Decolonising the South African university: First thoughts

Times are indeed changing as South African universities continues to struggle under the growing pressures and ethical demands for transformation and decolonisation. Underpinning these pressures and demands is the taken for granted assumption that all is not well in the South African academy, and that urgent structural and deep rooted changes are necessary. In this article, I foreground the emergent decolonial calls for transformation in the South African higher education. I rely on Le Grange (2019) and Hlatshwayo and Shawa (2020)’s notion of ubuntu currere to not only formulate theoretical and empirical critiques at the South African higher education system, but I also begin to offer some first thoughts on the solutions that could be enacted. I focus in particular on the (decolonial) purposes of a university as offering us a very useful space to reflect on and theorise the potential for decoloniality and transformative practices in the academy. I end the article with some conclusion and recommendations on the future of the academy in South Africa, and the projected nature of the struggles for transformation and decolonisation in the sector

Rethinking corporate social responsibility in the mining industry: focusing on recipients’ perspectives

Views on the importance of companies engaging in CSR initiatives have been debated widely and critics of the concept continue to argue both locally and globally. The objective of the study was to gain an in-depth understanding of the recipients’ perspectives on their involvement in CSR projects implemented in their community by a chosen mining company and the successes and challenges of the project. A qualitative research approach was used for the study. Using nonprobability purpose sampling, a total of 15 participants from Lusikisiki were selected for the study. The data obtained was analysed using inductive thematic analysis. The results of the study were discussed based on the three research questions of the study which focused on recipients’ perspectives on their involvement in the projects and their perceptions on the successes and challenges of the projects. The study found that the chosen mining company made a significant contribution towards developing the community. Furthermore, the study found that recipients’ involvement in the projects enabled them to realize their assets in one of the projects as a result of the shift in approach by the organisation as the project progressed (Needs Based Approach to ABCD Approach). In addition, the study found that the successes of the projects changed the recipients’ perceptions of themselves and enabled them to actively engage in transforming their lives. However, the projects did face many challenges and recipients posited that more still needs to be done by organisations to develop communities and ensure that projects remain sustainable long after their partnership has dissolved

Usefulness of seed systems for reviving smallholder agriculture: a South African perspective

South Africa is considered a food-secure nation; however, food insecurity is still a major challenge for many poor rural households that rely on cash incomes and government grants for survival. Furthermore, these grants are not always adequate to meet households’ basic needs, and fail to provide them with the food required for food and nutrition security. Some of these households rely on agriculture to supplement their food needs, and an important aspect of this agricultural production is the seed system. Smallholder farmers in rural areas rely on informal seed systems, and use traditional knowledge and methods to produce, harvest, store, and sell their produce. This research combined quantitative and qualitative methods to assess the role of informal seed systems in promoting food production in rural smallholder agricultural households in South Africa. The narrative review showed reword that while smallholder farmers acquire seed from informal seed systems, they face numerous challenges that affect their production activities. These challenges include poor seed quality and assessment, poor storage and harvesting facilities, which limit proper seed production, and affect crop yield and marketing. Due to these challenges, the ability of rural smallholder farmers to access mainstream markets is limited and as a result, they are confined to local markets that offer lower prices. Moreover, South African policies do not recognize the informal seed system as one of the contributors to food security. This is a major limitation as farmers may not receive the support and assistance they require. Formal recognition and support for informal seed systems would go a long way in improving smallholder farmers’ access to quality seed. This would have ripple effects on their yields and productivity. When properly implemented and given recognition by the government, informal seed systems have the potential to contribute to rural food security and livelihoods

Ties that bind: the ambiguous role played by social capital in black working class first-generation South African students’ negotiation of university life

In this article we examine the ambiguous role that social capital plays in first generation Black working class South African students’ negotiation of entry into an elite higher education institutional environment. First generation student experiences have a particular relevance in South Africa where student enrolment increased by 193 000 between 1993 and 2004, with many of the new entrants first-generation students. South African research on first-generation working class Black students has focused on the low proportion of these students who reach university at all and among those who do enter university, the significant number who perform poorly or drop out before completing their degrees. The role played by social capital (social networks, close friends, associations, clubs and other affiliations) in these students’ experiences of negotiating their entry into university has been little explored

An overview of the conditions of workers and unions in South Africa and Nigeria

Abstract: Comparative studies on African trade unions are rare. However, as will be shown in this article, unions on the continent, specifically in Nigeria and South Africa, face similar obstacles and challenges. Although in different contexts, trade unions in Nigeria and South Africa both had to contend with the expression of colonialism and neo-colonial oppression in the workplaces. Post-independence, Nigerian unions had to mobilise against neoliberal policies, leading to confrontation with the dictatorship of the state. Similarly, in South Africa unions had to contend with workplace restructuring imposed by employees and the state in post-apartheid South Africa. Neoliberal attacks on workers and working conditions have also led to changes in the social composition of workers and the rise of precarious forms of work in both countries. Beyond that, union federations are also faced with fragmentation and division, weakening their position to challenge attacks on workers

