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Impact of mobile money services on financial performance of SMEs: the case of Douala, Cameroon
Full text linkThesis (MTech (Entrepreneurship))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020Often effectively excluded by formal financial systems, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries have found in Mobile Money services an efficient and cost effective means of availing themselves of financial services without holding bank accounts. In order to provide meaningful recommendations to the stakeholders of the banking sector of Cameroon, small and medium-sized enterprises, Mobile Money service providers, and relevant state organs, this study was conducted to investigate the influence of Mobile Money services on the financial performance of SMEs in two markets in Douala in Cameroon. A mixed methods research design was employed to conduct the study. The quantitative data was collected through the administration of a survey questionnaire and the qualitative data from one-on-one in-depth interviews. By means of snowball sampling, a sample of 285 SMEs was obtained to respond to the survey questionnaire, while the researcher used purposive sampling to select the owners or managing directors of twelve of the respondents to participate in the interviews.
Version 25 of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software was used to analyse the quantitative data, while the qualitative data was subjected to thematic analysis. Correlation and regression analyses yielded that independent variables pertaining to the adoption of Mobile Money services by the respondents to the questionnaire predicted of the order of 73 percent of variance with respect to increased sales turnover. Most of the twelve interviewees perceived that their business operations had improved significantly after they had begun making and receiving payments in the form of Mobile Money transactions. The participants in the study used Mobile Money mainly to receive money, send money, and buy airtime and a significant majority perceived that Mobile Money services were more cost effective than those of banks. Convenience, safety, and accessibility were the attributes of Mobile Money which the participants cited as having provided their principal motivations for electing to register as users of Mobile Money services. It could be concluded that Mobile Money services exerted a significant positive influence on the financial performance of the SMEs of the participants in the study. On the basis of the conclusions which were drawn from the findings, recommendations were made to the owners of SMEs in Douala, the Ministry of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, Social Economy, and Handicrafts and Mobile Money service providers. The findings of the study underscore the role of Mobile Money services as an effective means of increasing financial inclusion and financial performance and could be useful to academics, owners and managers of SMEs, financial institutions in Cameroon and elsewhere, and also relevant policy makers
An exploratory study of public participation during the Integrated development planning process: a case study of Theewaterskloof Local municipality, Western Cape Province
Full text linkThesis (MTech (Public Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020The aim of this study was to explore public participation during the Integrated Development Planning process at a selected municipality, which is Theewaterskloof Local Municipality in the Western Cape Province. South Africa, as a democratic state, has a legislative framework that promotes public participation during Integrated Development Planning. Notably, a Bill of rights in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, encourages the protection of human rights through acknowledging of participatory democracy whereby all citizens have to be involved in decision-making on matters that affect them.
Public participation should be understood as the working together of government and communities in governance on programmes and projects that uplift the society, at a local government level. Community participation creates a platform whereby communities at local government level have to inform people in authority directly what they want and what they do not want. Public Participation ensures that municipalities ensure a buy in from, and develop partnerships with stakeholders. It is also a concept that is often mentioned in discussions on community development.
In this study the researcher adopted a use of a case study design which entails both a qualitative
and a quantitative approach. In depth interviews were conducted by the researcher with senior
management of the municipality. Self-administered questionnaires were also distributed to the
community in a representative sample. The findings of the study were analysed using (Statistical
Package for Social Sciences) SPSS version 17 data processing computer software (quantitative
data analyses).
