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Doctoral Dissertations
The impact of courtroom demeanour and non-verbal communication on the verdict
Author(s): Naidoo, Kanagie
Advisor: Prof Iyer, Desan
Attachments [1]
Issue Date: 2018
Language: en
More Detail
Abstract: Over the years concern has been growing about justice being done in South Africa. Society’s faith in the justice system is not as strong as it was before and matters are being taken on appeal all too frequently. In addition to this, the professional body for legal practioners1 (The Law Society of South Africa or LSSA) is concerned that law graduates do not have all the attributes necessary for the profession. The LSSA is also concerned that the legal qualification (Bachelor of Laws or LLB) at most institutions focuses only on the “knowledge of the law” and not on the development of skills or abilities that will help graduates cope in the working world of the profession. The law profession in South Africa has evolved to the point that it is no longer simply about the implementation of law. The Constitution2 has brought with it the requirement of due process, the right to a fair trial and the right to confront an accuser. These developments in the law call for further development in the skills of those who practice the law. Changes in the judiciary and the legal profession in general have brought with them the need for a review of how litigation and adjudication take place. This study focuses on key areas of communication in the trial process, namely demeanour and non-verbal communication. Neither of these areas have enjoyed the benefit of substantial theory building by scholars. The ability to correctly deal with evidence is a core competency for any presiding officer and legal practitioner as it impacts on the right to a fair trial. The Constitution has also emphasised the requirement that “justice must be seen to be done” and there appears to be a weakness in the system in this regard. This study focuses on evidence of demeanour and non-verbal behaviour/communication in the courtroom and how they impact on the outcome of trial. In as much as these concepts feature rather often in judgements there is a limited amount of literature to refer to for guidance on how to deal with demeanour and non-verbal behaviour during a trial. The aim of this study is to accentuate the fact that demeanour and non-verbal behaviour/communication do indeed impact on the outcome of the trial and that presiding officers, to some extent, lack adequate training and skill to effectively evaluate this type of evidence. The proper evaluation of evidence is central to a fair trial and justice. This study sets out the various approaches to: non-verbal communication within the social context of the courtroom, how the non-verbal behaviour of role players in a trial is dealt with, and how evidence of demeanour is dealt with when evaluating evidence. The gradual, but slow, growing body of knowledge in this regard illustrates what an integral part of the communication process of non-verbal communication really is. The qualitative approach adopted by this study (where presiding officers were interviewed) expanded the researcher’s understanding of how presiding officers deal with non-verbal communication/behaviour and demeanour when evaluating evidence. The responses from the in-depth interviews were mechanically recorded and this afforded the researcher the opportunity to gain insight into the perspectives of the presiding officers. The analysis of the responses led to the emergence of themes that were then formulated in a theoretical experience. When questioned about whether they had received sufficient training in how to deal with evidence of demeanour and non-verbal communication/behaviour all the participants in this study expressed a need for training in this regard. The study revealed that legal realism coupled with a functional approach to dealing with non-verbal communication and demeanour in the courtroom will improve the quality of judgements and add value to the work of presiding officers. The formulation of guidelines on how to better deal with evidence of demeanour and non-verbal communication/behaviour will take the judiciary and the legal profession closer to ensuring that “justice is seen to be done”
Description: Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Administration and Law to fulfil the requirements for the Doctor of Laws at the University of Zululand, South Africa.
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- Over the years concern has been growing about justice being done in South Africa. Society’s faith in the justice system is not as strong as it was before and matters are being taken on appeal all too frequently. In addition to this, the professional body for legal practioners1 (The Law Society of South Africa or LSSA) is concerned that law graduates do not have all the attributes necessary for the profession. The LSSA is also concerned that the legal qualification (Bachelor of Laws or LLB) at most institutions focuses only on the “knowledge of the law” and not on the development of skills or abilities that will help graduates cope in the working world of the profession. The law profession in South Africa has evolved to the point that it is no longer simply about the implementation of law. The Constitution2 has brought with it the requirement of due process, the right to a fair trial and the right to confront an accuser. These developments in the law call for further development in the skills of those who practice the law. Changes in the judiciary and the legal profession in general have brought with them the need for a review of how litigation and adjudication take place. This study focuses on key areas of communication in the trial process, namely demeanour and non-verbal communication. Neither of these areas have enjoyed the benefit of substantial theory building by scholars. The ability to correctly deal with evidence is a core competency for any presiding officer and legal practitioner as it impacts on the right to a fair trial. The Constitution has also emphasised the requirement that “justice must be seen to be done” and there appears to be a weakness in the system in this regard. This study focuses on evidence of demeanour and non-verbal behaviour/communication in the courtroom and how they impact on the outcome of trial. In as much as these concepts feature rather often in judgements there is a limited amount of literature to refer to for guidance on how to deal with demeanour and non-verbal behaviour during a trial. The aim of this study is to accentuate the fact that demeanour and non-verbal behaviour/communication do indeed impact on the outcome of the trial and that presiding officers, to some extent, lack adequate training and skill to effectively evaluate this type of evidence. The proper evaluation of evidence is central to a fair trial and justice. This study sets out the various approaches to: non-verbal communication within the social context of the courtroom, how the non-verbal behaviour of role players in a trial is dealt with, and how evidence of demeanour is dealt with when evaluating evidence. The gradual, but slow, growing body of knowledge in this regard illustrates what an integral part of the communication process of non-verbal communication really is. The qualitative approach adopted by this study (where presiding officers were interviewed) expanded the researcher’s understanding of how presiding officers deal with non-verbal communication/behaviour and demeanour when evaluating evidence. The responses from the in-depth interviews were mechanically recorded and this afforded the researcher the opportunity to gain insight into the perspectives of the presiding officers. The analysis of the responses led to the emergence of themes that were then formulated in a theoretical experience. When questioned about whether they had received sufficient training in how to deal with evidence of demeanour and non-verbal communication/behaviour all the participants in this study expressed a need for training in this regard. The study revealed that legal realism coupled with a functional approach to dealing with non-verbal communication and demeanour in the courtroom will improve the quality of judgements and add value to the work of presiding officers. The formulation of guidelines on how to better deal with evidence of demeanour and non-verbal communication/behaviour will take the judiciary and the legal profession closer to ensuring that “justice is seen to be done”
