Browsing by Subject "African studies"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Reframing Duggan-Cronin: examining the recent emergence of Alfred Martin Duggan-Cronin's photographs in art exhibitions
    (2011) Bangham, Rosemary; Shepherd , Nick
    This study is about the photographs of Alfred Martin Duggan-Cronin. It is particularly concerned with the recent use of Duggan-Cronin's photographs in public exhibitions, especially art exhibitions. It suggests that the majority of these recent exhibitions favour an understanding of the photographs as art objects in opposition to how they were previously presented, in Duggan- Cronin's own time, as anthropological reference points. It also explores possible reasons for this apparent shift, as well as possible reasons for the re-emergence of the photographs in the first place. In particular the study engages with the subjects of photography, curation, archives, colonialism and anthropology.
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    Open Access
    South Africa s stunted developmentalism: challenges of ideology and practice in building a developmental state
    (2024) Lekorotsoana, Canisius; Chitonge, Horman
    This study examines the challenge of establishing a developmental state (DS) in South Africa by applying the paradigm of the developmental state. This is due to the governing ANC adopting DS as state policy in 2007, thus prompting investigation into its applicability to the South African environment. The study, therefore, links the DS model and its features to the four attributes identified in the ANC resolution on DS. It is a qualitative research study using interviews, archival research, review of secondary literature and various digital and social media sources as data. It suggests that although South Africa possesses the necessary attributes to establish a DS, its construction faces challenges. Among these are: a disparate and ineffective leadership in government and in the party embroiled in ideological contestations; a fragmented state lacking state-wide coordination, planning and implementation thus policy dissonance; lack of an economic elite bureaucracy coupled with weakness to deploy existing capacity and capability to areas of competencies; inability to harness society-wide consensus on developmentalism and the threat of corruption. The study's contribution is that it shows that there is awareness in the ANC of the gap between the party's ideological commitment and its practice of developmentalism. There is admission of the leadership and institutional weaknesses in the party which adversely impact the state, and the recognition that the ANC was not ready to govern despite the earlier rhetoric. Critically, there is recognition that the post-Polokwane environment collapsed earlier attempts made at creating institutional structures that are key to constructing DS. Therefore, the need to re-design the party. Second, strengthen institutional capacity and capability of the State. Third, develop symbiotic relations with, primarily, business, and social partners, to support the existing hegemonic developmental agenda.
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    Survival strategies among informal economy businesses: the case of small maize millers in Zambia
    (2024) Mwango, Mutale; Chitonge, Horman; Matose Frank
    This study explores whether the informal sector survives in a competitive environment. It focuses on informal maize millers in an industry dominated by large-scale milling firms. The study was guided by a mixed methodology for data collection and analysis. This entailed the use of a case study design which facilitated the use of detailed, multi-faceted investigations of intricate issues in their real-life settings. Specifically, a customer survey and interviews with policy experts, informal millers, activists, and participant observations were used to collect data on the practices of informal maize millers' survival in a competitive environment. Primary data were complemented by use of secondary sources, which included various documents from the public sector, civil society and international organisations in the quest to have a deeper understanding of the informal sector. Present studies about informal maize millers in Zambia provide limited attention to understanding practices of informal sector establishments. This study used the structuralist theory to explain how informal maize millers operate in a competitive environment. Structural theory focuses on the patterns of relationships among social actors. The structuralist theory is used to understand the connection that occurs between formal and informal sector activities because it takes the informal sector as being connected to the formal sector. The study applied the structuralist theories to the informal milling sector in Zambia by demonstrating interlinkages between large formal firms and market needs through servicing the needs of impoverished consumers in townships who depend on such firms and by supplying niche products to state institutions and supermarkets that were not supplied by large firms. The study identified and discussed different factors which enable informal millers to survive the competition from big commercial milling companies. The study also found that informal maize millers cater for different categories of customers including low, middle- and high-income customers. This study contributes to the body of knowledge by making an empirical contribution to understanding the survival of informal maize millers in an industry dominated by large-scale milling firms. Furthermore, from the insights, the study also develops a framework for survival and competitiveness showing pathways for informal maize millers. The study makes the argument that informal maize millers survive competition by adopting various survival strategies, such as choosing to remain informal, diversifying the maize products, and offering lower prices for maize meal.