The outcomes of the study revealed that; the community of Theewaterskloof Municipality did not actively participate during Integrated Development Planning. This thesis concludes with a set of
recommendations largely stating that local government is obliged to develop an enabling environment that includes all stakeholders and should allow space for communities to interact with
the municipalities on an equal footing. The recommendations are aimed at enhancing community participation in the IDP and ensuring the provision of democratic and accountable government for
local communities
Strategies used by the School Management Team in managing learners’ late coming in a Cape Town high school
Full text linkThesis (MEd (Education))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020This study explored the strategies used by the School Management Team (SMT) in managing the late coming of learners in a Cape Town school in relation to the Department of Education policy on late coming of learners. The need for this study has its origin in the current difficulties the school is experiencing in managing late coming of learners despite the existence of the Department of Education’s policy on late coming. The data was collected from 7 members of the School Management Team, 3 parents and 3 learners from the school, and was collected using semi-structured interviews. Results firstly confirmed some of the findings from the literature concerning the causes of learners’ late coming which include transport, gangsterism, parents leaving their homes very early for work and child headed homes. The SMT members, learners and parents had limited knowledge of the Education Department’s policy on late coming and, more particularly, the circular on late coming, and this was found to be the main barrier for the school in managing the late coming of learners. The SMT was inadequately capacitated in dealing with the challenges of late coming. Poor communication between the parents and the teachers was also evident in the study. Finally, the study made a number of recommendations regarding how the school could manage its challenges on late coming of learners
Passive treatment of acid mine drainage using South African coal fly ash in a column reactor
Full text linkThesis (MEng (Chemical Engineering))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020Fly ash (FA) and acid mine drainage (AMD) are two undesirable materials generated from combustion of pulverized coal for energy and mining activity respectively. Both waste materials have serious, negative impacts on the environment. Fly ash storage leaches a variety of contaminants into surface and groundwater and AMD contains high amounts of toxic metals besides the already dominant !"# concentrations.
Many studies had investigated AMD treatment using FA and successfully removed significant amounts of sulphate, as well as minor and trace elements. Hence AMD can be treated using coal fly ash in an active or passive system without addition of any other chemicals. This study had as of objectives the evaluation of the neutralization capacity of FA from two South African’s power stations located in Mpumalanga which are Lethabo and Kendal with mine drainage water from the Mpumalanga coal fields using passive treatment.
The research program simulated ex-situ neutralization of AMD in a fly ash slurry followed by continued AMD contact, representing the potential for using spent material as mine annulus fill to reduce air and water content and further AMD generation. Both the fly ash and AMD were obtained from the Mpumalanga province in Eastern South Africa. A 3:1 slurry ratio of AMD to fly ash was mixed until pH stabilized. After mixing, the slurry was packed in columns and left for a duration of 24 hours for a good settling time before the hydraulic treatment. Thereafter the AMD was continuously passed through the columns using gravity flow. Samples of effluent were collected at set time intervals during the hydraulic treatment. These samples were used to determine the flow rate, pH of the leachates and some sent for analysis by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) and Ion Chromatography (IC) to determine the composition of the effluent water recovered.
The X-ray diffraction done on both coal fly ash sources shown a dominance of quartz and mullites,on the other hand the X-ray fluorescence demonstrate that Kendal and Lethabo coal fly ash belong to class F ash due to fact that the total composition of SiO2, Al2O3 and Fe2O3 was exceeding 70% of the entire composition. Moreover, trace elements such as As, V, Ni, Mn, S, Sr, Cu, Y and Pb are found in the CFA used as well. The ICP-OES analysis showed that Eyethu AMD is very acidic with a pH of 2.23, with sulphate concentration of 2680 mg/L, displaying the existence of some metals some of which are Ca, Al and Fe. The neutralization process of Eyethu acid mine drainage using Kendal and Lethabo CFA was highlighted by the variation of pH from the time mine water was in contact with CFA, for the treatment with Lethabo CFA the treated water had its pH raised from 2.23 to 12.65 and from 2.23 to 8.37 using Lethabo and Kendal CFA respectively and this phenomena was explained by the dissolution and hydrolysis of the oxide components such as CaO. This neutralization process was characterized by a strong buffer zone around the pH of 12.83 to 8.37 from the Lethabo leachate and between 8.37 to 7.28 for the leachate from Kendal column. This buffer zone is explained by the hydrolysis of Al3+ which forms a hydroxide phase until all the aluminum ion was totally hydrolyzed. Electrical conductivity was also observed to vary. An amount of 1440 g of Kendal fly ash was used in the columns and treated 15 bed volumes of Eyethu AMD before the CFA was exhausted and lost its neutralizing power in the case of Lethabo CFA, 13 bed volumes of AMD were treated with 1280g CFA before breakthrough was observed.
