UNAM Open Access Journal University of Namibia
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Are there bubbles in the housing market of Namibia?: An analysis of historical evidence
Get PDFThe dividend yield ratio in the stock markets is, to an extent, comparable to the rent price ratio in the housing market. Taking advantage of this definitional similarity, one can then use the traditional unit root test for log dividend yield in this case, the log rent-price ratio to test for the existence of real estate bubbles. Such unit root tests are conducted for the whole of Namibia. We develop a continuous and monthly rent price information-based method to track the periods when real estate prices diverge from their fundamental levels. The effect of those investigations would suggest the existence of pockets of bubbles in the real estate market. We finally get to distinguish of the pockets of bubbles observed, which minor, intermediate and major bubbles are
Bacteriological analysis of household water from hand-dug wells in the Cuvelai-Etosha basin of Namibia
Get PDFCommunities in Oshikoto, Omusati, Ohangwena and Oshana regions of Namibia widely utilize the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin by constructing hand-dug wells to provide water to sustain agriculture and households. Since these regions lack a developed water pipeline system and deeper ground water maybe saline in large parts of the Basin, people rely on domestic water supply from private hand-dug wells which are near their houses for convenience and preference. However, the microbial water quality and safety of hand-dug wells being utilized for household consumption in the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin is unknown and this is undesirable since water is a habitat for some pathogenic microorganisms there by posing a health risk. Thus, a bacteriological water quality study that focuses on the identification of microbial contaminants was conducted on 25 wells in the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin of Northern Namibia during two sampling campaigns. Molecular methods indicated the presence of Bacillus aerophilus, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Bacillus aquimaris, Bacillus aryabhattai, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus safensis, Bacillus samanii, Bacillussp.M37,Bacillussp. M26, Bacillus stratophericus, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas mendocina, Staphylococcus haemolyticus and Streptomyces celuloflavus
Job satisfaction as a predictor of work engagement of banking employees in Windhoek
Get PDFOperating in an environment with so many banks offering similar products and services requires banks to have employees that are knowledgeable and have positive job attitudes. Enhancing em-ployees’ levels of job satisfaction will likely influence their levels of work engagement. This study investigated the relation between job satisfaction and work engagement, and which dimensions of job satisfaction best predict work engagement of banking employees in Windhoek, Namibia. The negative job attitudes of bank employees impact on the quality of service delivery and negatively affect customer satisfaction. Having satisfied and engaged employees will most likely improve the quality of service and customer satisfaction within the banking sector. A cross-sectional survey design was used, employing questionnaires to collect data on the biographical details, job satisfaction and work engagement of employees within the banking industry. The sample consisted of employees from two banks, Bank X (n=106) and Bank Y (n=110) in Windhoek. Intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction re-ported strong correlations with work engagement. Intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction was significant predictors of work engagement, with intrinsic job satisfaction being the stronger predictor. The novelty of this study in Namibia will add to already existing knowledge within Industrial/ Organisational Psychology, and pave the way for future research, and guide the development of interventions to keep bank employees satisfied and engaged in their work, improving on productivity and customer satisfaction. Managers need to assess job satisfaction and employee engagement regularly, identify the factors that impact on employees job attitudes and identify ways to improve job satisfaction, with work engagement having positive impacts on performance and customer satisfaction
Dhima za Kipragmatiki za Kialami Pragmatiki ‘ah’ katika Mazungumzo ya Kiswahili
Get PDFThis study examines the pragmatic functions of the pragmatic markers ah in spoken Kiswahili. The data has been obtained from informal conversations made by Swahili speakers in informal social settings. These include ‘vijiwe vya kahawa’ (setting of informal conversations created around people drinking coffee) and ‘vijiwe vya mamantilie’ (setting of informal conversations around women preparing and selling food on the streets). Using Conversation Analysis (Sacks, 1962) and Contextualization Theory (Gumpers, 1982), the results show that the pragmatic marker ah conveys different meanings depending on context of use and hence has various pragmatic functions. Among the pragmatic functions identified in this article are; to be used as gap filler (the interlocutor is thinking about what to say), is used to start the conversation, is used to disagree with what the other interlocutor has said, to show that the speaker has changed from the state of not knowing to the state of knowing (Now I get you) and to show exclamation. Interestingly, also, the study shows that intonation and other paralinguistic features (like gestures) play a role in determining the pragmatic functions of this marker. Generally, this article concludes that pragmatic markers in spoken Kiswahili are rich in meanings. Therefore, they are wealthy to be investigated
