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Item Soil loss estimation in a semi-arid mountainous cathment environment, City of Windhoek, Namibia(University of Namibia, 2017) Shikangalah, Rosemary N.More than half of the global population currently lives in urbanised areas. Consequently, a significant vegetation cover is continuously cleared as cities grow. Where surface grounds are not covered by impermeable surfaces, open soil is eroded by runoff, putting several ecological systems at risk of degradation. This study aimed at investigating the problem of soil loss in Windhoek. High amounts of soil loss are found in very low income settlements compared to high income areas. More soil loss is also found on medium slopes despite the fact that many eroded features are on gentle slopes. Grass cover plays a major role in the magnitude of soil loss. These findings are expected to be of particular interest to land managers in their bid to reduce potential environmental degradation, and also city planners, while they attempt to integrate control measures into the city’s development. Any effort towards soil conservation would be highly significant, as the loss of topsoil is currently a great concern in the city.Item Vulnerability and inclusion in the control of acute respiratory infections policy in Namibia(University of Namibia, 2017) Van Rooy, GertThis paper presents the findings on a policy analysis of the Control of Acute and Respiratory Infections (ARIs) of the Ministry of Health and Social Services in Namibia. The policy document was analysed against 21 core concepts of access to health and its effectiveness in 12 vulnerable groups using the EquiFrame, a novel analytical and peer reviewed framework that serves to identify the strengths and weaknesses in current health policies with regard to the degree in which a policy promotes and protects the core concepts and vulnerable groups in society (Mannan et al. (2013, p. 2). The 2006/07 Namibia Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) reported that close to four percent of children under five years of age show symptoms of ARI in the two weeks preceding the survey, while 17 percent of children under five have been reported as having fever, a major sign of malaria, which contributes to high levels of malnutrition and death in children (NDHS 2006/2007). In 1995, the Ministry of Health and Social Services in Namibia devised a policy programme to reduce ARI mortality by 30%, the incidence by 15%, and the rate of complication by 20% in children under five. EquiFrame was used to analyse the Control of ARI Programme and a data extraction matrix was used to record its quality. EquiFrame was also used to determine the extent to which the ARI policy document would address issues of vulnerability and inclusion in health provision. The overall ranking of the programme showed it to be of low quality, necessitating a revision so that vulnerability and social inclusion components could be adequately ad-dressed.Item Basic phychological need satisfaction and the impact on turnover intention across industries, Windhoek(University of Namibia, 2017) Pieters, Wesley R.High levels of unemployment in Namibia, skills shortages and the pressure to compete both locally and internationally, require organisations to satisfy basic psychological needs of employees. Basic psychological needs have been identified as critical ingredients for employees to grow, develop integrity and remain healthy (autonomy, relatedness, competence). Turnover intention is a damaging attitude towards the organisation that lasts long after the employee has left. The aim of this study was to assess the relation between basic psychological need satisfaction and turnover intention within the insurance, telecommunication and teaching industries in Windhoek. Employees are less likely to leave an organisation if they experience satisfaction in terms of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A cross-sectional survey design was used, employing questionnaires to collect data on the biographical details, basic psychological need satisfaction and turnover intention of employees in the Khomas region. The sample consisted of an insurance firm (n=85), a telecommunication provider (n=37) and different Governmental Secondary Schools (n=104) in Windhoek. The relationship between basic psychological need satisfaction (as measured by the Work-Related Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction Scale) and turnover intention (as measured by the Turnover Intention Scale) was investigated making use of Spearman’s rank order correlation. A negative correlation was found between competence and relatedness [r = -.15, n=226, p < .05]; an insignificant relation between competence [r = -.01, n=226, p < .05] and turnover intention; and between relatedness and turnover intention [r = .10, n=226, p < .05]. When employers and managers know how to ensure satisfying interactions and how they manage employees, provide employees with the necessary autonomy; and improve their perceived levels of competence, a reduction of turnover intention, coupled with other positive work related attitudes, becomes likely.Item Organisational knowledge management: A case study of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare (MGECW) in Namibia(University of Namibia, 2017) Nengomasha, Cathrine T.; Mubuyaeta, Mitchel M.; Beukes-Amiss, Catherine M.This paper reports on a study carried out on organisational knowledge management (KM) practices in the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare (MGECW) in Namibia. The objectives of the study were: to explore knowledge sharing (KS), knowledge acquisition (KA), knowledge capture (KC), knowledge dissemination (KD), and knowledge transfer (KT) at