The Prospects of the ICT Policy Framework for Rural Entrepreneurs: an analysis of the Relationship between ICT and Entrepreneurial Development

Entrepreneurs hold the keys to rapid technological development by offering the means to creating employment opportunities even in remote rural areas. Small entrepreneurs do not only provide livelihood for themselves, but they also create employment thereby easing up socio-economic tensions in an atmosphere where so many are deprived. This article introduces the concept of entrepreneurship and how it propagates development and advances human living conditions. The underlying assumption is that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has a causal effect on human livelihoods of rural entrepreneurs. Thus, a sturdy relationship exists between ICT and entrepreneurial development for rural entrepreneurial economic growth. In the same manner the Government of Zimbabwe commenced on a comprehensive policy framework in order to harness the power of ICT. Through a documentary review analysis, the paper envisages how ICT can sustain rural entrepreneurial development in Zimbabwe at a time where it is suffering from harsh socio-economic and political turmoil. The paper observes that lack of financial services, corruption, political interference, poor planning and the desire to maintain status quo have been discouraging rural entrepreneurship to harness the benefits of ICT. The paper recommends that the government should implement policies that promote the development of ICT in rural entrepreneurship and the provision of training and development for entrepreneurs to bridge the knowledge gap on the use of ICT to enhance the livelihoods of entrepreneurs

National Development Plan as an Entrepreneurial Mechanism for Rural Economic Development in South Africa

Chapter 6 of the National Development Plan (NDP) accentuates on the impact of an integrated and inclusive rural economy by proposing for the creation 643 000 direct jobs and 326 000 indirect jobs in the farming and non-farming sector by 2030. Discussion within the study reveals that, the NDP was also designed to stimulate rural economic development among other important dynamic economic factors of the country. However, five years into the implementation of the NDP, remnants of inequality, unemployment and poverty are still apparent amongst the rural population. This paper indicates that the success of NDP as an entrepreneurial mechanism is being underpinned by contestations which are emanating from under-financing, lack of entrepreneurial education and research culture, negative attitudes of the people, corruption and red tape. Through a qualitative research approach, the paper observes that, for NDP to be continuously coordinated as an economic initiative, financing of rural projects such as small businesses, cooperatives and other rural development projects should be the government’s key priority. The study concludes that entrepreneurship has to be considered as a prime mover in rural economic development in South Africa since an entrepreneurial economy significantly differs from a non-entrepreneurial one, as evidenced by the economic vigour and sustainable development of its inhabitants

Navigating on The Precursors of Entrepreneurial Inclination Among Students in South Africa

In the present contemporary business environment, students are bound to be inclined towards entrepreneurship. Objectives Hence, this study explored the impact of perceived family support, perceived desirability and opportunity recognition on entrepreneurial inclination among the students within the Gauteng Province of South Africa. Prior Work Despite the extended research on entrepreneurship, the significance of determining the precursors of entrepreneurial inclination has largely been overlooked, especially in developing nations of Southern Africa. Hence, the essential goal of this investigation is to fill this void. Approach The study adopted a quantitative approach and a structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 261 students. The collected data was examined using structural equation modelling, exactly by means of the AMOS 25 software. Results This investigation found that perceived family support; perceived desirability; opportunity recognition positively impacted entrepreneurial inclination in a significant way. Implications The paper gives helpful implications and a couple of recommendations. For example, this investigation extends the information base that exists in the field of entrepreneurship by systematically exploring the impact of perceived family support, perceived desirability and opportunity recognition on entrepreneurial inclination Value This study stands to add new knowledge to the present body of entrepreneurship and small business management literature in Africa – a setting that is regularly overlooked by academics in developing nations

Revisiting Electoral Violence in Zimbabwe: Problems and Prospects

This study explores theoretical contradictions with realism, regarding the actors or perpetrators of violence when explaining the causes of electoral violence in the Zimbabwean context. These perspectives can be divided into two contesting schools of thought. The first group is mainly made up of rational theories and holds the position that, autocratic governments use electoral violence as a way of influencing electoral outcome. The second position suggests that the weaker political party is the one responsible for electoral violence. This paper then, contributes to the ongoing debate on the causes of electoral violence by advancing the notion that electoral violence should not be seen based on one position but from a multifaceted position. This is because, neither of the two theoretical approaches are wrong but what differs is the context. This paper argues that the idealism of holding one position hinders policy analysis to electoral violence, monitoring and observing election process as it places either, the ruling party or the opposition party as a unit of analysis