Iho popitha aantu? – Don’t you greet people? A Contextual Analysis of Oshiwambo Greetings
Get PDFThis paper is intended to investigate the socio-pragmatic context of Oshiwambo greetings. There is a dearth of literature on the intricacies of Oshiwambo forms of greeting and the metamorphosis that it has undergone to date. Thus there is a need to investigate the present state of Oshiwambo greetings. The paper is pegged on Austin’s Speech Act theory that emphasizes that utterances are the production of words and sentences on particular occasions by particular speakers for particular purposes. In view of that, Oshiwambo greetings are expressed to convey a specific message to the addressee by the addressor. Two approaches were employed to collect information for this paper namely, ethnographic approach to gauge the impact of Euro-western culture on Oshiwambo greetings and, documentation to dissect the socio-pragmatic context of Oshiwambo forms of greetings. The paper focuses on the functions, situations and types of greeting that exist in Oshiwambo. It further focuses on the paralinguistic and extra-linguistic features which complement the forms of greetings. The analysis has shown that greetings are an integral part of interactional discourse and serve as a prelude to the establishments of social relationships and that they can vary according to the age of the interactants and the circumstances under which the greetings take place. The paper further reveals that there are circumstances in which no exchange of greeting is expected. In the final analysis the paper reveals that western culture has an effect on the extra-linguistic features which accompany greetings thus both verbal and non-verbal modes of greetings are partly westernized
Effective teaching practices from the perspective of Kilpatrick, Swafford and Findells (2001) model: A video-based case study analysis of the teaching of geometry in Namibia
Get PDFThis paper presents findings from a broader PhD study that was undertaken at Rhodes University. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore and analyse the Geometry teaching practices of five purposefully selected secondary school teachers in Namibia who are regarded as effective mathematics teachers by the broader professional community including teachers, education ministry officials and University of Namibia lecturers. It also aimed to understand teachers’ perceptions of factors that contributed towards their effective teaching of geometry. The selected case study schools where the teachers taught were representative of high performing Namibian schools in terms of learners’ mathematics performance in the annual national examinations. This investigation was done through a process of classroom observations where the teachers’ instructional practices were observed and analysed using an adapted model of teaching for mathematical proficiency as developed by Kilpatrick, Swafford and Findell (2001) and an enactivist theoretical perspective. The study also used open-ended and semi-structured interviews with the five participating teachers. These interviews took the form of post lesson reflective and stimulated recall analysis sessions with the participating teachers. In this paper, we only focus on the qualitative analysis of videotaped geometry lessons taught by three teachers. We analyse vignettes of selected lessons for effective teaching using the five strands of the Kilpatrick’s model for proficient teaching. The analysis indicated that conceptual understanding (CU), procedural fluency (PF) and productive disposition (PD) were reflected regularly by all three teachers. However, the development of strategic competence (SC) or adaptive reasoning (AR) appeared relatively rarely. We observed many occasions where Namibian students were engaged in conceptually rich mathematical activities or invited to solve authentic problems. The tentative conclusion of the study is that the instructional practices enacted by the participating teachers, who were perceived to be effective, aligned well with practices informed by the five strands of the Kilpatrick’s model
The interplay between structure, culture and agency on student learning and academic development activities – a trajectory of the University of Namibia
