Doctoral Degrees (Centre for Development Support)

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Open Access
The capabilities of male migrant miners in preventing and managing HIV: A Lesotho case study
(University of the Free State, 2022) Nako, Esther Makuena; Marais, J. G. L.; Engelbrecht, M. C.
Previous research has shown multiple HIV programmes at the mines and in Lesotho. However, despite the availability of these HIV programmes, Lesotho migrant miners who work in South Africa's mines are still plagued by HIV and are amongst the worst-hit groups. Evidence in the literature suggests fragmentation and ineffectiveness in HIV prevention and management strategies for Lesotho migrant miners. Other literature suggests that the ineffectiveness of the HIV prevention and management strategies results from irrelevant theoretical approaches that do not consider aspects of development in HIV prevention and management. This study used a qualitative approach, underpinned by the capabilities approach framework, to explore the capabilities of Lesotho male migrant miners working in the Free State mines in South Africa in preventing and managing HIV. The Capabilities Approach (CA) is a social justice theory founded by Economist-philosopher Amartya Sen in the 1980s. Fifty returning Lesotho migrant miners (those visiting home) who work in the Free State Province, South Africa and were either HIV positive or negative participated in the study. Data were collected in July 2021 on the streets of Maseru, Lesotho. Structured interviews with open-ended questions using purposive, snowballing and street outreach methods were used. The interviews were audio-taped, transcribed and translated into English and thematic analysis was used as the method of data analysis. The study concluded that structural factors like the culture at the mines that accept commercial sex often lead to the miners losing control over their daily lives, constricting their capability to prevent HIV. Other structural factors like policies, healthcare quality and the miners' circular migration patterns have characteristics that either expand or constrict the miners' capabilities to prevent and manage HIV. The miners had adequate personal conversion factors and abundant social conversion factors. However, these conversion factors operate amid many social constraints, making the cultivation of capabilities to prevent and manage HIV difficult. The miners' environmental conversion factors were inadequate, particularly those related to accessing ARVs in the mines, denying them some basic freedoms and entitlements. Finally, the miners engage in functionings that either expand or constrict their capabilities to prevent and manage HIV. For those who are HIV positive, functionings like being stigmatised and enduring the side-effects of ARVs, negatively affects their psychological, physical and social wellbeing.
Open Access
The capabilities of male migrant miners in preventing and managing HIV: a Lesotho case study
(University of the Free State, 2022) Nako, Esther Makuena; Marais, J. G. L.; Engelbrecht, M.
Previous research has shown multiple HIV programmes at the mines and in Lesotho. However, despite the availability of these HIV programmes, Lesotho migrant miners who work in South Africa's mines are still plagued by HIV and are amongst the worst-hit groups. Evidence in the literature suggests fragmentation and ineffectiveness in HIV prevention and management strategies for Lesotho migrant miners. Other literature suggests that the ineffectiveness of the HIV prevention and management strategies results from irrelevant theoretical approaches that do not consider aspects of development in HIV prevention and management. This study used a qualitative approach, underpinned by the capabilities approach framework, to explore the capabilities of Lesotho male migrant miners working in the Free State mines in South Africa in preventing and managing HIV. The Capabilities Approach (CA) is a social justice theory founded by Economist-philosopher Amartya Sen in the 1980s. Fifty returning Lesotho migrant miners (those visiting home) who work in the Free State Province, South Africa and were either HIV positive or negative participated in the study. Data were collected in July 2021 on the streets of Maseru, Lesotho. Structured interviews with open-ended questions using purposive, snowballing and street outreach methods were used. The interviews were audio-taped, transcribed and translated into English and thematic analysis was used as the method of data analysis. The study concluded that structural factors like the culture at the mines that accept commercial sex often lead to the miners losing control over their daily lives, constricting their capability to prevent HIV. Other structural factors like policies, healthcare quality and the miners' circular migration patterns have characteristics that either expand or constrict the miners' capabilities to prevent and manage HIV. The miners had adequate personal conversion factors and abundant social conversion factors. However, these conversion factors operate amid many social constraints, making the cultivation of capabilities to prevent and manage HIV difficult. The miners' environmental conversion factors were inadequate, particularly those related to accessing ARVs in the mines, denying them some basic freedoms and entitlements. Finally, the miners engage in functionings that either expand or constrict their capabilities to prevent and manage HIV. For those who are HIV positive, functionings like being stigmatised and enduring the side-effects of ARVs, negatively affects their psychological, physical and social wellbeing.