During treatment of Eyethu AMD with Lethabo and Kendal CFA the flow rate of the effluents water first increased during the first minutes of contact of AMD with CFA then started decreasing with time. The concentration of sulphate was reduced to up to 88% in the effluent from Lethabo CFA and 56% in the effluent from Kendal CFA. Some other metals such Fe, Mg, Mn, Al have been significantly removed from the AMD in the Lethabo and Kendal leachate. Furthermore, mass balance calculation were done around the columns in order to determine the moisture content and the % water recovery. From the calculation done it was shown that the column made of Kendal CFA can treat the AMD with a water recovery of 91.9% while Lethabo column could only recover 83.33% of the inlet water. In addition, Acid Base accounting tests were done in order to determine whether either Kendal or Lethabo CFA are from an acid generating or neutralizing rock. Test results have shown that both Kendal and Lethabo CFA are from an alkaline producing rock as their Net Neutralizing Potential and Neutralizing Potential Ratio were above 20 Kg/t CaCO3
MammaPrint risk score distribution in breast cancer patients with BRCA1/2 mutations
Full text linkThesis (MSc (Biomedical Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020Background: Tumour characteristics such as estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 status are routinely assessed using immunohistochemistry in all newly-diagnosed breast cancer patients. These biomarkers form part of the selection criteria used to determine the appropriateness of transcriptional gene profiling using MammaPrint, a 70-gene assay with level 1A evidence for chemotherapy selection in patients with early-stage breast carcinoma. This MammaPrint pre-screen algorithm does not include screening for pathogenic germline variants underlying differences in tumour pathology, increasingly considered to predict BRCA1/2-related cancer and response to PARP inhibitors that target the DNA repair pathway.
Aim: The aim of this study was to determine whether one or more of the eight most common pathogenetic BRCA1/2 variants previously identified in the South African population are predictive of a MammaPrint high risk score. This investigation was prompted by detection of the BRCA2 c.7934delG founder/recurrent mutation in tumour DNA of a female patient diagnosed with bladder cancer four years after receiving a low-risk MammaPrint result. Next generation sequencing of her tumour DNA furthermore revealed genetic variation affecting cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) enzyme activity associated with resistance to Tamoxifen, previously used by this patient together with anti-depressants that may inhibit enzyme function.
Methods: A database query was performed to identify early-stage breast cancer patients referred for the MammaPrint test followed by CYP2D6 genotyping using the same pathology-supported genetic testing platform. A rapid point-of-care DNA assay was used to screen 50 DNA samples for eight BRCA1/2 founder/recurrent mutations: BRCA1 c.68_69delAG, c.1374delC, c.2641G>T, c.5266dupC and BRCA2 c.5771_5774delTTCA, c.5946delT, c.6448_6449insTA and c.7934delG.
Results: The pathogenic BRCA2 c.7934delG variant was confirmed in the germline DNA of the index case with bladder cancer and was the only pathogenic variant detected in 10.2% of the study population (5/49, 1 sample failed). Two breast cancer patients with this pathogenic variant had a low-risk MammaPrint profile (2/25, 8.3%), while three patients with the same BRCA2 variant had a high-risk profile (3/24, 12%) for breast cancer metastasis. None of the other seven BRCA1/2 founder/recurrent mutations were detected in the study cohort. Patients with the BRCA2 c.7934delG founder/recurrent mutation was diagnosed at a significantly younger age than those without this pathogenic variant (p=0.02). Intermediate (36%) and poor metabolizer (2%) status based on CYP2D6*4 genotype was detected in 18 of the 50 patients included in the study. Three of these patients also had the BRCA2 c.7934delG founder/recurrent mutation, one with a low-risk (index case) and two with a high-risk MammaPrint recurrence risk profile.