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- The purpose of the study was to firstly determine whether the categorical ban of minors from entering into a civil union undermines the “the best interests of the child” principle, and if so, whether section 1 of the Civil Union Act unjustifiably violates the Constitution. The study furthermore evaluated the current South African marriage law system in determining whether the prohibition of minors from entering into a civil union, whilst the Marriage Act and the Recognition of Marriages Act afford minors (provided they obtain the required consent) the right to enter into a marriage, results in disparity and whether such disparity violates minors’ right to equality before the law and their right to have their dignity respected and protected. The study was conducted by applying qualitative research methodology. An interpretivist paradigm was applied whilst a descriptive and interpretive design were used to interpret and analyse the data. The data was collected in two phases. Phase one consisted of a historical and comparative analysis of primary and secondary sources. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in terms of the second phase of the data gathering proses. In conducting the interviews, ten participants were purposively selected from the offices of the family advocates in the area of Durban, Pietermaritzburg and Ntuzuma. Eight common themes emerged from the interviews. The findings, in respect of the second phase of the study, were integrated with the findings in respect of phase one. Ultimately the study concluded that as a result of section 1 of the Civil Union Act categorically excluding “the best interests of the child” principle, section 1 of the Civil Union Act is in violation of section 28(2) as well as other fundamental constitutional rights of minors. From the comparative analysis that was conducted within the first phase of the study, recommendations are made to address the indifference that results from the application of the various legislations regulating the current South African matrimonial law system.
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- The thesis involved a comparative analysis of compliance with international conventions dealing with the application of children’s rights in three Sub-Saharan jurisdictions, namely, South Africa, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). All the three countries selected for comparative analysis signed and ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). In this way they committed themselves to work towards the fulfillment of children’s rights at domestic level respectively. However, for many years realising full compliance with regard to children‘s rights still presents a challenge for each of these countries selected. The purpose of the investigation is to explore the extent to which children’s survival rights were fulfilled, and to identify ways to overcome the challenges that the three countries face. The concept of children’s survival rights in this study denotes rights to basic nutrition, basic health care services and social security. To answer the question the study relied on a qualitative evaluative approach based on desktop and library research. The researcher used primary and secondary sources. Although the investigation revealed that the three countries have domesticated children’s rights norms within their laws, certain gaps in implementation present a cause for concern. As a result the findings from the study confirm that despite the gaps highlighted herein, South Africa has made significant progress towards realising children’s rights. Kenya as well is following in the foot prints evident in the South African example provided it tightens its law enforcement and adopts relevant legislative and other measures to realize its international obligation. The country where children’s survival rights are yet to be realised is the DRC. The study recommends that the South African department of social development should expedite the implementation of child support grants to include distributing equal benefits to every child throughout all communities without discriminating for whatsoever reason. The findings relevant to the scenario in Kenya suggest that Kenya has a duty to consider embarking on a vigorous programme to train its professional service to comprehend laws, policies, regulations and guidelines to maximize service delivery. With regard to social protection in Kenya and given the fact that forty percent of the population consists of children from poor families, the study recommends that the cash transfers purporting to benefit orphans and other vulnerable children in Kenya needs to be extended beyond orphans and vulnerable child-beneficiaries to include children throughout all communities regardless of financial or other status. Deviating from better placed child-rights centres in South Africa and Kenya, by contrast the DRC needs to design, implement, monitor and evaluate child support grant programmes primarily targeting ultra-poor families. Furthermore, the study finds that the DRC can learn a lesson from South Africa if its government is to succeed to respect, protect, promote and fulfil the rights in the Bill of Rights as envisaged in the Constitution. In view of the findings, the study produced a model guideline for effective realisation of children’s rights. This study potentially contributes to a growing body of international and regional research about children’s rights with a particular focus on children’ survival rights in South Africa, Kenya and the DRC
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- This research investigates the environmental legislation of South Africa and Nigeria as tools for control of gas emission within the context of the universal morality of environmental protection. The study highlights the other side of industrial activities -the devastating effect on health, community and the natural environment of the release of noxious gases from oil production activities. The gas emission situation in South Durban- South Africa and Niger Delta, Nigeria provide a common basis for the study. The study examined relevant legislation for control of gas emissions in the two countries. This involves identification and review of International and regional agreements, soft laws, constitutions and domestic legislation considered applicable to control of gas emission and air quality management in the two countries. The over reliance of the two countries on production of primary energy sources like coal and petrol chemicals and other fossils is revealed among others as major sources of gas emission in the two countries. Theoretically, there exist frameworks for emission control in the two countries. While both countries are signatories to relevant treaties and conventions on environment and emission control, there are fundamental differences in the nature and approach of the two countries to gas emission control and