IIESpace
Welcome to IIESpace.
This is The IIE digital research repository. It offers open access to our research and intellectual output. It provides full-text access to research papers, articles, conference presentations, multimedia, theses and dissertations, and a host of other works produced by researchers and postgraduate students of The IIE and its Brands.
All information found on this site is subject to the principles of Fair Dealing as set out in 12(1) of The Copyright Act no.98 of 1978 (as amended).
Communities in IIESpace
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- This collection provides access to IIE students to archived research projects. It requires a login and password.
Recent Submissions
Exploration of the Sustainable Use of Groundwater in GaMalebogo, Limpopo
(The IIE, 2026) Meletse, Thabo Frans
Water scarcity is a global challenge that adversely affects agricultural production, livestock farming,
industrial development, and household livelihoods. Although existing research has extensively
examined the impacts of water scarcity on rural livelihoods, planning, and welfare, relatively little
attention has been given to the sustainable use of groundwater to improve domestic potable water
supply in rural communities. Accordingly, this study explores the sustainable use of groundwater to
alleviate water scarcity and shortages in the GaMalebogo rural villages of the Blouberg Local
Municipality, within the Capricorn District Municipality in Limpopo Province.
A qualitative research approach and an exploratory design were used. Sixteen participants were
selected, and a semi-structured guide was employed to collect data. The data analysis was
conducted thematically using Atlas.ti's tools and themes to evaluate groundwater's role in
addressing water scarcity in the GaMalebogo region. Findings revealed that the villages of
GaMalebogo are in an area with a high groundwater table, indicating that groundwater resources
are readily available. Despite this favourable hydrogeological condition, water scarcity persists due
to leaking pipes and taps, inequitable water distribution, and the mismanagement of municipal
resources. As a result, households continue to experience water shortages, which have negatively
affected agricultural and livestock production.
Consequently, it is crucial to implement strategies to address this problem and prevent the
progression towards water insecurity, characterized by inadequate access to clean and safe drinking
water. Furthermore, it was found that villagers who installed private borehole systems maintained a
sustainable groundwater supply, even selling water to other villagers when the municipal water
system failed. The motivation for privately owned boreholes stems from the unreliability of the
municipal borehole water system, which is caused by poor craftsmanship. The municipality's
borehole system, established to support the local population, has proven ineffective, mainly due to
improper installation of the water piping and lack of maintenance of both the machinery and the
piping infrastructure. Given these observations, the municipality should prioritize the maintenance
and rehabilitation of existing boreholes, pipelines, and water infrastructure, while strengthening
oversight and accountability to ensure equitable and reliable water distribution.
Additionally, constructing water reservoirs at strategically chosen locations near villages should be
pursued following a detailed assessment conducted with resident involvement. Moreover, a
comprehensive review and upgrade of the current piping network is necessary to ensure more
reliable, efficient, and sustainable water delivery across all villages.
Exploring the South African consumers' brand loyalty and perceptions of inclusive global beauty marketing
(The IIE, 2026) Zezere, Tadiwanashe Vanessa
The global beauty market has grown over the past decades, with global brands
expanding into emerging markets. In response to the growing discourse on inclusive
brands and consumer representation, global brands have positioned their marketing
strategies to meet the demand. However, there is limited empirical research on how
consumers perceive global beauty brands’ inclusive social media marketing. While the
study is situated in a broader global beauty industry, it’s empirical to focus on
consumer perceptions of inclusive social media marketing practices of selected global
beauty brands. In this study, global beauty marketing refers specifically to the social
media marketing practices of selected global beauty brands operating in or engaging
with the South African consumers. Inclusivity is conceptualised as multidimensional,
encompassing representation of diverse identities and cultural experiences, as well as
considerations of accessibility, affordability, and product performance. Social media
has become a valuable tool for consumer-brand interactions. The diverse nature of
South Africa requires global beauty brands to extend their inclusivity practices on
social media beyond face value. The study focused on South African social media
users who were consumers of or familiar with global beauty brands and has
experience engaging with beauty related content on social media. Guided by an
interpretivist paradigm, the study adopted a qualitative research design and held focus
group discussions to capture consumers’ perceptions, beliefs, shared meanings, and
lived experiences. Data were generated through two focus group discussions. Data
were analysed using Creswell’s (2014) six-step thematic analysis, supplemented by
Braun and Clarke’s (2022) reflexive thematic analysis practices to ensure the research
trustworthiness and data saturation. The model of Customer-Based Brand Equity
(CBBE), Social Identity Theory, and the Theory of Planned Behaviour provided
frameworks for understanding how consumer responses and brand perceptions.
Findings revealed five key themes: authentic versus performative representation,
inclusivity is multidimensional, cultural resonance and localisation, authentic brand
messaging improves consumer-brand trust and inclusivity influences brand loyalty.
South African consumers are more drawn to global beauty brands that represent them,
beyond race and skin tone, as product accessibility, performance, and pricing are part
of inclusivity. Inclusive marketing must consider South Africa’s socio-economic
landscape, enhancing positive brand perceptions; purchases and recommendations;
particularly, when consumers’ identities, experiences, and cultural nuances are
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aligned with brand narratives. The research contributes to international business and
marketing literature by providing insights into inclusivity, consumer behavior, brand
messaging, and localisation. It recommends global brands implement
multidimensional inclusivity strategies to foster brand loyalty.
Communities' perceptions of the health implications of water quality in the Steve Tshwete Local Municipality, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa
(Emeris, 2026) Maepa, Magomarele Jackson
One of the most significant factors influencing human health is the quality of drinking water.
