The role of open government data in the repurposing of land administration in postapartheid South Africa : an exploration
- Authors: Manona, Siyabulela Sobantu
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Transparency in government -- South Africa , Land reform -- South Africa , Qualitative research -- Methodology , Postcolonialism -- South Africa , Post-apartheid era -- South Africa , South Africa -- Economic conditions -- 1991- , South Africa -- Social conditions -- 1994- , South Africa -- Politics and government -- 1994- , Open Government Data (OGD)
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178397 , vital:42936 , 10.21504/10962/178397
- Description: Almost three decades after the official end of the apartheid, South Africa has been on a sturdy path that is characterised by deepening spatial economic inequalities. A plethora of policy instruments unleashed since 1994 had not only failed to stem the tide of poverty and inequality, but had deepened them. As part of this, South Africa’s most ambitious social engineering programme – land reform -- had disappointing outcomes. Premised on a view that these apartheid continuities were embedded in South Africa’s land administration system – which was incoherent and fragmented and requiring a systemic overhaul -- the study sought to explore the potential role of Open Government Data (OGD) in the repurposing of land administration system in the post-apartheid South Africa. To achieve this goal, the study was guided by the following objectives: to explore the ontology and the state of land governance and administration in the context of the post-apartheid South Africa; to undertake an evaluation or assessment of South Africa’s land data ecosystem; and to explore the potential role of OGD in the repurposing of land administration system in the postapartheid of South Africa. This study was steeped in qualitative research methods, underpinned by primary and secondary literature review. While the study was primarily pitched on a national scale – the combination of the systems and multiple scales approaches – yielded results which dislodges solutions that are required outside of the domain of a single state. This is one glaring example of land governance complexities that straddle beyond national scale – specifically in respect of new policy trajectories on trans-national boundaries and governance of water resources. Based on the holistic ontology of land, this study concludes that land administration and land governance overarching conceptual orientation -- concerned with land use decisions made by humans at various scales from a praxis and policy perspective –constitute two sides of the same coin, the former steeped towards practice and the latter steeped towards policy. Drawing from decolonial theories the study concludes that land does not only have multiple dimensions, but it also has multiple meanings, in a manner that calls for an ontological shift away from the western ontology, towards an inclusive and holistic conceptualisation. Historiography that is anchored in de-colonial thinking of South Africa’s land governance helps us understand how and why – colonial/apartheid norms acrimoniously found their way into the post-apartheid order -- the post-apartheid institutions of modernity rest on the same hierarchies of identities, classification and pathologisation. The study concludes that, while the colonial/apartheid administration may be gone, it’s underlying power matrices continue -- i.e. capitalism/European/patriachal/white – in a manner which explains the continuities of South Africa’s spatial inequalities and the associated economic inequalities. The organising principle for land relations (including opportunities) continues to be underpinned by gender, race and class, in ways that expose the mythical dimensions of the 'post-apartheid' underbelly. While identifying the need for homogenisation and rationalistion of colonial, apartheid and post-apartheid institutions (on a national scale) that is insufficient for the transformation of the colonial situation of what is in essence a part of the global system, the study advocates for the ‘repurposing of land governance and administration’ – underpinned by de-colonial thinking. Repurposing is seen as political imaginary that would entail uncoupling thought processes and praxis from the colonial matrices of power. The study goes on to conclude that there is a definite role for Open Government Data in repurposing of land administration in the post-apartheid South Africa – as a necessary, though in and of it’s own it is an insufficient condition to achieve that ideal -- but presents an opportunity to enhance transdisciplinarity approaches and efficiencies in internal government functioning and evidence-based decision making and policy formulation processes. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Geography, 2021
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- Date Issued: 2021-04
Towards identifying how knowledge management concepts may be applied to enhance the tendering process in South African public sector institutions
- Authors: Kasi, Sizukisa Bridget
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Letting of contracts -- South Africa , Knowledge management , Public contracts -- South Africa , Transparency in government -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:1150 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007741 , Letting of contracts -- South Africa , Knowledge management , Public contracts -- South Africa , Transparency in government -- South Africa
- Description: The state of the Tendering Process in South African Government Institutions has become an area of concern in recent years with issues related to transparency, governance and rigid retrospective procedures being cited as impediments to efficiency. In tum, Knowledge Management (KM) and its ability to be applied to all types of organisations to increase efficiency has been popularised extensively. An analysis of KM literature suggested that the principles of KM may be used to increase efficiency and create competitive advantage. This study attempted to identify whether the benefits gained by other organisations through the application of Knowledge Management principles, could be applied to the Tendering Process in South African Government Institutions. The study sought to identify how Knowledge Value Chain by Wang and Ahmed (2005) may be leveraged to create an enhanced Tendering Process. The study then reviewed the Tendering Processes conducted in Australia, United States of America, Malaysia and South Africa and sought to identify the common steps in a tendering process in order to construct a standard tendering process. The Knowledge Value Chain was then applied to this process to create a standard tendering process enhanced by Knowledge Management Principles. The model was compared to the processes currently conducted in two Government institutions and two parastals. The findings indicated that the model is well suited for Government Organisations and would assist in the creation of greater transparency, however the practical implementation of the model is yet unlikely as the model suggest electronic access to information, and the process in South African Government Institutions is predominately paper-based.
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- Date Issued: 2013