environmental law making in general. Environmental protection in South Africa is rooted in the universally acclaimed principle of sustainable development. The Constitution of South Africa not only provide for environmental rights but gives clear mandates to the parliament to legislate towards pollution prevention, conservation promotion and sustainable development. These principles underlie the South African emission control. On the other hand, the absence of a constitutional provision on sustainable development and right to environment in the Nigerian constitution limits emission control to the application of sector based legislation, in this case, oil industry legislations. These statutes predate the 1999 constitution of the country and therefore lack the necessary constitutional impetus regarded as essential for effective emission and environmental control. While it may be too early to assess the performance of the South African framework which together with the international components consists of post 1996 legislation, the researcher found the South Africa framework clear, direct and ascertainable. In the case of Nigeria applicable statutes are mostly not direct and there is a deliberate exclusion of the application of the provisions of the new National Environmental Standard Enforcement Agency (NESRA) ACT which established a semi- independent environmental body to emission and environmental problems in the oil industry. This development is a setback in emission control and environmental management in the country. At present, applicable oil industry statutes do not promote contemporary principles of environmental protection like sustainable development and environmental rights content. The Study found that despite available international and domestic frameworks, gas emission remains a major challenge in the two countries. Appropriate recommendations are made towards addressing the identified barricades. These include capacity building and a strong political will to drive the new regime in South Africa. In Nigeria, to make legislation a veritable tool for emission control demands urgent law review among other measures.
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- In this work the candidate discusses improper splitting of charges which 15 a problem in our criminal courts. The candidate starts by defining improper splitting of charges and then discusses its origin and guidelines which are followed by our courts in determining whether or not a charge has been split. Reference 15 made to the provisions of Chapter Three of the interim Constitution of the Republic of South Africa which provides, among others, that an accused person is entitled to a fair trial. The right to a fair trial includes the right to have recourse by way of appeal or review and to legal representation. The candidate discusses these rights. Numerous reported and a few unreported cases have been discussed. In these cases courts tested the facts of the cases against the tests and guiding principles. In most of them it was found that splitting of charges was improper. In many cases judges stress that improper splitting of charges results in the duplication of punishments. In chapter four of this work the meaning and interpretation of a fair trial 15 discussed, In the concluding chapter some recommendations are made.
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- Cable theft could be currently considered as a significant problem, globally. The Eskom statistical figures indicate that cable theft creates a massive problem for service delivery and places a vast amount of pressure on its financial resources. Cable theft is highlighted on various different platforms within Eskom’s business operating units and while efforts for increased security and protection measures are in place, these measures appear to be inadequate to prevent it. This study investigated the extent of cable theft at Eskom and examined what actions Eskom and private security personnel should undertake to prevent it. This study further determined what action steps need be taken by Eskom’s internal security management team, and those responsible for the capturing of all relevant information related to it, in order to prevent any form of cable theft. This research has made four key contributions to the subject: (i) A new Eskom security structure was proposed, (ii) a newly designed Eskom training curriculum framework was designed for all private security personnel working at Eskom facilities, (iii) proposed changes to Eskom’s CURA system were made, and (iv) proposed changes were suggested for Eskom’s internal ENECC cable theft reporting system
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- Proof beyond a reasonable doubt is the standard of proof that is applied in criminal cases. The burden of proving the guilt of the accused in this manner rests on the state, and does not shift to the accused. This is in contrast to the evidential burden which may shift to the accused to rebut a case against him or her. There have, however, been statutory exceptions where the burden shifted to the accused. But this has been changed by the Constitution. The rule has ideological and philosophical underpinnings. Criminal law is an awe-inspiring aspect of the law the enforcement of which could lead to the deprivation of the liberty of a person. Personal liberty in Western society is a cherished value so that its deprivation should result if the state has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty. This is often concretised in the saying that it is better for a hundred guilty persons to go free than that one innocent person be found guilty. The rule that the state has to prove the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt originated from English law during the eighteenth century and it was aimed at protecting the individual against the abuse of state power. Although this is a long-standing rule, there has been no clear definition of this rule either in English law or South African law. The duty to prove the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt extends to every element of the offence. There are instances where this may not be the case. These are cases where judicial notice is taken of certain facts or where there is strict liability and it is therefore not necessary to prove the existence of men's rea especially in the form of intention. Although these do not completely dispense with the requirement of proving the guilt of the accused, they result in the reduction of this burden. In a number of legislative enactments, in the past the burden of proof was shifted to the accused through the use of presumptions. Not all presumptions had this effect but only those where the accused was presumed guilty because of the existence of certain facts and had to prove his or her innocence beyond a reasonable doubt. This is called the reverse onus. The Constitutional Court decided that these were in conflict with the provisions of sections 25 and 35 of the interim and final Constitutions respectively which, inter alia, provide for the right to silence and the presumption of innocence. Consequently these have been declared invalid as being unconstitutional. In this way the Constitution has been interpreted to affirm the core democratic values of liberty, equality and human dignity. Although the standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt has been used, it has not been clearly defined. Proof beyond a reasonable doubt can be regarded as proof which should convince a reasonable fact fader after considering all the relevant evidence that the accused is guilty of the offence with which he is charged. This proof must be based on evidence and not merely on intuition or belief otherwise it is not a standard at all.
