OpenUCT is the open access institutional repository of the University of Cape Town (UCT). It preserves and makes UCT scholarly outputs digitally and freely available, including theses and dissertations, journal articles, book chapters, technical and research reports, as well as open educational resources.
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Open Access
Critically analysing the implementation of sexual and reproductive health rights of women in Tanzania mainland: Focusing on the protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the rights of women in Africa
(2026) Katabwa, Hope Henry; Lutchman, Salona
Article 14 of the Maputo Protocol guarantees the right to sexual and reproductive health of women in Africa. This dissertation critically examines whether Tanzania Mainland being a state party to the Maputo Protocol honors its obligation to implement SRHR provisions among women in Tanzania Mainland. In analysing the implementation of SRHR, this study critically analyses the existing domestic laws and policies in Tanzania, and whether they have incorporated these rights. This study also analyses the progress Tanzania Mainland has made in ensuring that it provides for SRHR of women as is stipulated under the Maputo Protocol. Furthermore, using existing literature, this study examines the existing barriers that in one way or another hinder the effective implementation of these rights among women in Tanzania Mainland. This study finds that the existing gaps in Tanzanian laws and policies affect the ability of women to enjoy their right to sexual and reproductive health. Furthermore, existing barriers such as harmful cultural practices, the pluralistic legal nature of Tanzania, religion, and other institutional and economic barriers play a role in hindering the successful implementation of SRHR among women in Tanzania Mainland. This dissertation concludes by recommending the need to amend existing laws in Tanzania Mainland and align them to the SRHR provision in the Maputo Protocol, the need to educate women and the public on SRHR and the importance of allocating sufficient funds to ensure the realization of SRHR. Very little research has been done with regard to looking at the implementation of article 14 of the Maputo Protocol in Tanzania Mainland, therefore this study will highlight the current situation of Tanzania, and furthermore give guidance to law makers and human rights activists on what should be done to ensure effective realization of SRHR in the domestic system as is provided for in the Maputo Protocol.
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Open Access
The role of law in promoting public participation, transparency and accountability, and access to justice in the oil and gas extractive sector of Tanzania mainland
(2026) Karia, Pooja Mahendra; Paterson, Alexander
This thesis examines the extent to which Tanzania's legislation governing the extractive oil and gas sector adequately incorporates the procedural components of good governance; namely, public participation, transparency and accountability, and access to justice within permitting stage of the process. The study adopts a two-tiered methodological approach. Firstly, it explores procedural components of good governance and constructs a theoretical framework on the role of law in promoting each of them. This theoretical framework is founded upon an analysis of academic literature. Secondly, it uses this theoretical framework to critically review the relevant components of Tanzania's legislation governing the extractive oil and gas sector. This second component begins by explaining Tanzania's relevant legislation that spans the constitutional dispensation, relevant framework legislation, and sector-specific laws. It then critically assesses this domestic legislation against the theoretical framework developed in the first part of the thesis to determine the extent to which it adequately promotes these procedural components of good governance. Through this analysis, it identifies strengths and weaknesses of the existing legislation and proposes opportunities for legal reform to enhance the procedural aspects of good governance in the extractive oil and gas permitting stage of the process. In relation to public participation, it highlights how Tanzania's relevant legislation lacks clarity on who may participate, at which stages, and in what manner, particularly in project approvals and contract negotiations. Mechanisms for early, continuous participation and institutional representation remain weak. In relation to access to information, the analysis highlights relative strength of the overarching constitutional dispensation, but illustrates how framework environmental and sectoral petroleum legislation lack clear definitions of accessible information and procedural safeguards for disclosure. Finally, concerning, access to justice, the analysis identifies the prevalence of judicial remedies, but identifies several anomalies in the ability of these to realise administrative justice in the absence of dedicated legislation to facilitate administrative redress. These findings highlight the need for legal reforms that have been recommended to clarify procedural participatory rights, access to information, and establish a framework for administrative justice to promote the procedural governance in the oil and gas extractive sector of Tanzania.
