Maritime transport policies of the republic of South Africa since 1994 : challenges and opportunities for the next twenty years

Paper presented at the 33rd Annual Southern African Transport Conference 7-10 July 2014 "Leading Transport into the Future", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.This paper looks at maritime policies adopted by the government of the Republic of South Africa in the past twenty years and considers how comprehensive and effective were these policies in meeting the socio-economic objectives of the democratic state and in particular whether these policies have been successful and therefore resulted in the growth and development of the industry. The paper makes a point in that, for the fact that maritime transport is international in nature the standing of the Republic in comparison to its trading partners specifically in maritime services and equipment has been insignificant over these years. The paper calls for the adoption of further policy and strategy measures that are more robust. The country has to revamp the manner in which maritime transport domain is regulated and managed within government. By default this paper also highlights the reduced significance that maritime transport industry has endured in South Africa over the last 20 years, despite several policy attempts to increase the understanding of its worth to the South African economy. This situation is largely due to the fact that, from a governance point of view, some critical maritime responsibilities are fragmented between various government departments.This paper was transferred from the original CD ROM created for this conference. The material was published using Adobe Acrobat 10.1.0 Technology. The original CD ROM was produced by CE Projects cc. Postal Address: PO Box 560 Irene 0062 South Africa. Tel.: +27 12 667 2074 Fax: +27 12 667 2766 E-mail: [email protected]

Maternal and child health indicators in a rural South African health district

Objective. To measure important maternal and child health indicators in a rural health district as part of the process of developing a comprehensive district health information system. Design. A modified Expanded Programme on Immunisation cluster sample survey, Setting. Hlabisa health district, KwaZulu-Natal. Participants. 480 mothers (or carers) of children aged 12 - 35 months surveyed in 32 clusters. Interventions. A questionnaire was administered and Road-to-Health cards were examined. Main outcome measures. Proportion of women receiving antenatal care and delivering in a health facility; knowledge and understanding of vaccination; and recall of vaccination history, Proportion of children with a Road-to-Health card, overall coverage of each vaccine, coverage at 12 months of age and proportion receiving an immunogenic dose. Results. Most mothers (91%) had attended antenatal care, 77% had received tetanus toroid and 83% delivered in a health facility, Only 14 children (3%) had never received a Road-to-Health card and 73% had one available at the time of the survey. Overall immunisation coverage was high (80 - 98%), as was the proportion receiving an immunogenic dose of each vaccine (78 - 98%), However, only 76% had received all the vaccines due to a 12-month-old child, and only 88% of these had received all doses by 12 months of age. Conclusions. While the key maternal health indicators measured here are reassuring, there is still room for improvement in the child health indicators, The proportion of women receiving antenatal care and delivering in a health facility is very high, but the proportion of children receiving all vaccines can be improved upon, as can the timing of immunisation, The results of this survey are being used to strengthen further the primary health care services in the district.4 page(s

African maritime transport charter - A legitimate mechnism with a potential to restructure and rejuvenate maritime transport sphere of influence in Africa.

Paper presented at the 32nd Annual Southern African Transport Conference 8-11 July 2013 "Transport and Sustainable Infrastructure", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.The paper provides an insight into the Charter’s objectives and what it aims to achieve. It does not only highlight the key maritime transport challenges facing the continent and South Africa, but also offers the Charter’s concrete propositions on policy, strategy and institutional framework for the regulation and management of maritime programmes, resources and infrastructure. Correctly, the paper identifies the Charter’s proposition to a ring-fenced public sector driven financing approach for maritime transport provision and management. The paper further highlights the Charter’s concern on the need for the development of the African shipping line and then provides a case for cabotage policy approach. The paper laments the state of aids to navigation along the continent and the Charter’s call for more cooperation at continental level to pull resources together for the common interest of developing and maintaining this marine tools and infrastructure supporting global trade and maritime safety and security in particular. With the vast areas of maritime restructuring propagated by the Charter it can be concluded that once coming into effect, the Charter will remain the legitimate mechanism with a potential to restructure and rejuvenate maritime transport sphere of influence in the Continent. The Charter will bring to the end the piecemeal approach adopted so far in dealing with matters maritime by the Continent.This paper was transferred from the original CD ROM created for this conference. The material was published using Adobe Acrobat 10.1.0 Technology. The original CD ROM was produced by Document Transformation Technologies Postal Address: PO Box 560 Irene 0062 South Africa. Tel.: +27 12 667 2074 Fax: +27 12 667 2766 E-mail: nigel@doctech URL: http://www.doctech.co.zamv201