MGECW; to determine barriers and enablers to organisational KM; to examine the work culture and attitudes of personnel which affect organisational KM and its practices; and to investigate how management supports organisational KM practices. The case study used a mixed methods approach. Two instruments were used to collect data, namely semi-structures interviews and questionnaires. The results reveal that organisational knowledge (OK) in the MGECW hinges on tacit and explicit OK and respondents had a comprehensive understanding of OK and KM, however, the management of OK was found to be informally practiced without KM structures in place and no structural procedures to encourage employees to share their OK. Organisational KD and KT practices showed a strong preference for the use of fax machines, telephones and face-to-face meetings as forms of dispensing and transferring OK. Same enablers of organisational KM in the MGECW included positive leadership (senior management), technology (im-proved ICT infrastructure), organisational culture, employee commitment and involvement, trust, social networking and teamwork. The study found lack of skills and technical support in ICT; poor ICT infrastructure; lack of motivation and reward systems; negative attitude of employees towards organisational KM practices; poor record management; lack of time and funds for training and equipment as barriers of organisational KM.Item Namibian learners' perceptions regarding English second language writing activities(University of Namibia, 2017) Nandu, Patricia K.; Mostert, Louise; Smit, Talita C.Namibian learners exhibit low performance in English creative writing. This might be attributed partly to learners’ attitudes towards the English writing activities as prescribed by the school curriculum. This paper investigated Grade 11 learners’ perceptions of English Second Language (ESL) writing activities at selected schools in Windhoek, Namibia. The study employed a mixed-method design that involved a survey. Purposeful sampling was used to select three schools on the basis of learners’ performance in ESL writing. A total of 286 learners participated in the study. Quantitative data were collected via questionnaires and qualitative date via open-ended questions in the questionnaire and focus group discussions. Findings revealed, amongst others, that learners had both negative and positive attitudes towards ESL writing. When compared, a larger number of learners felt that writing activities were easy; fewer learners regarded them as difficult. The research also revealed differences in how learners enjoyed and regarded the usefulness of the ESL writing activities. Chi-square results in relation to sex demonstrated that in most cases, the differences between boys and girls were not statistically significant. However, a clear difference was found be-tween boys and girls with regard to the writing of diaries. Chi-square analyses done on the schools’ performance level in relation to perceptions of ESL writing activities yielded clear and statistically significant differences between the three schools.Item Zi-feiti-wuieyn: Fashion and beauty in Kom history in Cameroon as understood through photographs(University of Namibia, 2017) Nkwi, Walter G.For a very long time, African history has suffered from Eurocentric biases so much so that the history and civilisation of this continent was understood as European activities. Historians of Africa paid scant attention to fashion and beauty of its people which could be partially known in the social science as sexuality. This is likely because it was considered an exclusive domain of anthropology and perhaps psychology. This situation has dramatically changed since the 1990s as trans-disciplinary studies have been encouraged. On the other hand, historians and social scientists of Africa have little interaction with visual images which can be used as alternative sources of historical phenomena. Photographs as one of the visual sources can be used to understand fashion and beauty in Africa, taking Kom in the Northwest of Cameroon as a case study. On the basis of this, I intend to look at pictures and how these made and remade the body at different times in the history of Kom as a form of leisure and fun. My interest is to showcase indigenous under-standing of this type of leisure which the Kom people engage with. What type of indigenous materials was used for their fashion and beauty? From the photographs, how can one understand the socio-cultural basis of sexuality? How can one read meaning into the various forms of body adornment, putting on of various objects such as ear rings and bangles to beautify the body, tattooing, scarification, and different hair styles at different periods of Kom history? I further wish to compare sexual representation in the photographs of Christians and non-Christians, educated and uneducated, members of royalty and commoners, and how this was shaped by ideology or social status. I collected these photographs from private archives in Cameroon and Europe during field work for my PhD thesis between 2008 and 2011.Item A preliminary description of the syntax and morphology of interrogatives in the Shona language(University of Namibia, 2017) Matambirofa, FrancisThis article describes some idiosyncratic properties of interrogative particles in the Shona language from the view point of their morphological and syntactic behaviour. This arises out of the observation that in syntactic structure, there are instances in which interrogatives can substitute for the nouns about whose enquiry they are made. It would make an interesting study to determine the extent to which interrogatives can stand as surrogate nouns. Shona marks for interrogatives using both segmental and supra-segmental strategies. The following are examples of segmental interrogative markers: sei ‘why’, ko? ‘Why/how come’, saka? ‘so?’, -ei? ‘why?’, chii? ‘what?’, ani? ‘who?’, -i? ‘what/when/which?’, ngani? ‘How many?’