Women and Economic Production: Towards Sustainable Livelihoods in Zimbabwe

Persistent drought and economic collapse in Zimbabwe have seen most, if not all, rural women shifting from the receiving end to the giving end. Rural women have since initiated several livelihood activities to make ends meet, as they are the most vulnerable whenever they are left to look after children at home. The paper aims to examine rural livelihoods and how they contribute to economic production in Ward 5 of Bikita district. A mixed design in the form of a case study was employed in this study. Systematic random sampling was used to select 40 households, which provided data for the study out of 409 households in Ward 5. The study used questionnaires and semi-structured interviews as data collecting instruments. Several livelihood activities were noted in the ward including seasonal farming, gardening, community-based and money lending and saving schemes (fushai), informal trading, and petty trading as selling thatch grass and firewood, among others. However, climate change and drought, economic crisis, lack of capital and poor soils and poor farming methods were some of the constraints faced in rural livelihoods. The paper concludes with several recommendations for eradicating rural livelihood challenges

Agile governance for the ‘new normal’: Is Africa ready?

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many governments opted to use agile methodologies to tackle various challenges. Policymakers did not follow the normal protocol of policymaking and governance; instead, they adopted a more agile policymaking process that deploys agile approaches such as policy labs, policy prototyping, policy stimulus and digital-ready policies.  In addition, health scientists were primarily responsible for most of the policies adopted during the pandemic.  This was a major change in the policy arena. All these changes gave birth to what is currently known as "agile governance". Although not new, this form of governance has taken the world by storm, especially during the pandemic. While other regions across the world have routed for agile governance, it is not clear where Africa stands in this debate. This paper, therefore, assesses Africa's readiness for the so-called "agile governance” as the new normal. Drawing from a qualitative desktop research based on an extensive literature review and a content analysis. The study findings reveal that the future and adoption of agile governance in Africa appear bleak. Unless some changes are implemented, Africa may continue to trail behind Europe and other world regions. This is because there are still many deterrents, such as a lack of efficient leadership, the bureaucracy dilemma, the skills gap, and the legislative challenge that the continent must deal with before even thinking of becoming agile. To remedy these challenges, we conclude that African governments adapt to change by employing flexible action plans like adopting a flexible blueprint to guide agile governance strategies; innovation; streamlining bureaucracies; reskilling current public servants, and creating agile mindsets

An assessment of electronic-governance as a support system for service delivery in the public sector

This is an exploratory research that is aimed at assessing the role of e-governance tools and initiatives on how they can be support systems for service delivery in the public service sector. The rationale of this research came as a response to the ever increasing and recurring service delivery protests that are underpinning the Government of South Africa. Hence the inception of electronic-governance (e-governance) comes at the right time with the aim of mordernising and reforming the public sector for efficient and effective service delivery. E-governance is about transforming governance to be more citizens centered and thus technology is the tool in this effort which can enable change in how the government works and how public officials interact with the public at stake. Cloete (2012:128) asserts that e-governance is the future of public governance and public service delivery globally. Thus governments that do not make the transition from paper-based systems of public administration to electronic platforms of public service delivery may swiftly undermine their chances of developing their societies as 21st century information societies. This research however does not imply that e-governance will be a miraculous panacea to poor service provision in South Africa, but it implies that its role in the public service sector can be as a support system for efficiency and effectiveness in service delivery. This is coupled by the research findings which are espoused on through a secondary data approach and thematically analysed to assess the role of e-governance as a support system on service delivery in the public service sector. Thus from the literature it is remarkable to acknowledge that the South African public service sector has successfully established and implemented a significant number of e-governance initiatives from 1994 to present day. Simultaneously to reveal how e-governance can be a support system for the public service, it is not one-dimensional, it is however multidimensional and thereby cutting across the entire field of public administration inter alia the public service sector. The already initiated e-governance tools in South Africa also range from national, provincial and municipal level thereby clearly revealing how e-governance can also be a support system to cooperative governance and intergovernmental relations inter alia. This research does not imply that e-governance can be a panacea to the public service sector ills but however with the fast moving techno-global world the move to an ICT driven public service sector has more merits than demerits to the general public who are at the receiving end of public services.Thesis (MPA) -- Faculty of Management and Commerce, 201