Conclusions: Our findings support use of the MammaPrint pre-screen algorithm to identify a subgroup of early-stage hormone receptor-positive breast cancer patients who may benefit from pharmaco-diagnostic BRCA screening as part of the MammaPrint service. Use of laboratory-based technologies can take several days or weeks from sample collection to report generation, posing a unique opportunity for rapid BRCA1/2 testing during the genomic counselling session. Delivery of a positive test result generated at the point-of-care, or a negative result requiring extended genome sequencing, are important considerations in clinical settings where loss to follow-up or access to gene-based cancer treatment remain a problem
Factors influencing business continuity readiness of the Western Cape government
Full text linkThesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020The research was focused on business continuity management as a key discipline towards building a resilient Western Cape Government. It provided an opportunity to identify existing business continuity processes to determine the level of preparedness of the Western Cape Government to ensure continued business due to a disruption. The inability of the public sector to manage and facilitate sound business continuity processes in anticipation of disruptive events have placed it in a position where it would be unable to deliver services to citizens and stakeholders. As the current business environment was continuously evolving, Government as an organization was therefore not immune to change and disruption, whether generated internally or externally. For government to be resilient it required the holistic management of risk but also the ability to adapt and respond to change with a limited impact on the delivery of services. Business Continuity was the core to building and improving organizational resilience. It had been a proven methodology that organizations should embrace as part of a holistic approach to the management of risks and threats. Legislation and/or policies have been drafted for the public sector to guide with the management of risks. As an organ of state and part of the public sector the Western Cape Government was therefore obliged to manage risks in a way that ensured that government was able to continue to render a service both internally and externally with as little impact as possible. Business continuity management identified the priorities of an organization as well as prepared solutions to address disruptive threats. The aim of the study was the exploration of the state of business continuity within the Western Cape Government. The objectives of the study were to: Identify current business continuity processes; Evaluate current business continuity processes; Critically analyse existing business continuity documentation; and Identify the links between business continuity and resilience. The research questions were focused on getting departments to express how business continuity was facilitated; clarity in respect of processes; input source of business continuity documentation; as well as determining whether departments acknowledged the benefits of having business continuity management towards building a resilient Western Cape Government. Previous work reinforced the importance of having sound business continuity processes in place. From the literature it would appear that business continuity in the public sector was fairly new and developmental in nature. Previous work also recognized that each and every organization was unique and as such the process should be aligned with the core functions and/or mandates afforded by legislation and/or policies.
The research approach deemed most appropriate for this particular study was the Interpretivist approach. Not only was this approach value laden but it allowed for the exploration of the theory and obtaining of rich in-depth data from the participants. It also allowed for the contextualization of the problem as it related to the business continuity processes within the Western Cape Government. The research method was qualitative using interviews and document analysis as the most suited research instruments to elicit qualitative data required to render the research process as valid.
It was concluded that having sound business continuity processes in place would greatly support organizations with the management of disruptions. Business continuity should be a proactive plan to avoid and mitigate risk associated with disruption of operations and needed to be managed in a way that objectives were met.
