. The thrust of this study is to analyse the fiscal sustainability of Namibia’ Old Age Grant. It is concerned with three main objectives; first, to ascertain the relationship between Old Age Grant expenditure and its independent variables namely: benefit cost, funeral benefit and number of beneficiaries; secondly to determine the expenditure of the Old Age Grant for the next 20 years, from 2021 to 2041, and finally to determine whether the projected expenditure is fiscally sustainable. The study employed a quantitative approach with data derived from a number of secondary sources. An econometric model (Old Age Grant Expenditure Model), simulation, and forecasting techniques were used in analysing data in the study. The main finding of the study is that, 99% of Old Age Grant expenditure variation is explained by the independent variables. On scenarios tested, Old Age Grant is found to be fiscally sustainable in the future provided that future-benefit amount adjustments are informed by the economic situation and with the inflation rate serving as a guide. The results further show that Old Age Grant expenditure as a percentage of government revenue is approaching the doubling point which can impose a fiscal burden on government expenditure. It is recommended that future adjustments of the grant benefit amount be informed by economic conditions, and that no political interference be used to influence the grant amount, as high political influence could render the grant expenditure unsustainable
Exploring factors contributing to strategic plan implementation (IBP 2011-2016) failure at the City of Windhoek local authority, Namibia
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fullfilment of the requirements for the Master of Business Administration (Management Strategy)In spite organization having well formulated strategic plans, the rate of failure to implement strategic plans remains high. There’s a need to better understand the relevant failure factors that influence implementation’s outcomes. It is generally accepted that failure to implement is indeed a of formulation. Therefore, the study specifically sought to identify the factors that contributed to the strategic plan implementation failure at the Namibian Local authority council, in particular the City of Windhoek (CoW) and to categories each factor according to their influence/contribution to strategic plan implementation failure at the City of Windhoek. A quantitative approached was adopted as well as a descriptive survey research design involving only employees from the CoW. The target sample was
200 from the organization’s organogram consisting of divisional managers, sectional
heads, and supervisors (foreman). The study used the Statistical Package of the Social Sciences AMOS Version 23 (SPSS 23 AMOS) to analyse, validate and generate descriptive statistics according to the identified study objectives. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was also done for the current study. A Principal Axis Factor (PAF) with a Varimax (orthogonal) rotation of the 17 Likert scale questions from the survey questionnaire was conducted on data gathered from 182 participants. Findings, the exploration resulted in the identification of 14 individual failure factors associated to 4 determinants of strategy implementation labelled as content, structure, operational and context. Furthermore, the study also categorized the determinants according to their impact on the strategic plan in
descending order from the most impactful to least respectively. Content factor with
16.789% of total variance, followed by the Structural factor with 11.415% total variance, then by the operational factor with 10.298% of total variance and lastly the factor with the least influence or impact was the context factor with 7.899% of total variance
Customer satisfaction level among online banking customers of First National Bank Namibia (FNB)
No full textTechnological advancements have led to conception of new services for the benefit of customer, with online banking being one of such services. The online banking services have been introduced by banks to assist the customers in availing host of banking services comfortably, from any location and without any problems.
However, the customer perceptions and attitudes with respect to the adoption of new technologies determine their satisfaction levels. Therefore, the present research was aimed at investigating the customer views regarding satisfaction level towards online banking. The study was conducted among customers (n=30) of FNB Namibia whom use online banking. The main objectives of the study were, to analyse the factors influencing customer’s adoption to online banking in Namibia, to identify the factors limiting the use of online banking by Namibians and to determine the factors that impact customer’s satisfaction level in online banking. In this study the researcher used qualitative research methodology, primary data was used due to the nature of the variable to be generated and the type of population characteristics, there were questionnaires to be answered by the respondents which was based on the research objectives. The study concludes that online banking services at FNB Namibia has a positive impact on customer satisfaction level, as it offers quality services to the benefit of the customers such as convenience, time saving, efficiency, speed and round-the clock availability of online banking services. Namibia, as a country, also stands to benefit from increased online banking usage by virtue of the improved financial inclusion in the economy as regards ease of access, availability and, usage of the formal financial system
The effectiveness of private-public partnerships in land delivery for low-Income housing development for the City of Windhoek Namibia
No full textThis study sought to assess the effectiveness of the City of Windhoek Public Private Partnership model for land delivery and low-income housing initiatives. To gain in-depth knowledge and understanding of the topic, the research adopted a mixed method approach.
A sample size of 80 respondents was statically determined and randomly selected from a target population of 120 employees and beneficiaries of PPPs using probability sampling.
The study findings revealed that the City of Windhoek’s PPPs model and housing initiatives for low-income earners fell-short in meeting its objectives against the ever widening housing shortage, notably due to bureaucratic statutory approval processes, a lack and high cost of serviced land as well as high material costs.
To date, only a handful of those from the grassroots have benefited. The drawn
conclusions were that, although the Triple-P model and housing initiatives was
adopted to bridge the ever-widening gap of housing shortage, the houses being
built are not affordable to low-income earners. Henceforth, the study recommends that government should provide extended support to the grassroots groups, case in point through subsidized grants or arranged part payments at financial institutions whereby government could cover part of home-loan costs. Finally, effective program execution, monitoring, feedback and evaluation of the project milestones should be enhanced.
Originality/Value: In this study we attempted to the effectiveness of private public partnerships in land delivery for low-Income housing development for the city of Windhoek Namibia
Could China’s journey of malaria elimination extend to Africa?
No full textWorld Health Organization (WHO) certified China malaria-free on June 30, 2021, which brightens the goal of global malaria elimination efforts. China contributed its unique innovations to the global community: Artemisinin, discovered by Tu Youyou, has saved millions of lives globally; the “1-3-7” norm developed in 2012, has been adapted in the local contexts of countries in the Southeast Asia and Africa. How to the targets of Global Technical Strategy for Malaria (GTS) 2016−2030. By looking into the malaria control phase, towards elimination phase from 1960 to 2011 in sub Saharan Africa and China, we found that the gap in malaria burden will widen unless the interventions in Africa are enhanced. It is imperative to identify the key China–Africa cooperation areas on malaria control and elimination, so
that synergized efforts could be pooled together to help African countries achieve the elimination goal. The practices from China malaria control and elimination efforts could be leveraged to fast-track malaria elimination efforts in Africa, which makes it possible that the China’s journey of malaria elimination extends to Africa