Open Access
The contribution of informal settlement upgrading to the economic inclusion of the poor
(University of the Free State, 2024) Mmbadi, Elelwani; Marais, J. G. L.; Napier, M.; Visagie, Justin
This thesis investigated the contribution of informal settlement upgrading to asset-building, economic inclusion of the poor, and poverty alleviation in Freedom Square, Bloemfontein, South Africa. Employing a mixed method approach, the study combined quantitative data from a longitudinal research project spanning three decades and qualitative insights gathered through interviews with 19 households purposively selected. The quantitative data analysis investigated how informal settlement upgrading has facilitated asset-building and economic integration in Freedom Square. Moreover, the thesis investigated the dynamics of intergenerational asset transfers and the role of informal settlement upgrading in fostering economic integration over generations. Understanding the importance of asset-building through housing initiatives and how these contributed to improving the overall well-being of disadvantaged households received special attention. Through in-depth qualitative interviews, the study investigated how impoverished households viewed the upgraded houses and developed assets, shedding light on their strategies, challenges, and successes in asset accumulation. Some of the selected findings of the thesis are as follows: • The upgrading of Freedom Square has resulted in significant intergenerational transfer of household assets. • Upgrading Freedom Square also increased the productive, consumer and financial assets of the households, but not household income and labour market participation. • Through employing the logistic regression model used in Chapter 6, the study found five significant key predictors contributing to households having a larger or a smaller house in Freedom Square. • Lastly, the upgraded houses meant shelter, investment, and stability to residents of Freedom Square. This thesis concluded that policy debates in South Africa need to consider a more nuanced classification of the welfare state theory characteristics. Furthermore, states need not overemphasise asset-based and income-based welfare as they have limitations. This research also showed that upgrading the Freedom Square informal settlement contributed to asset accumulation in ways different from those proposed by Moser. Furthermore, the intergenerational transfer of household assets from first-generation to second-generation settlers is an important creator of assets. Lastly, the study highlighted that asset integration is paramount for households to build assets and move out of poverty successfully.
Open Access
Dependencies and decentralised government for the governance of housing delivery in Mangaung
(University of the Free State, 2022) Mokoena, Malefetsane Daniel; Marais, J. G. L.; Masithela, N.; Venter, A.
This thesis investigates dependencies and decentralised government for the governance of housing delivery in Mangaung over three decades. Housing governance remains a challenge to most local authorities. The study uses the evolutionary governance theory to conceptualise the research and understand the concepts of housing governance and the evolution of housing policy over time. This thesis relies on data collected from semi-structured interviews and policy documents and uses the evolutionary governance theory to show evidence of path, goal and interdependencies in housing governance in Mangaung with adverse results. Accordingly, the thesis brings forward a unique contribution to housing delivery scholarly work, emphasising some underlying dependencies in housing governance.
Open Access
Early childhood male medical circumcision
(University of the Free State, 2022) Palmer, Eurica; Marais, J. G. L.; Engelbrecht, M.
Medical male circumcision studies concerning decision-making often focus on acceptability and feasibility among parents, with limited application of theoretical frameworks. The involvement of Black women in medical male circumcision policies and programmes has received limited attention. The research investigated infant and child male circumcision (ICMC) decision-making in South Africa and analysed the different perspectives and debates. Furthermore, the study focused on ICMC as an HIV prevention strategy. The constructs of three theoretical frameworks, including the Social Constructivism Theory, Ecological Systems Theory, and Social Norms Theory, were applied across three independent articles. In-depth interviews were conducted to collect data from parents, Black women, and a young male participant who has undergone traditional male circumcision to determine their experiences of ICMC decision-making in the Diepsloot and Diepkloof areas in Gauteng, South Africa. The data analysis was conducted using a thematic and framework analysis. The findings showed that policy positions do not reflect the social contexts, including social sanctions, the social network, and the social construction of masculinity prevalent in ICMC decision-making. The results showed that the involvement of Black women in medical male circumcision policies and programmes should be central as men dominate ICMC decisions and women are on the periphery of the decision-making process.
Open Access
Institutional responses to mine closure in the West Rand
(University of the Free State, 2023) Kusambiza-Kiingi, Margaret Ann; Marais, J. G. L.; Gbadegesin, J.
