An analysis of backyard structures as a livelihood strategy for low-income households: the case of Ikwezi Township in Mthatha.

Master Degree, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.The lack of low income housing especially rental housing in urban areas of South Africa has forced many low-income households to find accommodation in the backyard housing sector, which is mainly provided by the household sector. Despite the growth of the backyard rental housing sector in the post-apartheid era, housing policies have discounted the sector. Focusing more on eradicating informal settlements, and homelessness by delivering subsidised starter houses. The overlooking of the backyard rental sector by the state neglects prospects for more sustainable human settlements. This study thus reflects on the use of backyard structures as a livelihood strategy by low-income households. Addressing the research question of: whether backyard structures can enhance economic opportunities in townships, and what role has it played in elevating the housing backlog problem South African in cities? The study employs a literature review informed by electronic data bases, and implements mixed method research relying on quantitative data gathered via questionnaires, and qualitative data from semi-structured interviews and anecdotal observation in the nonmetropolitan case study of Ikwezi Township, in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. This thesis focuses on housing policy and legislation, spatial, economic, social, and environmental considerations in relation to the backyard rental sector. By discussing the backyard rental sector within housing, the liberal and neoliberal theories and the sustainable livelihood approach are used. In order to relate the sector to planning practises and bylaws at municipal level. The study strengthens the argument that the perception that the backyard rental sector is informal and therefore undesirable is not necessarily true. This study proposes that this position should be reconsidered. In investigating the economic, and environmental impacts of the backyard rental sector in Ikwezi Township in Mthatha. The study affirms that the backyard sector plays a vital role is sustaining livelihood strategies of the poor, and it also increases dwelling unit and population density substantially and it also promotes urban compaction. Furthermore, the study proves that landlord can make considerable amounts of money from their backyard structures. Depending on what they use their backyard structures for, the quality of their neighbourhood, and their backyard structures. The study has also found that the amounts they charge their tenants per backyard structure, and how many backyard structures they have in their homes also play a significant role on the income they can generate from their backyard structures. iv | P a g e All these factors have been proven to differ from case study to case study, and have been proven to have an influence on how much landlords can generate from their backyard structures. The case study of Ikwezi Township has also refuted the notion that economic sustainability wise, low-income dwellings rarely realise financial asset value, trapping homeowners on the low levels of the property ladder in unaffordable housing. Instead the backyard rentals sector provides rental income or other remittances, realising economic asset value, whilst providing tenants with affordable rental accommodation. The backyard rentals sector further promotes the social asset value of housing, and support social sustainability. Evidenced can be seen in co-dependence, and low-conflict in landlordtenant relationships sometimes framed by familial connections that provide tenure security. Findings also indicate that backyard rentals challenge sustainability through concerns of the pressure they place on infrastructure. The study concludes that informal backyard rentals contribute towards elevating poverty in low-income neighbourhoods. However, interventions should be considered by authorities and planners to address impediments such as, lack of infrastructural capacity to accommodate backyard tenants, especially in new housing developments targeting the poor.Only available in English

Trucks, Traffic, and Timely Transport: A Regional Freight Logistics Profile

This report justifies and designs a comprehensive tool for describing intraurban trucking, which is the bulk of truck movement in an urban area but typically is unexamined in regional transportation planning. We begin by reviewing literature describing the characteristics and policy issues bearing on freight. We extract from that literature a structure for describing those policy issues, and then go on to design a series of map displays and quantitative measures that provide a linkage between the characteristics of local delivery trucking and the public policy issues that stem from and influence these characteristics. The Regional Freight Logistics Profile (RFLP) emerges as an easy-to-understand yet comprehensive description of urban trucking that stimulates a more constructive dialog among government transportation leaders, shippers, truckers, and the general public. The design balances coverage of the variety of public and business concerns relative to freight against the costs and other practicalities of collecting data. To overcome reluctance on the part of private companies to reveal performance information, we have designed an institutional approach to gathering truck fleet performance data that does not compromise confidential performance data from competing carriers and shippers. We recommend that metropolitan planning organizations, as well as state and federal freight mobility offices with responsibility for technical assistance to MPOs, review the RFLP design for potential adaptation and adoption

An assessment of cash management (in the case of Dashen Bank S. Co.)

Cash is the most important current asset for the operations of the business. Cash is the basic input needed to keep the business running on a continuous basis, it is also the ultimate output expected to be realized by selling the services or product manufactured by the firm. The study attempt to find out problems related with Cash Management in Dashen Bank S.Co, at Head Office, And thus, it will provide valuable information and better approach to deal with maintaining a better Cash Management level in the Organization. Therefore, this study will investigate the cash management practices in Dashen Bank S.Co.in the year of 2009 - 2013. The researchers use a sample design of descriptive research method in order to present data in tabular form. In addition to this, financial ratios are used for analyzing the last five years. In this study, the Bank holds idle cash that will reduce its future profit. Besides, Dashen Bank can use up to 80% of its own deposit for loan, but almost for the all years the bank did not use the deposits as a loan, the way that Dashen Bank administers the cash gap between the limit and excess have still some undefined problems. Furthermore, the objective of the study is to attempt the render activity of Dashen Bank as fairly and acceptable way of Banking transaction services