Further to this it should be noted that the resilience maturity of the Western Cape Government remained reactive and concerted efforts towards becoming proactive should be considered
The role of public participation in service delivery: a case of a selected township in the Cape Metropolitan Area, South Africa
Full text linkThesis (MTech (Public Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020Public participation in governance and public service delivery is increasingly pursued in a bid to improve the performance of government. Improving delivery of public services continues to be a key objective that has occupied the agenda of public administrators and researchers alike. Despite various legislative prescriptions, which encourage local community participation in service delivery initiatives, there is prevalence of a top-down approach when municipalities bring services to communities. This occurs when municipalities follow their own developmental priorities for communities and they do this without the consultation of the concerned communities. The main purpose of this study was to explore the involvement of communities in determining the infrastructure services that are delivered to them by government. The study was done in Khayelitsha, a township situated in the Cape metropolitan area in the Western Cape province of South Africa. A qualitative and quantitative methodology was employed in the study. It is relevant to the study and assisted the researcher to gain insight into the Khayelitsha municipality and understand the challenges caused by not involving the community in service delivery. The main findings reveal that the role of the community is not clearly defined during the process of service delivery resulting in poor public participation. Poor communication with communities also contributes to this problem and there is no formal collaboration between the community and the municipality. Thus, the study contributes to the existing body of knowledge on public participation and service delivery, as well as democracy. Furthermore, the study concludes that for the successful delivery of services to communities, it is essential that government officials comply with the legal prescriptions that are enshrined in the relevant legislation. In addition, communities should begin to own service delivery initiatives and protect their facilities from vandalism
Standard protocols for restoring heritage cementing materials
Full text linkThesis (MEng (Civil Engineering))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020The history of the South African construction industry dates as far back as the seventeenth century, with structures such as the Castle of Good Hope, cathedrals, museums and memorials, among many others. Heritage structures represent the history of a country and its development. These structures do not only elaborate on the history, but also embody unique designs and materials used for their construction. This makes historic structures physically distinct from modern constructions. However, heritage structures often show critical signs of deterioration, which threaten their existence thereof. In attempts to rescue these national treasures, the use of Portland cement has been a common practice, but there are problems with using such modern materials. The application of incompatible materials is said to accelerate the deterioration and endanger the authenticity of these monuments. This practice is a result of a misunderstanding of the original material behaviour and has been responsible for the failure of many restoration projects. For developing countries, South Africa in particular, this approach has undoubtedly impacted negatively on the economy, as repeated repairs are necessary. Characterisation of the original cementing materials is the key to compatible restoration of heritage buildings. The research describes the development of an integrated protocol to establish the properties of the original heritage cementing materials. The key objective for the study was to investigate and standardise an analytical procedure whose primary purpose is the identification of major and minor components of heritage cementing materials and binder-to-aggregate ratio, which would be useful for production of repair materials. The results obtained from the experimental investigation into the physical, chemical and mineralogical properties of the original materials from the Castle of Good Hope and Robben Island are presented in this study. The experimental results were analysed for their ability to provide useful data at minimal costs. After that, a standard protocol was developed, incorporating the procedure for sampling as well as preparation of the sample, material analysis and documentation. The standard protocol includes the cohesion test, visual investigation and titration test for analysis of the salts and metal oxides present in the materials. These tests provide relevant data for the search of replica repair materials. The standard protocol will be useful for local heritage authorities, as it could be incorporated into the conservation management plans prior to restoration works. This will ensure compatible and sustainable restoration of historic buildings, not only in South Africa, but around the world. The heritage materials for the two oldest buildings in the Western Cape were made of hydraulic lime-based mortars, seashells, and uniform and well-graded sand. Less than 5% of the materials showed no traces of a binder. The restored areas were restored with cement-based materials. The affordable standard methodology for characterising original heritage cementing materials involved the sample collection that represents the majority of the building, sample preparation, detailed visual investigation and cohesion test, as well as hydraulicity and cementation indices analysis to determine the type of binder. These tests were concluded to be convenient, easy to conduct and cost-effective
Reuse of a treated textile effluent from cobalt oxide and sulphate radical-based advanced oxidation process
No full textThesis (MEng (Chemical Engineering))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020Reactive dye waste effluents are the most difficult to treat, as they are highly polluted due to the
structure of the dyestuffs and chemicals used during the dyeing process. Due to the water shortage and
environmental pollution, textile industries are encouraged to treat the waste effluent produced during
dyeing processes so as to facilitate its reuse, as this will contribute to mitigating environmental pollution
and minimise water consumption. However, relatively few of the treatment technologies employed for
the treatment of textile wastewater are applicable for water that is intended for reuse. Many treatment
technologies exist for the treatment of textile waste effluents, but are either limited in efficiency or high
in operating and energy cost. Chemical treatment methods such as the cobalt oxide mediated sulphate
radical-based advanced oxidation process (CO-SR-AOP) shows promise but have not yet been evaluated
for the reuse of textile wastewater in the dyeing process.