This study investigated the social consequences of mine closures in the West Rand. The West Rand was once a rapidly growing area but has been severely affected by mine decline and closure, with its economy shrinking by 27% between 1996 and 2018. By using the concepts of new institutional economics (NIE), shrinking cities and mine closure, the study analysed the institutional environment (formal and informal rules) and institutional change in the West Rand. The study analysed decisions taken by key role players (communities, mining companies, government) in response to mine closures. Mining operations are well known for creating dependencies and complex networks, which disintegrate at the time of mine closure. Although mining has been a significant economic driver for over 100 years in South Africa, government only introduced the first firm mine closure regulations in 1991. Currently, South Africa has 6 100 abandoned mines, which are associated with numerous environmental and social problems; about 600 abandoned mines are in Gauteng province. While most studies focus on understanding and developing regulations to address the environmental impacts of mining globally, social aspects receive less attention. Consequently, mining companies and governments lack understanding of the real cost of mine closures and a holistic and sustainable way of closure. The study found that the West Rand is grappling with the complex phenomenon of mine closure and related power dynamics, which is exacerbated by high levels of poverty and unemployment. Critical drivers of effective collaboration between key role players, and crucial aspects of effective mine closure processes are weak or missing. Weak institutions prevail due to gaps in the regulations, a lack of capacity in government to enforce rules, and corrupt practices that have infiltrated societal behaviour. As noted by NIE, formal rules may change quickly, but informal rules change slowly. A culture of mistrust lingers postapartheid, and communities continue to bear the brunt of weak institutions. Social and labour plans are not the ideal mechanism for poor and declining environments such as the West Rand, necessitating a reconsideration of a model that is appropriate for the local context. The study emphasises the importance of participatory planning to address the negative consequences of urban shrinkage. The study recommends that the government should reinforce institutions to collaborate to achieve effective mine closures and strengthen its capacity to enforce mine closure rules and eliminate corruption. It is also essential to empower communities to participate in mine closure processes, articulate their interests, pick up the broken pieces, restore what has been damaged, hold duty bearers accountable and drive their development processes.
Open Access
Logistical cities in peripheral areas
(University of the Free State, 2013) Pretorius, Marius Pieter; Marais, J. G. L.; Joynt, H.
𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉 This thesis is the first study in South Africa to explore the concept of logistics cities in peripheral areas with in the context of local economic development. Although the term logistics city is used freely to denote cities in which logistics forms an important part of their economic base − as is the case in Dubai, Shangai and Zaragoza − the body of academic literature on the topic is extremely limited. The logistics city concept was formulated in Australia as an academic concept from approximately 2006 onwards. In South Africa, there is seemingly a tendency among decision makers to regard the mere existence of an airport, especially its potential transformation into an air-freight hub, as a possible local economic development initiative. The aim of this study was to evaluate Upington (as a peripheral area within the South African economy) and its ability to utilise the Upington International Airport as a local economic development initiative, specifically from the perspective of a logistics city. The study analysed the latest theoretical developments in location theory, specifically the new economic geography (NEG) and cluster theory as a basis of the logistics city. The NEG, which was developed in the 1990s in response to the changes brought about by globalisation and the strides made in technology, argues that − theoretically at least − peripheral regions could grow through the development of logistic clusters at the location of an airport. In addition, given the current capacity problems at OR Tambo International Airport, the NEG should pave the way for the development of a logistics facility at the UIA, the more so from the perspective of the logistics city concept. The study confirmed that, in spite of the theoretical opportunities presented by the NEG, the logistics city concept and the incorporation of an air-freight hub in provincial policy and strategy documents, air-freight hub development is still fundamentally dependent on market conditions and that the existence of well-developed airport infrastructure alone is not sufficient reason for transforming a regional airport in a peripheral area into a logistics facility. The study further showed that despite the increasing range of local economic development (LED) research in South Africa, academic literature focusing on the relationship between air-freight transport, logistics and LED is virtually non-existent. Moreover, the study showed that LED efforts are seriously hampered by a number of issues, such as the lack of assimilation of the logistics and air-freight industries into local economic development policy and plans, a lack of capacity at the institutional level, the lack of integrated planning between the spheres of government, the LED stakeholders, parastatals, agencies and the private sector and also the lack of clear policies on the developmental role of regional airports in South Africa. The dominance of ACSA, and the company’s own lack of a strategic focus on regional airports, has also been shown to be problematic. The study further demonstrated efficient logistics to be an important determinant of a country’s competitiveness and that South Africa may lose competiveness because both of high logistics costs and low logistics performance levels. The study also showed that there is generally a lack of accurate information and data on logistics and air freight in South Africa, particularly at the regional and the local level, which makes effective and integrated planning even more difficult.