An assessment of electronic-governance as a support system for service delivery in the public sector

This is an exploratory research that is aimed at assessing the role of e-governance tools and initiatives on how they can be support systems for service delivery in the public service sector. The rationale of this research came as a response to the ever increasing and recurring service delivery protests that are underpinning the Government of South Africa. Hence the inception of electronic-governance (e-governance) comes at the right time with the aim of mordernising and reforming the public sector for efficient and effective service delivery. E-governance is about transforming governance to be more citizens centered and thus technology is the tool in this effort which can enable change in how the government works and how public officials interact with the public at stake. Cloete (2012:128) asserts that e-governance is the future of public governance and public service delivery globally. Thus governments that do not make the transition from paper-based systems of public administration to electronic platforms of public service delivery may swiftly undermine their chances of developing their societies as 21st century information societies. This research however does not imply that e-governance will be a miraculous panacea to poor service provision in South Africa, but it implies that its role in the public service sector can be as a support system for efficiency and effectiveness in service delivery. This is coupled by the research findings which are espoused on through a secondary data approach and thematically analysed to assess the role of e-governance as a support system on service delivery in the public service sector. Thus from the literature it is remarkable to acknowledge that the South African public service sector has successfully established and implemented a significant number of e-governance initiatives from 1994 to present day. Simultaneously to reveal how e-governance can be a support system for the public service, it is not one-dimensional, it is however multidimensional and thereby cutting across the entire field of public administration inter alia the public service sector. The already initiated e-governance tools in South Africa also range from national, provincial and municipal level thereby clearly revealing how e-governance can also be a support system to cooperative governance and intergovernmental relations inter alia. This research does not imply that e-governance can be a panacea to the public service sector ills but however with the fast moving techno-global world the move to an ICT driven public service sector has more merits than demerits to the general public who are at the receiving end of public services.Thesis (MPA) -- Faculty of Management and Commerce, 201

The challenges of procurement process for the department of correctional services: The road to procurement process

This study aims to determine the procurement process challenges for improving the Department of Correctional Services (DCS). All the participants recruited by the researcher were not forced to participate or sign the consent form. The researcher considered only voluntary participation and the participants were requested to sign the POPI Act consent forms before conducting the face-to-face interview. The study adopted a qualitative research methodology to get a comprehensive and deeper understanding of the challenges and effects of the procurement process. Information was collected from the key informants using Face-to-face interviews; the key informants were possible suppliers, chief executors, executors, and directors. Managers specializing in the procurement field and potential suppliers were chosen as respondents to obtain sentiments toward the procurement process. The study established that (DCS) is one of the national departments faced with the challenges of improving the procurement process. Hence the case study focuses on procurement process challenges for the improvement of the DCS. The study concluded that most of the fruitless, wasteful and irregular, and unauthorized expenditures incurred in DCS are caused by a lack of availability of resources such as employment finances and a lack of technology due to resistance to change from the top management to the lower level

The Fourth Industrial Revolution Adoption: Challenges in South African Higher Education Institutions

The fourth industrial revolution (4IR) adoption in South Africa in higher education institutions (HEIs) has yet to be consistent. Despite the extensive literature on the possible contributions of technology to learners’ development, there is a lack of knowledge on barriers to the higher education sector's adoption of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) to support teaching and learning. The most highly ranked universities in South Africa have somewhat embraced the 4IR, representing only a fraction of the 26 public universities in the country. The study identified factors hindering the adoption and diffusion of 4IR technologies in South Africa’s HEIs. To address this knowledge gap, we relied on the diffusion of innovation theory as a guide. Using a qualitative approach, we collected data using documentary reviews and analyses of authoritative sources to conceptualise and contextualise 4IR. The findings revealed that 4IR adoption is not only about perceptions but is also influenced by material obstacles like conflicting global views on the 4IR, complexity in conceptualising 4IR, and the digital skills gap in HEIs, among other factors. To address these obstacles and realise the value of 4IR in HEIs, institutions must understand the educational scope associated with 4IR. This can be achieved by conducting more empirical research on the implications of 4IR on the education sector. To address the digital skills gap, institutions must design detailed skills plans to respond to their respective institutions' technological needs, redesign their pedagogical approaches by extending current practices to 4IR, and implement change management