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Open Access
Assessment of the legal framework for management of intellectual property and technology transfer resulting from publicly funded research and development in Tanzania
(2026) Kadege, Judith Francis; Ncube, Caroline
The approach to managing intellectual property and technology transfer from publicly financed research and development (R&D) in Tanzania is both inadequate and unclear. Despite being an early adopter of research science and technology systems in Sub-Saharan Africa, Tanzania faces ongoing challenges due to limited technological capacity. This results in issues with intellectual property (IP) protection, technology transfer mechanisms, fair distribution of benefits, and private sector engagement in R&D, funding coordination, and effective marketing strategies for the products created. The study is designed to examine the legislative framework that governs the management of IP and technology transfer (TT) resulting from publicly financed R&D in Tanzania. The goal is to evaluate the relevance and practicality of the current legal system while also drawing insights and potential solutions from established global frameworks and best practices, particularly those found in South Africa and the United Kingdom. The rationale for selecting these two nations lies in their established systems for managing and utilising IP generated from publicly funded R&D activities. The aim is to learn from their experiences and incorporate best practices that can enhance Tanzania's capacity to effectively leverage its IP from publicly funded projects. The study additionally includes insights on global and regional systems that facilitate the promotion of IP, technology transfer, and R&D. This inquiry also intends to delve into the following significant matters related to the regulation of IP and TT that arise from R&D funded by public resources. First, it investigates whether Tanzania has established a clear and comprehensive legal framework for the regulation and management of IP and technology transfer stemming from publicly funded R&D. Secondly, it assesses whether the current legal and institutional arrangements for managing IP from publicly funded R&D are adequate for regulating, monitoring, and implementing the specific provisions of national science and technology and research policies. The study further looks into the strategies employed by Tanzanian universities and public research institutions in managing and utilising IP generated from their R&D activities. Findings from the study show that the current Tanzania's legal framework for IP, technology transfer, and R&D is not adequate to effectively manage IP arising from publicly funded research activities. The existing legal framework is unclear, fragmented outdated, and lacks effective coordination between key stakeholders, which creates substantial obstacles in the management and exploitation of IP and R&D outputs from publicly funded undertakings.
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Open Access
Genomic evolution of extreme abiotic stress tolerance in plants: Vegetative desiccation tolerance in Xerophyta resurrection plants and nickel hyperaccumulation in Senecio coronatus
(2026) Kabamba, Eugene Kabwe Ntuntu; Illing, Nicola; Ingle, Robert; Nikoloski, Zoran
The evolution of extreme stress tolerance phenotypes in plants is associated with changes in the genome. Performing comparative genomics analyses enables the identification of genomic changes that are associated with the extreme phenotype. This project focused on two rare and extreme phenotypes, namely vegetative desiccation tolerance (VDT) and nickel (Ni) hyperaccumulation. VDT is defined as the ability of a plant to survive extreme dehydration (<5% relative water content) and subsequently revitalize after the re-addition of water, and plants that display this trait are known collectively as resurrection plants. The monocot genus Xerophyta (Velloziaceae) comprises ~45 species, all of which are resurrection plants. The first part of this project aimed to identify expanded gene families in the Velloziaceae and evaluate their potential role in VDT. The genomes of X. elegans and X. humilis were assembled in this study using PacBio HiFi sequencing. The assembly process resulted in a 379 Mbp draft haploid assembly of the diploid X. elegans genome, and a 1.8 Gbp draft tetraploid assembly of the tetraploid X. humilis genome. A syntenic depth analysis showed that the Xerophyta genus likely experienced a recent whole genome triplication (WGT) event prior to species diversification, after which diploidization occurred. A comparative genomics analysis of four Velloziaceae resurrection plants, X. elegans, X. humilis, Xerophyta schlechteri, and Acanthochlamys bracteata, with 26 other angiosperms revealed twelve gene families that were expanded in the Velloziaceae. A combination of functional annotations and the conserved gene expression patterns across the three Xerophyta species revealed that five of the expanded gene families were possibly involved in VDT, including the EARLY LIGHT-INDUCED PROTEIN (ELIP) and STAYGREEN (SGR) genes which encode proteins involved in chlorophyll metabolism, and the FCS-LIKE ZINC FINGER PROTEIN 3 (FLZ3), ZINC FINGER PROTEIN (ZAT), and HEAT STRESS TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR C (HSF-C) genes which encode proteins involved in the abscisic acid (ABA)-mediated stress response. While the expansion of ELIP genes in resurrection plants has been reported before, this study is the first to report on SGR genes possibly