Open Access
The privatisation of public housing in South Africa: incremental upgrading processes in Manguang
(University of the Free State, 2012) Sefika, Moeketsi Simon; Marais, J. G. L.
𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉 The argument in this dissertation is that housing studies focus mainly on the politicaleconomy paradigms and ignore the role played by other social theories. On the one hand, conventional economic theory, mainly built on new-Liberal principles, suggests that privatisation is required to ensure that markets work better. In the housing field, privatisation is mainly seen as a way to ensure the initiation of a secondary housing market. On the other hand, Neo-Marxist views argue that privatisation leads to a range of negative impacts, such as eventual homelessness and the unaffordable nature of housing bonds. The main problem with these two political and economic viewpoints is that they are blind to other social theories and ignore, to a large degree, the historical context of housing, especially in South Africa. The debates in this study point out that the pathdependency theory (with historical methodology as a sub-approach) in housing policy discourses provides additional understanding of privatisation, especially in the South African context. In contradiction to general observation, housing processes in South Africa may be locked in their own trajectory, and they may not be similar to those in the parent colonial power such as Britain. This study identifies a policy and research gap in privatisation. It is the first attempt to assess the privatisation of housing in South Africa through empirical evidence since the introduction of the Discount Benefit Scheme two decades ago. The international literature shows that there has been an effort in both developed and developing countries to privatise rental housing stock. This move is related to the overwhelming pro-market policy developments after the Second World War. Neo-Liberal and Neo-Marxist thinkers put forward various opinions for and against the process. With South Africa having had strong economic and political ties with Britain during apartheid, the South African government also privatised the nearly 500 000 state-owned housing units. Researchers in South Africa also made postulations that were either Neo-Liberal or Neo-Marxist in assessing the future possible impact of housing privatisation, this despite the work of Turner and Tipple on the social context of housing. The dissertation tests the original argument of the political-economy continuum by interrogating the empirical evidence obtained from the suburb of Rocklands, Bloemfontein. In this environment, tenants improve the state-subsidised core houses through what Tipple terms “transformations”, which are more a response to social needs than to economic imperatives. The empirical analysis looks at the outcomes of housing privatisation relating to the physical effects on housing after transformations, the processes involved in transformations that accentuate self-dependence and resourcefulness and the capacity of tenants to borrow from the market and trade their improved assets in the market. The main findings from the empirical evidence support a key theoretical assumption that housing debates should look beyond the binary political-economic debate. The findings in the study refute the political-economic assumptions forwarded in the Neo-Liberal and Neo-Marxist theories. However, the findings in the study support Tipple’s contentions on the critical role of the social and historical context of housing. To this effect, the main findings in the study are similar to Tipple’s contentions, namely that privatisation leads to transformations that combat housing stress, that transformations produce economic multipliers in the locality, that transformations occur outside the basis of secure tenure and that income is not the most important variable in housing extensions. The study goes further and suggests the historical context of housing, whereby privatisation is a way of ensuring a foothold in urban South Africa. Such a foothold in urban South Africa is important considering the historical exclusion of black people from urban South Africa. The social context of black housing in South Africa is characterised by a long quest for urban citizenship and housing rights. These characteristics give rise to a distinct housing environment not observable in the developed countries.
Open Access
Self-help housing in South Africa: paradigms, policy and practice
(University of the Free State, 2018) Ntema, Lejone John; Marais, J. G. L.
𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉 This thesis entitled Self-help housing in South Africa: paradigms, policy and practice was conducted as the first thorough evaluation of self-help housing policy in South Africa. Selfhelp housing policy and practice in both South Africa and globally are evaluated by means of Turner’s concept of dweller control. The thesis starts off by analysing the origin and development of low-income housing policies in developing countries, with specific reference to self-help housing policy. It is pointed out that the discussion on the influence of Turner’s theory and the role of the World Bank are central to the analysis of the origin and development of self-help housing policy in developing countries. Turner’s theory played a crucial role in the acceptance of self-help housing as an alternative housing-delivery mechanism in the 1960s, while the World Bank provided the necessary funding for its implementation through site-and-services schemes by governments in developing countries in the early 1970s. Despite self-help housing commonly being associated with neo-liberal policy trends, the thesis shows that self-help is practised in both capitalist and socialist countries. The international theoretical background on self-help housing is followed by an assessment of the development and application of various low-income housing policies in post-apartheid South Africa, with specific reference to self-help housing. South African policy on self-help is officially called the People’s Housing Process (PHP) and is implemented through self-help groups called housing support centres. It has been found that though Turner’s ideas and principles on self-help housing are entrenched in PHP policy, in practice this policy, to a large extent, neither conforms to Turner’s ideas particularly those on dweller control nor to certain principles stipulated in the policy. Thus, a technocratic rather than a people-centred approach (envisaged in policy documents) dominates the PHP programmes in South Africa. The levels of the influence exerted by local people in project design, project implementation and housing design remain low, and the housing outcomes do not differ much from the conventional project subsidy approach. This leads the author to conclude that self-help housing in South Africa is, in effect, dominated by the state. However, despite state control of the housing process, both the available South African literature on self-help housing and the empirical findings seem to be in agreement that the houses in PHP projects are generally much bigger than those provided by means of the conventional contractor-driven mechanism. The comparison between the laissez-faire self-help project and the aided self-help project using a contractor-driven approach confirms that better housing outcomes have resulted from the laissez-faire self-help example (larger houses, more extension activity). Against this background, the thesis proposes that government officials should become facilitators rather than dominant role players in the application of self-help housing, programmes on consumer education should be emphasised and used as means to enhance community participation and empowerment, the emphasis on sweat equity in the self-help mechanism should be reconsidered, the self-help mechanism inherently needs to accept a certain degree of informality, government should ensure accountability and oversight without necessarily controlling state-funded self-help housing projects, and, the emphasis in self-help should be on embracing housing as a process rather than as a one-off activity.
Open Access
Universities in regional development: knowledge transfer in a less favoured region
(University of the Free State, 13-Jun) Fongwa, Neba Samuel; Marais, J. G. L.; Atkinson, D.; Cloete, N.
𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉 This dissertation is an exploratory study aimed at increasing the theoretical and empirical understanding of knowledge transfer from a university to its region. The study builds on the increased emphasis on the role of universities as ‘engines’ for development. By using the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of the Free State, South Africa as a case study, this study aimed to provide a nuanced understand of the factors affecting knowledge transfer between academics and stakeholders in a less favoured region. By means of the learning region concept and supported by other empirical studies, key indicators were identified from the literature and were developed for investigation. A qualitative approach was followed to collect data from academics in the Faculty of Agriculture and from relevant stakeholders by means of semi-structured interviews and a detailed review of some key policy documents. Institutional data, farmer databases and an academic survey provided quantitative data with a view to facilitating the triangulation of data and the minimising of bias. Findings from the study revealed that the process of knowledge transfer from the UFS was affected by a combination of demand and supply factors. Some of the factors affecting supply included the nature and the history of the UFS and the Faculty of Agriculture, adequate incentive structures, the level of policy alignment and the embeddedness of knowledge outputs from the faculty. Demand factors included the absorptive capacity of the region, the presence of coordinated demand systems and the nature of the networks that existed between stakeholders. This thesis argues that because of institutional lock-ins in the region ‒ that have led to path dependency in the practice of agriculture ‒ knowledge from the faculty has failed to realise its potential in respect of contributing to regional development. While there is evidence of networks between farmers and academics, the network forms are ‘distorted’ and as yet strongly embedded along historical social and racial lines. There is also limited evidence of a properly institutionalised notion of engagement with emerging farmers and thus knowledge transfer continues to be path dependent. The findings have implications for the UFS, for the faculty and for the region. While the UFS has defined itself as having both a national and an international agenda, the university will consciously have to define its regional role and then have to establish structures for active engagement ‒ not only broadly but also specifically with the agricultural sector. At the faculty level, engagement needs to be reconceptualised, with engagement moving from a philanthropic ethos to one that is part of the core function of teaching and learning. At the regional level, there is a need for the establishment of new forums in which the UFS and the different stakeholders may engage. More importantly, these initiatives will have to be built on trust, social capital and networks for collective benefits to result.