The purpose of this work is to study the reusability of a treated reactive dye effluent obtained from
dyeing cotton fabrics using peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activated by a cobalt oxide (Co3O4) catalyst and
using a laboratory-scale continuous wastewater treatment reactor. In order to achieve this, a cobalt oxide
catalyst was hydrothermally synthesised, cotton fabrics were bleached as pre-treatment prior to being
dyed using blue reactive dye and tap water to produce the necessary textile waste effluent. The produced
waste effluent was treated with Oxone (PMS) and a cobalt oxide catalyst; then reused in the next dyeing
process, using an identical dyeing recipe. The pH of the treated effluent was corrected to neutral before
its reuse. The waste effluent from the first cycle of dyeing was treated before its next reuse. This process
was carried out for a maximum of three cycles. The dyed fabrics obtained using the treated effluent were
compared with the ones dyed with tap water in terms of colour fastness. The optimisation of the
reusability of a treated effluent from cobalt oxide and sulphate radical-based advanced oxidation process
was carried out using Design-Expert software version 11.1.2.0 using a Box-Behnken design taken from
response surface methodology. The effects of three factors were studied: Oxone level, dye concentration
and reuse cycles at low, high and medium levels in fifteen experimental runs. Colour fastness of the dyed
fabrics was studied as the response of the trials.
Based on the preliminary results, the treated effluent can be reused in two successive reuse cycles
without altering the fabric’s quality. To obtain more or less 80% colour removal, waste effluent with 3%
dye concentration must be obtained and treated with a high dosage of Oxone (3.5 g/l). Salt can be
recovered by using this process, but with a darker shade of dyed fabric as a result, when compared with the reference. Varying dilution factors and standing times of the treated effluent were investigated but
did not have significant influence on the colour quality of the dyed fabrics.
A useful model was found to predict the colour fastness of dyed fabrics with an effluent treated with the
continuous wastewater treatment reactor system using PMS activated by Co
3
O
4
. The study of the
interaction effects of all three parameters led to the finding that to obtain good colour fastness grading of
the dyed fabrics, the treated effluent can be reused a maximum of two iterations, with a dye
concentration of 5% and an Oxone concentration of 1 g/L. The predicted optimum process conditions for
this process were 1.3 g/l of Oxone used to treat a waste effluent with 4.4% dye concentration and reuse
in a maximum of three reuse cycles
The value of context awareness within information technology audit and governance
Full text linkThesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020A shared common understanding or context awareness (CA) of IT Audit and Governance among all the internal stakeholders of a business remains an important factor. This context awareness is needed between the business itself, the IT department, and the Audit and Risk functions of the business.
The research problem states that there is a lack of shared context awareness among all stakeholders when conducting IT audits and implementing IT Governance. To answer the research questions, a case study research strategy was followed using an International Services Group of companies operating from South Africa. The case study offered a diverse group of companies and vast experience in the South African Services, Trading, and Distribution sector. The diversity of this group of companies made it a perfect candidate for understanding context and the value of context in IT when conducting IT audits.
The following research questions were asked: i) What are the factors affecting a shared context understanding among the stakeholders when conducting IT audits and implementing IT Governance? ii) How can a shared context understanding among stakeholders be achieved when conducting IT audits and implementing IT Governance?
The aim of the study was to explore the value of context awareness within IT Audit and Governance in order to identify the value of shared context understanding.
Data collection was done by means of interviews using semi-structured questionnaires and an interview guide. Qualitative data analysis techniques were adopted for this research. The conclusion of the study highlights the importance of a collective understanding of the business’s context in order to obtain alignment in business, IT, and Audit. It refers to the same or a similar understanding of the business processes; this takes time and is unique on all levels