Sign and structure : a semio-structural approach to the short stories o D.B.Z. Ntuli's Isibhakabhaka

Chapter 1 outlines the aim of the study, research methodology, delimitation of scope and the definition of some terms. This is followed by a list of Zulu short stories which Ntuli has already contributed. His other contributions in circles outside the writing of fiction are also acknowledged. Finally, tribute is paid to some contributions made by Ntuli as an endeavour to uplift the standard of Zulu writing. In Chapter 2 plot structure is discussed. This is followed by an in-depth semiotic analysis of some short stories. Chapter 3 deals with the different narration techniques employed by the author in his short stories. Chapter 4 differentiates between actors and characters. Different methods of character portrayal are investigated. Chapter 5 concludes this dissertation by summarising the main finding of this study. It also brings forth some conclusions with regard to literary merit of Ntuli's short stories and his contribution to Zulu literature.African LanguagesM.A. (African Languages

Assessing the potential for a levy-based system to replace revenue from trophy hunting in South Africa

DATA AVAILABILITY : Data will be made available on request.Appendix A. Supporting informationTrophy hunting is a contentious practice often associated by the public with charismatic African megafauna, especially lions (Panthera leo). Public pressure could potentially end trophy hunting in the near future, which many stakeholders argue could lead to negative impacts, including on species conservation and on the livelihoods of communities that depend upon it as a source of income. We investigated the potential for replacing revenue currently generated by trophy hunting in South Africa with levies - a “lion protection fee” - on international travellers to that country. Our approach recognised tourism as a source of funds for conservation action, and the influence of lions as a charismatic, flagship species. We surveyed 907 respondents who had previously visited South Africa, or would consider visiting in the future. We used van Westendorp and Gabor-Granger direct pricing methodologies to assess whether the willingness of potential visitors to pay for wildlife protection could be sufficient to compensate for any loss were trophy hunting to be banned. Our findings indicated substantial support for the proposition of being charged a “lion protection fee”: 84.2% of respondents stated that it was a “great” or a “good” idea. A minority (7.5%) had a negative view but only two of these respondents (0.2%) indicated a protrophy hunting attitude. Willingness-to-pay was sufficient that, under predicted 2023 numbers of tourists, daily fees could be set at a price acceptable to both overseas ($6–7 USD) and southern African tourists ($3–4 USD), and generate funds at least equalling, but potentially exceeding, those currently generated by trophy hunting ($176.1 million US per annum). We conclude that, in principal, revenue from trophy hunting in South Africa could be fully replaced by a subsidy to stakeholders as a payment for conservation action, funded by a modest levy on international tourist visitors.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/geccoam2024Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural DevelopmentSDG-15:Life on lan

Nurturing lifelong learning in communities through the National University of Lesotho: prospects and challenges

This paper analyses one aspect of a pan-African action research project called ITMUA (Implementing the Third Mission of Universities in Africa). This particular paper draws on the data from that project to explore the National University of Lesotho’s contribution to lifelong learning in its communities. It provides background information on the ITMUA initiative and analyses interview and focus group responses to two case studies in terms of their contribution to lifelong learning. It uses, as its analytical framework, a modified version of Mbigi’s African perspective on the four De Lors’ ‘pillars’, by adding a fifth pillar, courtesy of Torres. The paper argues that community engagement is a two-way process between universities and their wider constituencies with opportunities for mutual lifelong learning. But there are also challenges of understanding and process which must be addressed if the full range of these lifelong learning pillars is to be accommodated within African contexts. The paper provides an introduction to the history of community engagement in Africa as a university mission, followed by a brief discussion of lifelong learning within African perspectives. After describing the particular context of Lesotho, the concept of community service and community engagement in contemporary African contexts introduces the action research project and the case studies. The final part of the paper presents and discusses the research findings

From waste cooking oil to oxygen-rich onion-like nanocarbons for the removal of hexavalent chromium from aqueous solutions