Many countries, particularly developing countries, have poor drinking water quality. This has
led to a number of waterborne illness outbreaks in these countries. The availability of clean
drinking water is a universal human right, but the quality of water varies from community to
community. Community members are the main beneficiaries when the water quality is good,
but they are also the first to suffer from the effects of declining and poor water quality. It has
been suggested that a community's attitudes and levels of knowledge regarding water
quality influences their judgments of the health implications of using it for drinking.
This study explored community perceptions of health implications of water quality in the
Steve Tshwete Local Municipality, Mpumalanga Province (South Africa).
A qualitative research design was employed with a purposive sampling method. Fifteen (15)
participants (seven males and eight females) were identified to take part in the study from
the Steve Tshwete Local Municipality, between March and April 2025. Semi-structured
interviews were used to collect data and interviews were audio recorded and later
transcribed using Word dictate. The data was then analyzed using coding and thematic data
analysis.
The findings of the present study present six themes which are: Knowledge, attitudes and
practices of the community on health and quality of the water, perceptions of the community
regarding water quality and its impact on health, community members experiences of waterrelated
health issues, factors affecting the community’s perception of water quality risks,
recommendations to enhance health education and water quality and infrastructure for water
quality development in response to population growth and urbanization.
The findings of the study indicate that the poor quality of drinking water for community
members in Steve Tshwete Local Municipality is due to poor waste disposal, poor
maintenance of water systems, continuous pipe bursts, increased population growth, illegal
connections to the reticulation pipeline and the vandalism of infrastructure.
The research recommends that the local municipality of Steve Tshwete could improve
service delivery to the community by investing in water infrastructure and maintenance of
water plant process to ensure sustainable water management practices. Policymakers and
stakeholders should collaborate to increase educational knowledge and awareness about
the drinking water quality. The researcher recommendations focus on the policy, practice
and further research of the study findings.
The role of urban agriculture in building resilience towards climate change in the city of Tshwane
(The IIE, 2022) Mphaphuli, Mulalo
This thesis seeks to explore the role of urban agriculture in building climate resilience in the
city of Tshwane, South Africa. It looks at how urban agricultural practices in the city can be
used to influence climate change policy designs and implementation leading to enhanced
resilience. This is premised on the need to ensure that major metro cities like Tshwane take the
necessary steps to contribute to effective water management and the building of climate
resilient societies. Based on a qualitative research method, this thesis provides a deeper
understanding of the status and benefits of urban agricultural practices in Tshwane. Qualitative
techniques in a form of semi-structured interviews and observations were administered on key
informants to better understand the key factors influencing the implementation of urban
agricultural practices.
The study established that urban agriculture exists within the city of Tshwane, particularly
within specific communities around the city. Vegetable gardening emerged as the most
prominent practice throughout the city in spaces such as schools, community gardens and open
spaces to contain soil erosion. The thesis illustrates that there are number of urban greening
programmes implemented through the various structures of the municipality which relates to
urban agriculture, yet there is no overarching policy outline within which these can be tied
together. Clearly, duplications among policy instruments exists and there seem no way of
reducing and filling up gaps and exploiting synergies. Although South Africa and by virtue the
City of Tshwane is one of the signatories to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development
Goals and has committed to working towards achieving food security, clean water and
affordable clean energy, it is clear that the implementation of climate change mitigation and
adaptation strategies in the city remains challenging. Despite the successful establishment of
green initiatives, there are some hindrances within the city that inhibit transition of urban
agriculture into a resilient city. As such, it is recommended that relevant authorities put in more
funding into research and learnership programmes to ensure the successful establishment of
urban agriculture in the city. In particular, the government should fund the development of new
urban agriculture production because it needs financial resources to enhance the capacity of
most farmer.
Perceptions of the causes of poor water supply in the Makause Informal Settlement in Germiston, Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality
(The IIE, 2023) Nkuna, Themba
Water is a basic need and an essential resource for life. The provision of water in
informal settlements is generally poorly managed in the whole world. Inadequate
access to water supply may result in detrimental environmental health risks and
economic impacts. In South Africa, the supply of adequate basic water services is a
constitutional human right. Everyone has the right to basic clean water. This research
investigated different role players perceptions of the causes of poor water supply at
Makause informal settlement located in the City of Ekurhuleni (CoE) Metropolitan
Municipality, Gauteng.
The primary aim of the research was to investigate the factors which caused poor
water supply and how these affected the lives of the residents of Makause informal
settlement. Literature confirmed that the establishment of Makause informal
settlement dates back to the apartheid era and is closely linked to de-industrialisation,
push and pull factors, rural-urban immigration and closing of mining industries in
Germiston. Previous researchers acknowledged the presence of unspecified issues
relating to poor water supply services in the informal settlement.
A probability and purposive sampling method was employed with 39 participants
comprising of three key role players: community residents, municipality official and
community leader. A combination of in-depth interviews, questionnaires and
observations were employed to collect data over a period of two months to explore the
perceptions of different groups.
Data was analysed using coding, and thematic data analysis where open coding was
broken down into smaller categories or classes.
Findings illustrated that people’s lives in the community of Makause informal
settlement were negatively affected by poor basic services delivery such as
inadequate water supply. The causes of these challenges are interconnected and
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range from illegal connections of water supply by community members, vandalism of
infrastructure by the informal settlement dwellers themselves, lack of infrastructure
maintenance and management from the municipality side, lack of service delivery, lack
of communication and marginalisation. The research recommends that all key
stakeholders be involved and work together to implement various programmes such
as accelerating the reblocking programme, water conservation awareness campaigns,
community participation and partnerships, capacitating of municipality officials, making
water funds available and the re-establishing of ward committees.