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- This study investigates the impact of broadcast copyright on access to the broadcasting of football in Kenya and South Africa. Broadcasting is the most important and popular platform over which football matches are distributed globally. Modern broadcasting and telecommunication technologies have created multimedia channels and platforms over which football events are exploited. The exploitation of these sporting events places greater reliance upon copyright and other intellectual property rights. Intellectual property rights in general and copyright in particular monopolises and individualises that which they protect. When football events are broadcast in Kenya and South Africa, they are assimilated into broadcasts which form one of the categories that are copyright protected in the two jurisdictions. At the same time when football games are recorded before transmission, they are protected as audio-visual works within the meaning of the copyright laws of South Africa and Kenya. The exclusive rights that broadcasting organisations enjoy in Kenya and South Africa create a monopoly over the broadcast football matches. Access to these events, therefore, on the part of the public becomes discretional at the whims of the broadcaster transmitting events. On the other hand, the study found out that football is a popular culture not only in Kenya and South Africa but also across the world. Football is an expression of the people‘s culture and therefore glue that binds people together. It is viewed as a cultural heritage that promotes collective consciousness of a people. It promotes national cohesion and nationhood and thus important for countries like Kenya and South Africa where ethnicity and racial divisions are so pronounced. This calls for stronger legal and policy frameworks towards greater public access to broadcast football. This necessity is also justified by the fact that media transforms football events into stories through commentaries and analysis. The football events therefore become informational assets that have greater constitutional underpinnings within the context of the right to information. The public therefore has a constitutional claim to broadcast football as sports information as well as under the relevant international instruments like the International Convention on the Right of the Child of 1989 and the International Charter on Physical Education and Sport. The major findings of the study are that live broadcasting of football events is copyright protected in Kenya and South. This copyright protection though is not backed up by copyright doctrines and philosophies because transmission of football events is not a creation of the mind. Additionally, the exclusive rights that broadcasters enjoy over their broadcasts are buttressed by technological protection measures employed by pay TV services which encase absolutely football events. This situation has been exacerbated by the migration of premium football events from free-to-air (FTA) channels to subscription services which further limits access to broadcast football events that are encrypted. Based on the foregoing findings, the study makes appropriate recommendations that would bring Kenya and South Africa to a level consistent with the global development. The global development is constructed from the practices and comparative analysis done vis-à-vis developed countries with strong traditions of sports and intellectual property rights
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- Fiscal policy remains a key macroeconomic stabilisation mechanism at the disposal of governments and fiscal policymakers to influence economic activities consistent with balanced and sustainable economic growth. A thorough understanding of the role fiscal policy remains extremely paramount for fiscal authorities to consistently formulate prudent fiscal stimulus packages that enhances sustainable economic expansion. This thesis critically examines the role of fiscal policy and sovereign debt shocks on economic growth in the Southern African Developing Communities (SADC). Over the years, fiscal policy and austerity measures have triggered a deterioration in the fiscal position of these member countries primarily due to the relatively high budget deficits, inducing even further sovereign debt risk in long-term economic prosperity. The phenomenon of fiscal policy has gained immense scholarly popularity among both researchers and policymakers, stimulating intensive debate in the body of literature as to whether fiscal policy has been able stabilise macroeconomic fluctuations across different economies characterised by different phases of economic growth and development. The study starts by giving a thorough background and introduction in Chapter 1. Chapter 2 discusses a detailed review of existing theoretical frameworks on the role of fiscal policy and sovereign debt on economic growth. Chapter 3 analyses the role of fiscal policy and sovereign debt shocks on economic growth in the SADC region. In this chapter, a Panel Vector Autoregressive (PVAR) model was estimated using annual data for 13 SADC countries ranging from 2000-2018. The empirical results revealed that government expenditure, employment and public debt has a significant positive influence on economic growth while gross fixed capital formation exerts a negative effect on growth. The findings of the study are consistent with the Keynesian school of thought, which strongly argues that governments use countercyclical expansionary fiscal policy as a credible tool to spur economic activities and stabilise macroeconomic fluctuations during different phases of the business cycle. Chapter 4 estimates a Panel Smooth Transition Regression (PSTR) model to examine a nonlinear effect of public debt on economic growth among SADC members for the period 2000-2018. The findings show a significant asymmetric relationship between public debt and economic growth in the SADC region. The results further indicate a debt threshold of 60% at which public debt deters economic growth in SADC region. The empirical results of a linear and nonlinear effect of public debt on growth