Vegetable cooking oil is used in domestic and commercial kitchens owing to its ability to modify and enhance the taste of the food through the frying process. However, as the oil is used through several frying cycles, it changes colour to dark brown and acquires an unpleasant smell. At this point, the waste oil is usually discarded, thereby finding its way into freshwater streams due to poor disposal and thus becoming an environmental pollutant. To provide an alternative, ‘green’ route to waste oil disposal, herein we report on the metal-free synthesis of onion-like nanocarbons (OLNCs) made from waste cooking oil via flame pyrolysis. The OLNCs were then applied in the removal of hexavalent chromium ions from aqueous solutions. The as-synthesised OLNCs were found to have similar properties (size, quasi-spherical shape etc.) to those synthesised from pure cooking oils. The Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy data showed that the OLNCs contained C-O-type moieties which were attributed to the oxygenation process that took place during the cooking process. The OLNCs from waste oil were applied as an adsorbent for Cr(VI) and showed optimal removal conditions at pH = 2, t = 360 min, Co = 10 mg/L and Q0max = 47.62 mg/g, superior to data obtained from OLNCs prepared from pristine cooking oil. The results showed that the OLNCs derived from the waste cooking oil were effective in the removal of hexavalent chromium. Overall, this study shows how to repurpose an environmental pollutant (waste cooking oil) as an effective adsorbent for pollutant (Cr(VI)) removal. Significance: • Waste cooking oil outperformed olive oil as a starting material for the production of OLNCs for the removal of toxic Cr(VI) from water. • The superior performance of the OLNCs from waste cooking oil was attributed to the higher oxygen content found on their surface and acquired through the cooking process. • Not only are the OLNCs produced from waste cooking oil effective in the removal of Cr(VI), but they can be used multiple times before replacement, which makes them sustainable

An outbreak of lymphocutaneous sporotrichosis among mine-workers in South Africa

BACKGROUND The largest outbreak of sporotrichosis occurred between 1938 and 1947 in the gold mines of Witwatersrand in South Africa. Here, we describe an outbreak of lymphocutaneous sporotrichosis that was investigated in a South African gold mine in 2011. METHODOLOGY Employees working at a reopened section of the mine were recruited for a descriptive cross-sectional study. Informed consent was sought for interview, clinical examination and medical record review. Specimens were collected from participants with active or partiallyhealed lymphocutaneous lesions. Environmental samples were collected from underground mine levels. Sporothrix isolates were identified by sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer region of the ribosomal gene and the nuclear calmodulin gene. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Of 87 male miners, 81 (93%) were interviewed and examined, of whom 29 (36%) had skin lesions; specimens were collected from 17 (59%). Sporotrichosis was laboratory-confirmed among 10 patients and seven had clinically-compatible lesions. Of 42miners with known HIV status, 11 (26%) were HIV-infected. No cases of disseminated disease were detected. Participants with 3 years’ mining experience had a four times greater odds of developing sporotrichosis than those who had been employed for >3 years (adjusted OR 4.0, 95%CI 1.2–13.1). Isolates from 8 patients were identified as Sporothrix schenckii sensu stricto by calmodulin gene sequencing while environmental isolates were identified as Sporothrix mexicana. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE S. schenckii sensu stricto was identified as the causative pathogen. Although genetically distinct species were isolated from clinical and environmental sources, it is likely that the source was contaminated soil and untreated wood underground. No cases occurred following recommendations to close sections of the mine, treat timber and encourage consistent use of personal protective equipment. Sporotrichosis is a potentially re-emerging disease where traditional, rather than heavily mechanised, mining techniques are used. Surveillance should be instituted at sentinel locations.http://www.plosntds.orgam201

Revival of the magnetar PSR J1622-4950: observations with MeerKAT, Parkes, XMM-Newton, Swift, Chandra, and NuSTAR

New radio (MeerKAT and Parkes) and X-ray (XMM-Newton, Swift, Chandra, and NuSTAR) observations of PSR J1622-4950 indicate that the magnetar, in a quiescent state since at least early 2015, reactivated between 2017 March 19 and April 5. The radio flux density, while variable, is approximately 100x larger than during its dormant state. The X-ray flux one month after reactivation was at least 800x larger than during quiescence, and has been decaying exponentially on a 111+/-19 day timescale. This high-flux state, together with a radio-derived rotational ephemeris, enabled for the first time the detection of X-ray pulsations for this magnetar. At 5%, the 0.3-6 keV pulsed fraction is comparable to the smallest observed for magnetars. The overall pulsar geometry inferred from polarized radio emission appears to be broadly consistent with that determined 6-8 years earlier. However, rotating vector model fits suggest that we are now seeing radio emission from a different location in the magnetosphere than previously. This indicates a novel way in which radio emission from magnetars can differ from that of ordinary pulsars. The torque on the neutron star is varying rapidly and unsteadily, as is common for magnetars following outburst, having changed by a factor of 7 within six months of reactivation.Comment: Published in ApJ (2018 April 5); 13 pages, 4 figure