Basel III Liquidity Risk Measures and Bank Failure

Basel III banking regulation emphasizes the use of liquidity coverage and nett stable funding ratios as measures of liquidity risk. In this paper, we approximate these measures by using global liquidity data for 391 hand-selected, LIBOR-based, Basel II compliant banks in 36 countries for the period 2002 to 2012. In particular, we compare the risk sensitivity of the aforementioned Basel III liquidity risk measures to those of traditional measures such as the nonperforming assets ratio, return-on-assets, LIBOR-OISS, Basel II Tier 1 capital ratio, government securities ratio, and brokered deposits ratio. Furthermore, we use a discrete-time hazard model to study bank failure. In this regard, we find that Basel III risk measures have limited ability to predict bank failure when compared with their traditional counterparts. An important result is that a higher liquidity coverage ratio is associated with a higher bank failure rate. We also find that market-wide liquidity risk (proxied by LIBOR-OISS) was the major predictor of bank failures in 2009 and 2010 while idiosyncratic liquidity risk (proxied by other liquidity risk measures) was less. In particular, our contribution is the first to achieve these results on a global scale over a relatively long period for a variety of banks

Ion beam effects of 26.0 MeV Cu7+ ions in thin metallic and insulating films during heavy ion ERDA measurements

We report on an investigation carried out to determine effects of the probing beam on the structure of typical metallic and insulating thin films during Elastic Recoil Detection Analysis (ERDA) using a heavy ion beam. Metallic niobium nitride (NbN) and insulating calcium fluoride (CaF2) thin films (used as test samples) were irradiated by 26.0 MeV 63Cu7+ ions to fluences of 1.70 1014 ions/cm2 and 2.70 1014 ions/cm2, respectively. The effects of irradiation on the structural properties of the films were studied using Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). RBS results showed a significant (18%) reduction in the thickness of the CaF2 film due to electronic sputtering compared to only 1% reduction in the NbN film. XRD results showed no significant peak shifts in both films, but rather formation of unidentified peaks in the insulating film. AFM results indicated a substantial decrease in the average surface roughness of the insulating film and only a nominal increase in that of the metallic film. Results of electronic sputtering yield measurements carried out by ERDA are explained in terms of both the Coulomb explosion and the inelastic thermal spike models.NECSA, Tshwane University of Technology, University of Pretoria and iThemba LABS Gauteng.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/nimb2016-04-30hb201

The new Heavy Ion ERDA set up at iThemba LABS Gauteng : multilayer thin film depth profiling using direct calculation and Monte Carlo simulation codes

We report here on the recently built Heavy Ion ERDA set up at iThemba LABS Gauteng; describing a typical application in the study of interfacial reactions in an Al2O3–Ti ceramic–metal multilayer structure annealed in vacuum at 800 C for 2 h. Depth profile extraction was found to be best obtained through combined use of direct calculation and Monte Carlo simulation codes as opposed to using just either of the methods. The obtained profile suggests a case of the Kirkendall effect, whereupon the inter-diffusion between the metal and the ceramic was largely due to the faster diffusion of the metal into the amorphous ceramic than diffusion of the ceramic elements into the metallic layer.National Research Foundation (iThemba LABS) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).http://www.elsevier.com/locate/nimbhb201

Iodine assisted retainment of implanted silver in 6H-SiC at high temperatures

The effect of high temperature thermal annealing on the retainment and diffusion behaviour of iodine (I) and silver (Ag) both individually and co-implanted into 6H-SiC has been investigated using RBS, RBS-C and heavy ion ERDA (Elastic Recoil Detection Analysis). Iodine and silver ions at 360 keV were both individually and co-implanted into 6H-SiC at room temperature to fluences of the order of 1 1016 cm 2. RBS analyses of the as-implanted samples indicated that implantation of Ag and of I and co-implantation of 131I and 109Ag at room temperature resulted in complete amorphization of 6H-SiC from the surface to a depth of about 290 nm for the co-implanted samples. Annealing at 1500 C for 30 h (also with samples annealed at 1700 C for 5 h) caused diffusion accompanied by some loss of both species at the surface with some iodine remaining in the iodine implanted samples. In the Ag implanted samples, the RBS spectra showed that all the Ag disappeared. SEM images showed different recrystallization behaviour for all three sets of samples, with larger faceted crystals appearing in the SiC samples containing iodine. Heavy Ion ERDA analyses showed that both 109Ag and 131I remained in the co-implanted SiC samples after annealing at 1500 C for 30 h. Therefore, iodine assisted in the retainment of silver in SiC even at high temperature.National Research Foundation (NRF)http://www.elsevier.com/locate/nimbhb201

A call to action: A need for initiatives that increase equitable access to COVID-19 therapeutics

Structural racism is endemic in the United States and causes inequitable health outcomes that have been amplified throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic/Latino, and Native American individuals have been disproportionately affected, and are twice as likely to be hospitalized or die from COVID-19 or related morbidities when compared to White Americans. Social determinants of health inequities contribute to these disparate outcomes, given that minoritized individuals are more likely to occupy essential worker roles and to live in high-density settings. Despite their higher risk of severe COVID-19 illness, racially and ethnically minoritized individuals are less likely to receive potentially lifesaving COVID-19 therapeutics.3 While several state health departments attempted to implement race-conscious interventions and narrow the disparities, these efforts have been met with fallacious claims of ‘reverse racism’ and the reversal of the proposed implementations