are consistent with several prior empirical studies conducted across different economies using different methodologies. In line with the Keynesian approach, the results further suggest that fiscal policy plays a central role in augmenting economic activities both in the low-debt regime and high-debt regime, indicating that, indeed, a positive shock in government spending positively influence economic growth in SADC economies, reinforcing the findings of the previous chapter. Furthermore, the results reveal a significant positive impact of public debt on economic growth during the low regime when the debt level is below the threshold of 60%. Moreover, there was a significant negative effect of debt on economic growth during the high-debt regime as debt level reach the threshold of 60%. This result indicates that there is an inverted U-Shape relationship between public debt and economic growth among SADC economies. Chapter 5 empirically interrogates the asymmetric relationships between public debt and economic growth among selected emerging and frontier SADC economies over the period 2000-2018. In this chapter, a Smooth Transition Regression (STAR) and Nonlinear Autoregressive Redistributed Lag (NARDL) is estimated to analyse the asymmetric effect of public debt on economic growth among selected SADC economies. The results revealed mixed findings on nonlinearity among emerging and frontier SADC members. The findings indicate a concave relationship between debt and economic growth in South Africa, while Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe showed a U-shape relationship between debt and economic growth. This implies that public debt exerts a significant positive influence on economic growth during low-debt regime while there is a negative effect of debt on economic growth during a high-debt regime in South Africa. Conversely, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe show a negative effect of debt during the low-debt regime and a positive influence during a high-debt regime. Malawi, however, showed a positive impact of debt on growth during both low-debt and high-debt regimes.
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- This study primarily speaks to the current debate on technology transfer by testing whether Chinese, South Korean and Japanese service imports affect productivity and efficiency of South Africa’s manufacturing industries through transferring innovation embodied in foreign services. This is a relatively underexplored area as previous literature on international technology transfer has given more attention on imports of physical goods. In achieving the central aim of the analysis, the study makes several contributions to the body of knowledge. Firstly, it modifies and improves open economy endogenous growth theories by accommodating trade in services as a channel through which technology can be transferred across borders. Secondly and most importantly, it constructs a composite innovation spillover index that comprises several indicators of innovation namely R&D stock, researchers in R&D sector, trademarks and patent applications. Thirdly, it applies a Bayesian approach in one of the chapters (chapter five) which allows us to circumvent model uncertainty in the technology transfer model. Fourthly, unlike the majority of previous studies, it also focuses on technical efficiency as the outcome variable which allows us to establish not only whether Chinese, South Korean and Japanese innovation spillover pushes domestic technology frontier outwards but also how it influences the industries’ movement towards the existing technology frontier. Fifthly and for the first time in literature, it examines the response of labour productivity to exogenous innovation shocks through impulse response functions derived from the local projections method. Using the R&D stock measure and physical intermediate imports as the transmission mechanism, the study is able to first replicate the result obtained in previous studies that innovation spillovers from China, South Korea and Japan significantly influence productivity growth of manufacturing industries in South Africa and that the effect increases with institutional quality and human capital accumulation. In particular, Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) results in chapter four confirm that Chinese, South Korean and Japanese innovation spillovers raise total factor productivity of South Africa’s manufacturing industries in the 0.003 – 0.012 per cent, 0.005 – 0.022 per cent and 0.0150 – 0.0151 per cent range respectively. When the study moves from the simple R&D stock measure and physical intermediate imports to a composite innovation measure and service imports as the transmission channel in chapter five based on a Bayesian analysis, the study reaches a different conclusion which is that China’s imported innovation exerts a negative effect on total factor productivity of South African manufacturing industries in the -0.015 – 0.176 per cent range. For South Korea and Japan, the effect is plausible and positive in the 0.023 – 0.061 per cent and 0.132 – 0.141 per cent range respectively which is consistent with open economy endogenous growth theories. Chapter six focuses on labour productivity in the entire manufacturing sector. Results based on the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model are similar to those reported in chapter five despite the use of different outcome variables (i.e. labour productivity and total factor productivity). It is confirmed that South Korean and Japanese innovation spillovers are positively associated with labour productivity and the results are robust to alternative estimators and the decomposition of the total sample. For China, the result of a negative effect on productivity still emerges this time in the – 0.01 –0.036 per cent range. Chapter seven focuses on technical efficiency as the outcome variable and the results from a True-Fixed effects stochastic frontier model show that innovation spillovers from South Korea and Japan improve technical efficiency of manufacturing industries. South Korean spillovers have a larger effect (0.310 per cent) when compared with Japanese