involved in VDT. Members of both gene families were significantly upregulated during dehydration across the three Xerophyta species, suggesting a possible role in preventing photo-oxidative damage during desiccation. Members of the FLZ3 genes, which encode proteins that inhibit SnRK1, a central regulator of energy metabolism, were significantly downregulated during dehydration, while some of the ZAT and HSF-C genes, both of which encode stress-responsive transcription factors (TFs), were upregulated. The expansion of all these gene families was due to tandem duplications, some of which likely occurred prior to the WGT event. The second part of the project focused on Ni hyperaccumulation, which is defined as the ability of a plant to accumulate Ni in shoot tissues to concentrations exceeding 0.1% on a dry weight basis, without succumbing to the toxic effects. The eudicot Senecio coronatus (Asteraceae) is a geophyte that has evolved the capacity to hyperaccumulate Ni from the Ni-rich serpentine soils. However, this is not a species-wide trait as not all S. coronatus populations on these ultramafic outcrops are able to hyperaccumulate Ni. Previous soil-swap studies have shown that these differences in the ability to accumulate Ni were not a result of Ni availability in the soil and instead have a genetic basis. The aim of the study was therefore to perform a comparative genomics analysis of an S. coronatus hyperaccumulator and non-accumulator plant from the Kaapsehoop (KP) and Galaxy Mine (GAL) populations respectively, to identify genomic changes in the KP genome that are associated the hyperaccumulation phenotype. Draft haploid genome assemblies of the two plants were assembled using PacBio HiFi reads, resulting in 2.5 Gbp genomes for both plants. Differential gene expression (DGE) analysis comparing the gene expression pattern between two hyperaccumulator and two non-accumulator plants identified 704 and 781 significantly upregulated genes in the shoot and root tissues of the hyperaccumulators respectively. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in TF-binding motifs of some upregulated genes, suggesting potential changes to TF binding affinity. The DGE analysis identified the upregulation of the HISTIDINOL DEHYDROGENASE (HISN8) gene, caused by a tandem duplication in the KP genome, which encodes the last enzyme of the histidine biosynthetic pathway, an amino acid that prevents Ni sequestration in the roots of Brassicaceae hyperaccumulators. The DGE analysis also identified metal transporter genes, including IRON-REGULATED/FERROPORTIN (IREG) and ZRT/IRT-LIKE PROTEIN 10 (ZIP10), that were significantly upregulated in both tissues, consistent with a previous transcriptomics study. However, the comparative genomics analysis revealed that the elevated expression of these genes was at least in part due to tandem duplications that occurred in the KP hyperaccumulator genome, with IREG and ZIP10 gene ratios of 11:1 and 6:1 (KP:GAL), respectively. Gene coverage analysis using DNBSEQ reads generated from the KP, GAL and an additional hyperaccumulator Agnes Mine (AM) population revealed a higher read coverage from the KP and AM reads compared to GAL reads, confirming the gene expansions in the hyperaccumulators. Furthermore, the gene expression of the ZIP10 paralogs in the KP genome revealed an apparent organ-specific expression pattern, whereby only one paralog was highly upregulated in the shoots, while the other five paralogs were expressed in the roots. The comparison of promoter sequences revealed that the five root-upregulated paralogs shared more predicted TF-binding motifs (≥92) with each other compared to the overlap with the shoot-upregulated paralog which had less (32), suggesting a potential case of neofunctionalization. In conclusion, this project has identified key expanded gene families that have possibly contributed to the acquisition of the two extreme phenotypes, which adds to the understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in VDT and Ni hyperaccumulation in angiosperms. This project also provides a foundation for future research, including functional genetics studies to determine the roles of these expanded gene families in these extreme tolerance phenotypes.
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Open Access
Addressing water access shortfalls: a cost-benefit analysis of grey and ecological infrastructure for basic service provisioning in South Africa
(2026) Johnson, Holly; Visser, Martine
This study conducts a comparative analysis of the economic viability of grey and ecological infrastructure solutions to address water supply deficits for the 2.77% of South African households lacking access to potable water. Utilising cost-benefit analysis across 10, 20, and 30-year time horizons and varying discount rates (8%, 10%, 12%), this study quantifies the net present value and cost-benefit ratio of each infrastructure approach. Grey infrastructure is found to yield higher net present values and cost-benefit ratios in the long-run but is more sensitive to fluctuations in the discount rate and requires significant upfront investments. Ecological infrastructure, however, demonstrates more stable outcomes under economic uncertainty and a far broader range of benefits. The decision between these two infrastructure types will therefore depend on the context of financial constraints and risk tolerance. Grey infrastructure should be prioritised if capital is available, while ecological infrastructure is more suitable for areas with limited resources or higher environmental resilience objectives.