Get PDFHigher Education Institutions have reached the end of their lifespans, unless we reinvent them to fit the constantly changing context. This paper is a reflective piece interrogating the impact of the context (internationally, regionally, nationally and institutionally) on student learning and academic development and its implications for the Higher Education Institutions (HEI) in Namibia. It is part of a reflective practice required in the Postgraduate Diploma of Higher Education for Academic Developers at Rhodes University. The diploma requires that practitioners should develop a greater self-awareness of the nature and the impact of their performance, an awareness that creates opportunities for professional growth and development. The maximum benefits from reflection are said to occur when participants value their personal and intellectual growth and they have time to engage in meaning-making processes using systematic, rigorous and disciplined ways of thinking rooted in scientific inquiries. The course prescribed contextual anchors to make this learning episode meaningful. Consequently, a sociology theoretical framework that explains the interrelations of social structure, culture, and human agency, has been utilized as a lens for this reflective analysis. For that reason, data is based on empirical experiences and observations (culture), the actual legislations and policies of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) (structure), and documents analysis by an academic developer (human agent). In the light of analysing the context, the constraining and enabling factors for academic development and student learning are exposed. The discussion ends with a proposal of a new agenda to enhance student learning and academic development at HEIs in Namibia
Teachers' perspective on the Namibian portfolio for languages: three years after implementation
Get PDFThe Namibian Portfolio for Languages (NPL) was conceived in 2013 by five Namibian educators and dis-tributed to seven Namibian secondary schools to approximately 500 pupils learning French as a foreign language. Since its implementation, the impact of the NPL is researched both on pupils and teachers by the University of Namibia French section, in order to assess its learner-centered pretensions, its formative assessment capacity, and its support in self-assessment. This paper looks into teachers’ feedback on the NPL practicality in and outside the classroom environment after three years of implementation. Further-more, it aims at assessing NPL’s relevance as a tool to the benefit of self-assessment and formative assessment
A study on the effect of environmental temperature with relation to feed intake, mineral mobilization and respective incorporation into the egg yolk of Lohmann Brown egg layer chickens given purified lignin at the Neudamm farm in Namibia.
Get PDFIt is of knowledge that the usage of antibiotics leads to development of antibiotic-resistance by pathogenic bacteria which pose a major threat to both animal and human health. Bio-stimulators can replace the use of antibiotics as growth promoters and exert positive influence on metabolic processes. Between June and July, 2013 a study was conducted on the effect of purified lignin on egg layer chickens. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of purified lignin on Lohmann Brown egg layer chickens under Namibian environmental conditions. The feed additive made of purified lignin, containing humic acid, pH 8.5-10, and 14% humidity which is soluble in water was used in this experiment. Lignin at concentrations of 60mg kg-1, 50mg kg-1 and 40mg kg-1 diluted in water were used to feed 1446 chickens (482 each experimental group), while 489 served as the control group), for 17 days with 10 days interval at 18◦C and 23% humidity. Feed intake was evaluated; eggs from both groups were harvested, sorted and graded in different categories daily. Egg content from both groups and the presence of microorganisms in the gastro-intestinal gut were assessed. Results revealed that experimental chickens had low feed intake (4.3kgs less) and produced more eggs graded as extra-jumbo and jumbo, with less egg fats and oil content (g/100g) - 17.4 for experimental group; 19.4 control group). No gastro-intestinal microbial organisms were found. Purified Lignin is suggested to improve digestibility and feed conversion. The use of 50mg kg led to reduced feed intake in the experimental group despite low temperature while increasing the mobilisation of Fe, (mg/kg) - 17.7; 13.7; Se mg/kg -0.68 and 0.89; protein into egg yolk (g/100g) - 19.1; 17.1. Evidently, lignin can be used in the poultry industry as a feed additive and bio-stimulator to increase Iron (Fe) uptake which in return increases the level of haemoglobin and Selenium (Se) which serves as an antioxidant, while concurrently reducing microbial meat contamination and replace the use of antibiotics as feed additive
Nitrate and bacteriological assessment of groundwater in Omaheke region, Namibia
Get PDFIn Namibia, a large percentage of the population uses water from sources such as rivers, wells and boreholes. The quality and safety of such water sources is generally considered poor, and therefore is a potential health hazard. Groundwater in boreholes does not go through a treatment process and therefore the cleanliness of water is a major concern. The main objectives of the study were to analyze groundwater for nitrate and bacteriological content, i.e. total coliforms, faecal coliforms, Enterococci and E.coli, as well as evaluate sanitation practices. The study area included 8 farms on the C20 road to Aranos, Omaheke region. The nitrate and bacteriological results were compared with the guidelines for safe drinking water used by NamWater and World Health Organization (WHO). The results showed that Groot Ums was the only farm having water unfit for human consumption (Grade D), Cristiana 1 had water that had a moderate risk factor (Grade C) to human health, while the rest of the 6 farms had very safe drinking water (Grade A and B). Based on the findings, short and long-term recommendations on sanitation practices were made to help farmers with the current water situation