spillovers (0.129 per cent). Meanwhile, China still enters with a negative effect on technical efficiency which is akin to a positive effect on technical inefficiency. With respect to the local projections method in chapter eight, it is empirically confirmed that productivity growth in South Africa’s manufacturing sector increases with Japanese and South Korean exogenous technology spillover shocks particularly in long term horizons (above 6 quarters). For China, South Africa’s productivity response is significantly negative. At the outset, the study raises four arguments. Firstly, Chinese innovation reduces productivity growth adding to the on-going concerns of China’s resource predatory presence in Africa. Secondly, innovation imported from the remaining countries particularly Japan and South Korea correlates positively with domestic productivity and the effect increases with human capital accumulation and the quality of institutions. Thirdly, despite observing a positive effect innovation from Japan and South Korea on domestic productivity, it is domestic innovation that enters with the most sizeable effect implying that foreign innovation should not substitute but rather complement domestic innovation efforts. Fourthly, trade in services plays an important role in transferring innovation across international boundaries. As far as domestic industrial policy is concerned, the policy implication arising from this study is that service trade with Japan and South Korea is a relevant mechanism through which South Africa’s manufacturing industries can make technological upgrades but that with China should be a source of concern and an important area that requires further research. Two possible explanations for China’s negative effect are suggested. Firstly, China’s services in Africa hardly employ domestic workers as they normally come with their own workforce. This means when Chinese services (or service providers) leave South Africa, none of their technology is left for the domestic manufacturing industries to utilise. Secondly, China has been recurrently accused of providing services in Africa at the expense of natural resource extraction. This implies that the technology effect of China might be outweighed by the resource extraction leading to an overall negative effect of Chinese presence. For South Korea and Japan in which the technology spillover effect is positive, evidence suggest that the effect is smaller when compared to that of domestic innovation index implying that Japanese and South Korean imported innovation ought to be treated as a complement rather than a substitute of domestic innovation effort. Also confirmed is that the positive impact of imported innovation increases with human capital accumulation and institutional quality implying that domestic absorptive capacity plays a huge role in ensuring that South Africa is able to fully absorb technology coming from Japan and South Korea.
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- Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are vital for economic development, providing significant employment and contributing to sustainable growth. However, to remain competitive, SMEs must enhance their efficiency and performance, and adopting information technology (IT) systems can improve coordination, decision-making, customer satisfaction and overall organisational efficiency. This study aims to investigate the impact of technology adoption, precisely information and communication technology (ICT) and financial technology (Fintech), on the business performance of SMEs in semi-rural regions such as the King Cetshwayo District Municipality (KCDM). A positivist paradigm is employed to achieve this goal, involving a quantitative approach incorporating a survey design and correlational analysis. “A unified framework is proposed that captures the antecedents of technology adoption, technology adoption intensity, and business performance outcomes. Data was obtained through questionnaires from senior managers and business owners across various industries in the district. 800 questionnaires were administered, and 604 valid questionnaires were analysed. A multinomial logistic regression was used to analyse the sustainability/viability of the SMEs and their innovative capacity. SMEs’ sustainability was measured by the level of their turnover, whereas the extent of their adoption of financial technology accounts for their innovative capacity. The results indicated that higher education and better adaptability to ICT are positively correlated with SMEs advancing in their innovative capacity. In addition, SMEs' sustainability is influenced by the socio-demographic and economic factors of the entrepreneur. To explain the impact of technology adoption on SME business performance, Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to conduct empirical analyses on the survey data. The results indicate that enhancing technology intensity positively impacts SMEs' business performance, including efficiency and sales. From the study, it can be reasonably argued that technology enhances the performance of SMEs in the King Cetshwayo District Municipality (KCDM); this was achieved by switching from the customary labour-intensive ways of production and doing business. Some of the recommendations of this study included that owners of SMEs in semi-rural regions like the KCDM should prioritise and develop organisational learning abilities through research into practices for more productive ways of adopting emerging technologies. In addition, SMEs in the district should consider the trade-off between labour use and emerging technologies, as this will reduce the cost of production and enhance the efficiency of production processes. Regarding policy implications, the government should create an enabling environment by providing ICT infrastructures that allow small business owners in rural and semi-rural regions to leverage emerging technology to thrive. In addition, depending on the level and stages of technology adoption during the production process, government and SME stakeholders should develop ways of offsetting potential job losses that may arise from adopting technology.