No. 65: Brain Drain and Regain: The Migration Behaviour of South African Medical Professionals

Since the end of apartheid, South Africa has experienced a significant outflow of health professionals. The out-migration of health professionals from the country is part of a broader global trend of health professional migration from the Global South to the Global North. In the health sector, this “brain drain” has led to a significant decline in the quality of care in affected countries. The costs of health professional migration for countries of origin are usually measured in terms of lost investment in training and the gaps in medical care left by their departure. One recent study, for example, estimated that the cost to South Africa in lost investment in training from the emigration of health physicians to Australia, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom amounts to USD1.4 billion. Previous studies have predicted that medical migration from South Africa is unlikely to subside in the short and medium term as health professionals and trainees exhibit very high emigration potential. This report provides an updated (2013) picture of the state of mind of South African health professionals. It also allows an assessment of whether professional attitudes and perceptions have changed between 2007 and 2013 including (a) whether levels of satisfaction with work and life in South Africa have improved or worsened; (b) whether emigration potential has declined or intensified amongst health professionals and (c) whether the “brain drain” from South Africa is likely to continue. These questions are of particular relevance given various changes in the health sector since 2007. Return migration has been advocated internationally as an antidote to the brain drain and an important downstream benefit for countries of origin in the South. This report therefore provides important new information about the implications of health professional return migration to South Africa. Another strategy adopted by some countries is to use immigration policy as a means of dealing with health professional shortages. South Africa is a destination country for health professionals from some countries although, with the exception of official schemes to temporarily import Cuban and Tunisian doctors, this is not official policy. Significantly, the medical professions have only just appeared on the government scarceskills lists that have been published for nearly a decade. This survey provided an opportunity to profile a sub-group of non-South African doctors to assess whether they are more inclined to remain in the country than their South African counterparts. The current survey was developed in collaboration with the Institute of Population Health at the University of Ottawa as part of a CIHR-funded global project on health professional migration from India, Jamaica, the Philippines and South Africa. The questionnaire was hosted on the MEDpages website and potential respondents were invited by email to complete the survey. A total of 1,383 completed questionnaires were received from physicians, dentists and pharmacists – a response rate of 7%

Using Textual Data in System Dynamics Model Conceptualization

Qualitative data is an important source of information for system dynamics modeling. It can potentially support any stage of the modeling process, yet it is mainly used in the early steps such as problem identification and model conceptualization. Existing approaches that outline a systematic use of qualitative data in model conceptualization are often not adopted for reasons of time constraints resulting from an abundance of data. In this paper, we introduce an approach that synthesizes the strengths of existing methods. This alternative approach (i) is focused on causal relationships starting from the initial steps of coding; (ii) generates a generalized and simplified causal map without recording individual relationships so that time consumption can be reduced; and (iii) maintains the links from the final causal map to the data sources by using software. We demonstrate an application of this approach in a study about integrated decision making in the housing sector of the UK

Brain Drain and Regain: The Migration Behaviour of South African Medical Professionals (Migration Policy Series No. 65)

Since the end of apartheid, South Africa has experienced a significant outflow of health professionals. The out-migration of health professionals from the country is part of a broader global trend of health professional migration from the Global South to the Global North. In the health sector, this “brain drain” has led to a significant decline in the quality of care in affected countries. The costs of health professional migration for countries of origin are usually measured in terms of lost investment in training and the gaps in medical care left by their departure. One recent study, for example, estimated that the cost to South Africa in lost investment in training from the emigration of health physicians to Australia, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom amounts to USD1.4 billion. Previous studies have predicted that medical migration from South Africa is unlikely to subside in the short and medium term as health professionals and trainees exhibit very high emigration potential. This report provides an updated (2013) picture of the state of mind of South African health professionals. It also allows an assessment of whether professional attitudes and perceptions have changed between 2007 and 2013 including (a) whether levels of satisfaction with work and life in South Africa have improved or worsened; (b) whether emigration potential has declined or intensified amongst health professionals and (c) whether the “brain drain” from South Africa is likely to continue. These questions are of particular relevance given various changes in the health sector since 2007. Return migration has been advocated internationally as an antidote to the brain drain and an important downstream benefit for countries of origin in the South. This report therefore provides important new information about the implications of health professional return migration to South Africa. Another strategy adopted by some countries is to use immigration policy as a means of dealing with health professional shortages. South Africa is a destination country for health professionals from some countries although, with the exception of official schemes to temporarily import Cuban and Tunisian doctors, this is not official policy. Significantly, the medical professions have only just appeared on the government scarceskills lists that have been published for nearly a decade. This survey provided an opportunity to profile a sub-group of non-South African doctors to assess whether they are more inclined to remain in the country than their South African counterparts. The current survey was developed in collaboration with the Institute of Population Health at the University of Ottawa as part of a CIHR-funded global project on health professional migration from India, Jamaica, the Philippines and South Africa. The questionnaire was hosted on the MEDpages website and potential respondents were invited by email to complete the survey. A total of 1,383 completed questionnaires were received from physicians, dentists and pharmacists – a response rate of 7%