Faculty of Natural Sciencehttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/82024-03-29T13:13:19Z2024-03-29T13:13:19ZThe factors associated with the access to early childhood development (ecd) facilities in South Africa: insight from the 2021 general household survey (ghs)Shikwambane, Eliahttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/106922024-03-26T00:03:33Z2023-01-01T00:00:00ZThe factors associated with the access to early childhood development (ecd) facilities in South Africa: insight from the 2021 general household survey (ghs)
Shikwambane, Elia
Despite South Africa being a developed country, it has one of the highest and most persistent inequality rates in the world and this disparity is evident in the education sector. However, the country has sufficient resources to support children's education on all levels, but the number of children accessing education, the quality of education they receive, and the condition of their learning environment are causes for concern, especially the accessibility of Early Childhood Development (ECD) facilities in the nine provinces of South Africa. This study investigates the socio-economic and socio-demographic determinants that impact children aged six and younger’s accessibility to ECD centres. Factors, such as head of household, age, demographic group, level of education, employment status, income level, residential location, father part of household and mother part of household, are all considered. The study used data from the 2021 General Household Survey, which was obtained from the University of Cape Town’s DataFirst website, which was acquired from Statistics South Africa. The study employed univariate analysis, bivariate analysis, cross-tabulation using the Chi-square test of Independence and Multinomial Logistic Regression techniques to examine the associations or relationships between the type of ECD facilities, main reasons for not attending the ECD facilities and the place where the children spend most of their time with the socio-economic and socio-demographic factors. The data was analysed using both the Microsoft Excel and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 28 software programmes. A hypothesis was specified to determine the probability of a young child enrolling in a particular type of ECD centre, as well as the primary reasons for not doing so. There is a positive relationship between father participation and the access to and utilization of early childhood development (ECD) services. Children residing with both biological parents exhibit a higher propensity to utilize childcare services such as a Gogo or a nanny. Young families frequently utilize Gogo and childminder services to visit playgrounds while mothers who are actively engaged in their children’s lives are more inclined to utilize ECD services.
Magister Philosophiae - MPhil
2023-01-01T00:00:00ZAssessing some socio-economic and demographic changes affecting the employment in the informal sector between the years 2017 and 2020Mkulisi, Sibusisiwehttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/106892024-03-26T00:03:22Z2024-01-01T00:00:00ZAssessing some socio-economic and demographic changes affecting the employment in the informal sector between the years 2017 and 2020
Mkulisi, Sibusisiwe
In most developing countries, the informal workforce comprises over half of the total workforce, reaching approximately 68.5% in South Africa. This category includes self-employed individuals in informal enterprises and wage workers in informal jobs. Multiple pressures, such as escalating youth unemployment, rapid urbanization, heightened migration in economically advanced provinces, and persistent financial crises, have collectively driven the growth of the informal sector during periods of economic instability in South Africa's labour market. From a socio-demographic standpoint, this study examines the structural shifts that impact informal employment. Specifically, it evaluates how socio-demographic variables such as age, gender, ethnicity, marital status, and education are related to work within the informal sector. Moreover, this research adopts a comparative approach, assessing how these variables manifest changes in informal sector employment between 2017 and 2020.
Magister Philosophiae - MPhil
2024-01-01T00:00:00ZBiochemical characterisation of an alpha-amylase with pullulan hydrolase type III characteristics derived from a hot spring metagenomics libraryBoersma, Biancahttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/106882024-03-21T00:09:28Z2024-01-01T00:00:00ZBiochemical characterisation of an alpha-amylase with pullulan hydrolase type III characteristics derived from a hot spring metagenomics library
Boersma, Bianca
The field of metagenomics has provided biotechnological researchers with new enzymes and insight into previously unknown enzyme families with potential for novel modes of action and being able to function under extreme conditions, such as extremes of temperature, acidity or alkalinity. The enzymes can also often act on multiple substrates and show increased affinity for certain substrates. In this study, the aim was to biochemically characterise a putative type III pullulan hydrolase (PHTIII). A sequence-based metagenomic screen from previous performed by Xiao Ping Hu (2010) was used to identify novel glycosyl hydrolase enzymes in shotgun metagenomic sequence data from the Mphizi hot spring in Malawi. An identified ORF, named Pull3.1, displayed low sequence identity to a characterised α-amylase (62.71%) and 61.66% to a characterised pullulan hydrolase type III, and was, therefore, hypothesized to be an α-amylase (EC 3.2.1.1) with pullulan hydrolase type III (EC 3.2.1.x) characteristics. Further sequence analysis indicated that Pull3.1 had a glycogen binding site and that it belongs to the GH13_20 family as well as having a family 48 carbohydrate-binding module. Pull3.1 displayed the highest substrate conversion rates for starch, pullulan and glycogen. The products released were of the following degrees of polymerisation 3, 2 or 1, in accordance with the products released from the PHTIII from Thermococcus aggregans. Pull3.1 is a thermozyme that shows maximum activity at 75°C and an optimum pH of 7. It was thermostable up to 80°C and had a half-life of 11.6 min at 50°C. Further kinetic characterisation showed that Pull3.1 had a high affinity for starch. The KM value of 0.048 mg/ml is within the range reported for other α-amylase enzymes, and Pull3.1 had a Vmaxof 0,729 (μmol mL−1). All of this data indicates that Pull3.1 is a good candidate for a starch conversion process that requires thermozymes.
>Magister Scientiae - MSc
2024-01-01T00:00:00ZSample selection effects in laduma stacking experimentsGwebushe, Lwandilehttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/106852024-03-20T00:26:09Z2023-01-01T00:00:00ZSample selection effects in laduma stacking experiments
Gwebushe, Lwandile
This study explores the impact of selection effects introduced by input optical cata-logues on high-redshift stacking experiments. Using the Hi stacking technique, the Hi content of LADUMA synthetic data cubes is analyzed within the redshift range of 0.7 < z < 0.758. The focus is on galaxies with stellar masses of M⋆/M⊙ ≥ 108.5. The investigation reveals several key findings. Firstly, the input optical catalogues displays biases towards specific galaxy types, including those with lower stellar masses, lower star-formation rates, lower specific star-formation rates, galaxies in groups, and red galaxies. These biases can lead to higher confusion rates in stacked spectra, emphasizing the need for appropriate correction methods to avoid overestimation in subsequent quantitative analyses. Secondly, the environmental impact on Hi gas properties is examined by comparing group galaxies and non-group galaxies. Non-group galaxies exhibit higher Hi richness and Hi gas fractions compared to group galaxies. Correlations between Hi properties and star-formation/stellar mass properties are observed, indicating that lower mass galaxies are relatively inactive within their environments and are at an earlier stage of evolution. The study also addresses the correction of confusion rates in stacked spectra. While a correction method is implemented, it is found to result in overestimated Hi deple-tion timescales. Criticism is directed towards the use of this method, stressing the importance of employing accurate and robust approaches to correct for confusion rates and ensure precise estimation of galaxy properties.
>Magister Scientiae - MSc
2023-01-01T00:00:00Z