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- The aim of this study was to explore the use of excursions as a pedagogic praxis for Social Sciences. This study was framed qualitatively because qualitative studies aim to make sense of issues through in-depth descriptions and explanations. So, the qualitative approach helped me to understand how excursions can be used as a pedagogic praxis for Social Sciences in secondary schools. I used a case study research design because I wanted to examine a single subject of analysis, namely the use of excursions in secondary schools. For data generation, I purposively sampled seven Social Sciences (SS) teachers for Grades 8 and 9, and five School Based Heads of Departments (HoDs) for Humanities from each Circuit Management Centre (CMC). This study adopted semi-structured interviews for data generation because they allowed me to reach in-depth information about the use of excursions as a pedagogic praxis for Social Sciences from the teachers themselves. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. For the purpose of this study, I adopted Kolb’s (1984) conceptual model of the learning process which discloses how learners’ practical experience, having studied the theories and notions of textbooks, enable learning. In terms of experiences on organising excursions, this study found that preparing for excursions is time consuming. Excursion organisers should be aware that they are accountable for everything that takes place during the excursion and parents are concerned about the safety of their children. Excursions help develop learners’ skills and they promote better understanding of the subject content. With regard to the usefulness of excursions, the findings revealed that excursions develop interest in the subject, they expand learners’ worldviews, they serve as a team building mechanism, they are part of teaching and learning activities and they promote experiential learning beyond the confines of the classroom. This study revealed some difficulties in organising excursions which include turn-around time for approval of excursions, lack of support within the school, financial constraints on the part of parents and unruly learner behaviour. The findings revealed that SS teachers perceive excursions as demanding extra time for planning and requiring organisers to undertake their responsibilities accordingly. Organisers should ensure safety for learners, serving as skills developing mechanism, exposing learners to different contexts which enhance understanding of subject knowledge, being useful and requiring collaborative planning and support. This study concludes that excursions are important since learners are exposed to the outside world which enables them to master the content of the subject. However, organisers should ensure that they plan accordingly and ensure that learners are safe during excursions. Therefore, the study recommends that excursion programs be designed at the beginning of the year to allow teachers to engage in proper planning. Furthermore, this study recommends that excursions be made compulsory for each school since they are useful in promoting deep learning beyond the confines of the classroom. Also, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) should promote the use of excursions and emphasise the importance of excursions and should also expedite the approval process so that organisers can have ample time to plan
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- Shadow banking emerged as a critical issue in advanced economies during and after the global financial crisis of 2007–2008. Its importance lies in understanding the channels through which it contributes positively to economic activity, as well as the ways in which it may undermine macroeconomic performance by propagating systemic risk. However, empirical evidence on the impact of shadow banking growth on financial stability and macroeconomic performance in emerging economies remains limited. This study contributes to the literature on financial innovation by examining the linkages between the shadow banking sector, economic performance, and financial system stability across national borders in emerging markets. The study begins with a review of literature on shadow banking, focusing on the channels through which it affects the macroeconomy, financial stability, and monetary policy. Five empirical papers, each offering a distinct contribution, analyse the impact of shadow banking on various macroeconomic and financial variables using a panel of emerging market economies. The first empirical paper employs the Pooled Mean Group technique to estimate a model in which economic growth is explained by shadow banking and other determinants. The results indicate a positive relationship between shadow banking and economic growth. The second paper examines the impact of shadow banking on bank risk across national borders using a Global Vector Autoregressive (GVAR) framework. The findings reveal increased financial fragility resulting from negative global shocks to shadow banking activity in most economies under study. Evidence of financial contagion is also observed both among emerging economies and between emerging and advanced economies. The third empirical paper investigates the relationship between shadow banking and monetary policy using a Panel Vector Autoregressive (PVAR) approach. The results show a negative relationship between the monetary policy rate and shadow bank growth, indicating that contractionary monetary policy reduces shadow banking activity. Additionally, shadow banking responds positively to increases in bank liquidity. The fourth paper explores the interaction between shadow banking, monetary policy, and bank risk-taking behaviour. The findings show that shadow banking is an important component of the monetary policy transmission mechanism in emerging economies. High levels of risk amplify the impact of monetary policy on shadow banking, whereas lower risk dampens this transmission effect. The study also finds that significant risk-taking occurs through the shadow banking channel. The fifth empirical paper investigates the impact of shadow banking activities on firm profitability in South Africa. Using single-equation cointegration methods and three measures of firm profitability, the results show that while shadow banking negatively affects traditional banks’ profitability, it has a positive impact on non-financial firms and overall firm performance. Both non-financial firms and non-bank financial institutions benefit from the expansion of shadow banking services. Based on these findings, the study recommends targeted functional regulation to support economic activity in the shadow banking sector while mitigating associated risks. Additional policy implications include the need for regulatory frameworks that monitor shadow banking to limit contagion effects across jurisdictions, support sustainable growth of shadow banking assets to enhance economic performance, and ensure effective policy coordination so that monetary policy impacts on financial markets are fully considered during policy formulation.