. Supra-segmentals generally use the strategy of placing high tone marking on specific segments. Moreover certain interrogatives can simultaneously combine within the same interrogative sentence, chiefly for emphasis. At the same time, there are some interrogatives that are not compatible with each other. In addition, interrogatives seem to have semantic features that are generally associated with [±Human], [±Count], [±Affirmation], etc., in addition to the common feature [+Interrogative]. This paper sought to examine how these features influence the syntax of interrogative sentences in terms of the compatibility and incompatibility properties of certain interrogative particles as well as determine how the same features pro-actively and ‘intelligently’ select the range of potential answers in the Shona language.Item The significance of cross-fertilisation practices in Kiswahili technical and specialised translations(University of Namibia, 2017) Malangwa, Pendo S.As opposed to interpreters of verbal communication, translators of written texts have ample time for consulting, revising, reviewing, discussing, weighing and editing. That means cross-fertilisation with fellow translators, speakers of the language, subject experts, clients as well as text reviewers and/or editors helps them improve the translation process and minimize errors in the final translation. This paper is a practical study of English – Kiswahili translations aimed at showing that collaborative efforts across individuals, organisations, and institutions both locally and internationally can improve the overall translation process and product. The data for this study was collected through observation, documentary review as well as through interview and was then analysed through a comparative method. The discussion draws experience from legal and technical (i.e. computer and web-based) translation into Kiswahili, and further emphasizes that there are areas of improvement in Kiswahili translation and training for time and cost effectiveness. The paper argues that despite the importance of cross-fertilisation in the translation process, Kiswahili translators need to improve their expertise to include specialisations in certain fields.Item Effectiveness of higher order thinking scaffolding tool as a knowledge transfer instrument among University of Namibia science students(University of Namibia, 2017) Kapolo, Paulus; Sheimemanya, Cornelia; Shihomeka, Sadrag P.; Nghuumbwa, MalakiaThis paper presents the results of the study carried out at the University of Namibia on the extent to which high order thinking scaffolding tool can assist students to transfer knowledge. To examine the tool, a quasi-experimental design within the flipped-classroom was used in a mixed method study. Students were divided into two groups, the experimental group and the control group. These two groups were all approached in the similar manner and directed at different times of the day. The only difference was that the experimental group was provided with a scaffolding tool, while the control group had no scaffolding tool. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Higher Order Thinking as a scaffolding tool that can improve students’ knowledge transfer. When the means were compared, it was found that there is no statistical significant difference between the two means for the Higher Order Thinking Tool group (M= 4.89) and the control group (M= 4.27),Item An analysis on why the mathematics and integrated Natural Sciences Basic Education Teachers Diploma (BETD) graduates opted further studies in their areas of specialisation at the Rundu campus, University of Namibia(University of Namibia, 2017) Ilukena, Alex M.; Utete, Christina N.; Sirinji, ReubenThis study was conducted to find out why the BETD Mathematics and Integrated Natural Sciences graduates currently studying at Rundu Campus of the University of Namibia (UNAM) opted to further their studies in their areas of specialisation.The profile of the BETD graduates can shed some light on the current training of teachers by the Faculty of Education (FoE) at the Rundu Campus. These graduates were trained in either Upper Primary (UP), grades 5-7 level, or Junior Secondary (JS), grades 8-10 (JS) level, which UNAM did not offer before the merger. Currently the FoE is offering a 4 year Bachelor of Education Honours (B. Ed. Honours) degree at Upper Primary (UP) level, grades 4-7. This enables those who did UP level to articulate in 2nd year, while those who did JS level have to start from year 1, due to the different levels of studies, subject content, skills and methodology acquired. A total number of 26 participants were involved in this research, 11 females and 15 males. The study employed semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and followed up with stimulated recall interviews to establish their perceptions regarding the reasons why they opted to further their studies at the Rundu Campus, which are mainly as follows: higher level subject con-tent, skills, methodology, distance, finances, accommodation, and work stations that are within the regions.Item A revolutionary character, a dispensable rebel? Edgar Tekere's political point-scoring autobiography of a Zimbabwean nationalist movement(University of Namibia, 2017) Gonye, Jairos; Moyo, Thamsanqa; Hlongwana, JamesIn Zimbabwe, autobiographies, particularly political ones, are sites of contestations, compositions, decompositions and recompositions of national narratives. In their obsession with the self, they always centre the