Open Access
Universities in regional development: knowledge transfer in a less favoured region
(University of the Free State, 2013) Fongwa, Neba Samuel; Marais, J. G. L.; Atkinson, D.; Cloete, N.
𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉 This dissertation is an exploratory study aimed at increasing the theoretical and empirical understanding of knowledge transfer from a university to its region. The study builds on the increased emphasis on the role of universities as 'engines' for development. By using the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of the Free State, South Africa as a case study, this study aimed to provide a nuanced understand of the factors affecting knowledge transfer between academics and stakeholders in a less favoured region. By means of the learning region concept and supported by other empirical studies, key indicators were identified from the literature and were developed for investigation. A qualitative approach was followed to collect data from academics in the Faculty of Agriculture and from relevant stakeholders by means of semi-structured interviews and a detailed review of some key policy documents. Institutional data, farmer databases and an academic survey provided quantitative data with a view to facilitating the triangulation of data and the minimising of bias. Findings from the study revealed that the process of knowledge transfer from the UFS was affected by a combination of demand and supply factors. Some of the factors affecting supply included the nature and the history of the UFS and the Faculty of Agriculture, adequate incentive structures, the level of policy alignment and the embeddedness of knowledge outputs from the faculty. Demand factors included the absorptive capacity of the region, the presence of coordinated demand systems and the nature of the networks that existed between stakeholders. This thesis argues that because of institutional lock-ins in the region - that have led to path dependency in the practice of agriculture - knowledge from the faculty has failed to realise its potential in respect of contributing to regional development. While there is evidence of networks between farmers and academics, the network forms are 'distorted' and as yet strongly embedded along historical social and racial lines. There is also limited evidence of a properly institutionalised notion of engagement with emerging farmers and thus knowledge transfer continues to be path dependent. 311 The findings have implications for the UFS, for the faculty and for the region. While the UFS has defined itself as having both a national and an international agenda, the university will consciously have to define its regional role and then have to establish structures for active engagement - not only broadly but also specifically with the agricultural sector. At the faculty level, engagement needs to be reconceptualised, with engagement moving from a philanthropic ethos to one that is part of the core function of teaching and learning. At the regional level, there is a need for the establishment of new forums in which the UFS and the different stakeholders may engage. More importantly, these initiatives will have to be built on trust, social capital and networks for collective benefits to result.
Open Access
The urban livelihoods of informal sector practitioners in Harare
(University of the Free State, 2023) Tanyanyiwa, Vincent Itai; Marais, J. G. L.; Du Plessis, Lyndon
Street trading is critical for urban-based livelihoods, especially with increasing urbanisation and limited jobs in the formal sector. Vendingscapes are socioeconomically and politically contested lived-in spaces with repression and violent occurrences. Studies that look at street trading have tended to focus on the economic and monetary aspects of the sector. This study is unique because it investigates the value of the sustainable livelihoods approach, a framework commonly applied in rural contexts to explore street traders shaping their livelihoods within macroeconomic and regulatory uncertainties. The focus is on the lived experiences and responses to government brutality. The five sustainable livelihood approach tenets – the vulnerability context, assets, policies, institutions, processes (PIPs), livelihood strategies, and livelihood outcomes – were analysed from the street traders’ perspective. The study used a case study design with a qualitative approach. The data collection techniques included key informant interviews, semi-structured interviews to allow vendors to express their lived experiences, non-participant observation, systematic actions and behaviours measurement and archival data analysis, including policy analysis. Thematic data analysis occurred throughout the study, showing emerging patterns and relationships. The study concluded that street trading in Harare is thriving amid an intensifying everyday struggle. Vendors are becoming more uncertain and vulnerable as Zimbabwe sinks into socioeconomic turmoil due to foreign currency crises, increasing isolation, poverty, runaway inflation, tax evasion and unemployment, among many challenges that increase the vulnerability context and informality. Zimbabwe should enact informal sector-specific legislation as vendors show their agency by minimising the risks of arrest and confiscating goods. The study’s main contribution is a detailed analysis of vendors’ livelihood strategies that circumvent government brutality.

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Browsing Doctoral Degrees (Centre for Development Support) by Advisor "Marais, J. G. L."

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