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- The currency carry trade, an investment strategy where investors borrow funds from low-interest currency countries and invest the funds in financial assets domiciled in high-interest currency countries, has become very popular in the academic literature over the last two decades. The strategy exploits the failure of the uncovered interest rate parity (UIP) hypothesis which states that the interest rate differential between two countries is exactly offset by the depreciation of high interest rate currency over the investment time horizon. Thus this investment strategy is expected to yield zero returns if the uncovered interest rate parity condition holds. Its failure is well documented in literature, though these studies mostly concentrate on currencies of the developed world. This study implements the trade by targeting ten currencies of Africa‘s emerging and frontier markets, and fund the trade with four developed market currencies. The researcher first evaluates the profitability of the trade across all the forty currency pairs from 1998 to 2015. This is then followed by a rigorous analysis of returns using advanced risk-adjusted performance measures to test their viability as an alternative asset class or prudent investment. The study further examines a value-at-risk (VaR) analysis of the currency carry trade returns using generalised autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) models. Finally, the study investigates the relationship or the information transmission mechanism between returns of the African currency carry trade and the returns of its respective Stock Markets. Different methodologies were employed to achieve the various objectives of this study. Notable among them are the Huber‘s robust regression, advanced portfolio performance evaluation measures, univariate generalised autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) with value-at-risk and expected shortfall estimations, vector autoregressive Granger causality, panel vector autoregression (xtvar) and multivariate dynamic conditional correlation GARCH analysis. The study concludes that only a handful of the currency pairs studied were statistically profitable during and after the financial crisis of 2007. Naïve estimation of carry trade however produced some modest profits for a good number of the currency pairs. The study also concludes that some of the currency pair studied exhibit features of a viable investment and may be classified as an asset class. Furthermore, the researcher shows that the most appropriate approach to estimating the risk or value-at-risk of African currency carry trade returns is through the GARCH (1, 1) with skewed t distribution of the innovation. Finally, the implications of the African currency carry trade for the stock markets in Africa were found to be mixed. Thus African currency carry trade returns of twenty two currency pairs were found to significantly Granger cause the stock markets of the target currency countries, whilst evidence of causality could not be established for six currency pairs. A large number of currency pairs show one-way causality from the currency carry trade to the stock markets, with minimal amount of volatility spillover sparsely distributed across the selected African countries. For all the currency pairs together and the stock markets of Africa together, the study found that the stock markets respond greatly to shocks in carry trade whilst there appears to be very minimal response by carry trade to shocks in the stock markets.
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- Low agricultural productivity remains a threat to the existence and sustainability of the small-scale production of crops. Unfavourable climatic conditions such as drought are a concern to the long-term supply of food in the context of a rapidly growing population. The continuous uncertainty surrounding access to credit, extension support and industry regulations exacerbate the dilemma faced by small-scale growers. Therefore, there is a need to develop strategies to promote agricultural efficiency and productivity. Sugarcane is a traditional crop produced in three provinces in South Africa and it contributes to the livelihoods of many small-scale sugarcane growers operating in the rural set-up. This thesis aimed to evaluate agricultural efficiencies, productivity and efficiency change and identify barriers to technical efficiency of small-scale sugarcane growers in the sugar producing regions of the King Cetshwayo district municipality. This is a grey area as existing studies have given more attention to SFA (Stochastic Frontier Analysis) and ranked constraints faced by small-scale sugarcane growers. The thesis analyses three methodological approaches to addressing the objectives of the thesis. The first objective was to analyse the technical, cost and allocative efficiency of a sample of 300 small cane growers located in the King Cetshwayo district municipality (KCDM) of Northern KwaZulu-Natal. This objective was achieved through estimating agricultural productive efficiency using Data Envelope Analysis (DEA). The second objective was to determine the chemical-input use efficiency, which was determined using the Slack-Based Measure (SBM) approach of the sampled cane growers. The third objective was to employ the Truncated Regression model to identify key socio-economic sources of technical efficiency; this chapter relied on field survey data of 300 sugarcane growers. The fourth objective measured input-oriented technical, cost and allocative efficiency of 160 small-scale sugarcane growers in the Felixton and Amatikulu regions. The fifth objective investigate the determinants of technical, cost and allocative efficiency in the Felixton and Amatikulu regions. Both objectives used the DEA and Truncated Regression model. The sixth objective decomposed agricultural efficiency change in small-scale sugarcane growers in the Amatikulu region using the Färe Primont Index (FPI) using farm-level data for 38 small-scale growers. Furthermore, the Bayesian Modelling Average technique (BMA) investigated policy-related sources of small-scale sugarcane productivity to investigate determinants of total factor productivity to address objective seven. The last objective was to identify the barriers to technical efficiency using a qualitative approach known as Thematic Analysis (TA) using semi-structured interviews involving fewer than ten participants and Focus Groups (FGs) with extension officers in both Felixton and Amatikulu regions. The results of the DEA showed that low cost and allocative compared to technical and scale efficiency with distribution of technical efficiency ranging at 60%. The study also reported a higher technical efficiency compared to chemical-use efficiency. The determinants of technical efficiency were education, off-farm income, experience, and extension support and land size. The results of agricultural productive efficiency in the Felixton and Amatikulu regions reported mixed mean scores. The technical scores in both regions were almost equal, but exhibited significant differences in cost and allocative efficiency. Socio-economic factors such as experience, education, and access to credit and employment status of the small-scale sugarcane grower showed a positive relationship with technical, cost and allocative efficiency. The findings of the FPI approach revealed increased input growth in both input mix and input scale mix efficiency. However, input technical efficiency reported a negative input growth. The sources of TFP were education, sustainability investment, and education of the small-scale grower. The qualitative analysis in chapter seven identified four clear barriers to technical efficiency. Market dynamics were reported as very hard issues to keep up with because they are very tricky. The findings of the qualitative approach also reported the severe distress small-scale sugarcane growers experienced because of drought as one of the environmental challenges faced in the optimisation of technical efficiency. The results also reported technical difficulties because of poor support from extension officers and the slow response of the contractors. The study recommends agricultural policies targeted at agricultural research and development, educational development, and the adaptation of innovative technologies. Furthermore, there is a need to improve stakeholder involvement and regulation of the sugar industry to promote long-term efficiency and productivity.
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