narrating subjectivity whilst at the same time decentering and recentering others. This means that in this literary gamesmanship, certain political personalities are displaced, peripherised, and debunked in this historical re-imagination. Tekere in his autobiography, A Life time of Struggle (2007), seeks to impose his political credentials and legitimacy in the national script in the face of what he sees and stigmatises as opportunism by many politicians, and how these politicians were catapulted into positions of power by default. To dramatise this, his autobiography employs binary tropes that mark him out as iconic and a quintessence of virtue as opposed to the insipid, dour, corrupt and wishy-washy others. In this paper we argue that Tekere’s autobiographical act, coming as it does after he has been pushed outside the ruling circles, is meant to portray him as the personification of revolutionary incorruptibility which both the colonial and postcolonial regimes felt threatened by. This autobiography is, therefore, a conscious and deliberate act of inscribing the self into the Zimbabwean historico-literary landscape. It presents an alternative frame to the hegemonic master-discourses of the fetishised, Mugabe-centred patriotic history on and about Zimbabwe.Item The claimed dravidian influences on southern African societies: Some linguistics perspectives(University of Namibia, 2017) Chebanne, Anderson; Monaka, Kemmonye C.This paper provides a reaction to and a discussion of the Hromník (1999) paper presented at the Elandsdoorn, Mpumalanga, South Africa symposium, which was also published in a journal. The paper raised thought-provoking associations of some SePedi vocabulary to the Dravidian lan-guages in an attempt to make a connection between the spiritual practices of the two societies. While the reaction and discussion does not question the methodology employed by Hromník (1999), it critically assesses the validity of the associations between the two societies as well as the conclusions that Hromník (1999) arrives at. The paper notes that these conclusions are based on a very limited and nearly insignificant list of vocabulary items which have not been cross-checked, linguistically or historically. This paper further provides some of the procedures that could help to solicit unbiased socio-cultural data that could shed light on possible interactions between SePedi and Dravidian societies, if any. Finally, the paper calls upon linguists, historians and archaeologists to conduct focused research and analyses on this critical issue that Hromník courageously presents.Item A critical reflection on student teachers' challenges during practicum placements in rural primary schools in the Kavango regions of Namibia(University of Namibia, 2017) Ausiku, Charity; Likando, Gilbert N.; Mberema, FelicitasThis study examined challenges that student teachers placed in rural schools in the two Kavango regions of Namibia encounter during practicum placements. A sample of 15 participants that consisted of five assessors (teacher educators) who had visited more than one of the selected rural schools and ten student teachers (team leaders) from three teaching School Based Studies (SBS) phases were selected using stratified purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews complemented by data from students’ reflective journals were used during data collection. The data was analysed in conformity with content analysis. The identified challenges were grouped into three categories: student related, institution related and school related challenges. The results of the study revealed that student teachers were inadequately prepared by their training institutions to adapt to different school environments. Furthermore, the findings revealed that student teachers were not fully supported by principals and mentor teachers, and that schools were inadequately resourced. Poor infrastructure and under-qualified temporary teachers were reflected by the outcomes of School-Based Studies (SBS) and the quality of the teacher training programmes. As a result, a partnership model to enhance SBS was developed to provide mitigation strategies on how challenges associated with student practicum placements, could be addressed.Item Neo-liberalism masquerading as 'mixed economy'? a critical analysis of Namibia's principles of economic order(University of Namibia, 2017) Amupanda, Job S.Whereas a number of studies exists on the causes and impacts of inequality, poverty and unemployment, in which the majority of Namibians are trapped, very few, if any, of these studies cared to interrogate the role and place of the constitution in aiding the status quo. Most of the studies, even those on the constitu-tion, are often disinterested in the question of political economy, and how it relates to the constitution. A constitution can be understood as a set of fundamental laws determining the orientation (values and prin-ciples), structure and power of the state. To understand the economic system of a given state, the consti-tution ought to be the first point of call. In Namibia the picture is not as clear as it should be. The theory and the practice on the question of political economy do not necessarily intertwine. This text is concerned with the question of political economy. It analyses the constitutional principle of “Mixed Economy”, with the view to understand – and explain – the triumph of neoliberalism in Namibia. It impenitently concludes that, given the lack of clarity of the principle of “Mixed Economy” – a principle this text renders suspect – there is a need to relook at the constitution of the Republic of Namibia in order to address the question of political economy. The finding, however, is clear: Namibia is a neoliberal state.