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The last mile of logistics, representing the final stage of product delivery to consumers, is critical for supply chain efficiency and sustainability. Infrastructure inadequacies, urbanisation, and environmental concerns pose challenges to this period in South Africa. This study conducts a systematic evaluation of the literature to investigate the ability of last-mile logistics in South Africa to withstand and maintain throughout time. The PRISMA method and Atlas-ti software are used for thematic analysis. The review highlights important topics such as the development of supply chain management, obstacles in last-mile distribution, the significance of technology, regulatory frameworks, infrastructure improvement, cooperative activities, and the economic and social effects. The findings emphasise the significance of incorporating resilience and sustainability into last-mile logistics in order to enhance operational efficiency, mitigate environmental consequences, and promote socio-economic advancement. The assessment highlights the necessity of joint endeavours, technical advancement, and supporting policies to tackle the distinct issues encountered by South Africa in this field. This study enhances the comprehension of sustainable logistics in South Africa and offers valuable insights for practitioners and policymakers to enhance last-mile logistics operations.

In Kenya, the wholesale and retail sector has been undergoing a difficult time that has seen some of the big retailers closing due to myriad challenges in their performance in the dynamic environment. This study sought to establish the influence of motorcycle delivery innovation on the performance of the wholesale and retail sectors in Kenya. The study was anchored on social exchange theory. The research philosophy adopted for the study was positivism. A descriptive research design using a quantitative approach was used in this study. The study targeted all wholesale and retail shops in 47 counties in Kenya that employed commercial motorcycles for their last-mile delivery of goods. Systematic sampling and simple random sampling techniques were employed to select a sample size of 383 respondents and a questionnaire was used to collect data. Descriptive and inferential analysis was undertaken across all variables using SPSS software. The findings indicated that there was a strong relationship between delivery innovations and the performance of the wholesale and retail businesses in Kenya (0.785). On the hypotheses, the study found that motorcycle delivery innovation had a statistically significant influence on the performance of wholesale and retail businesses in Kenya (t = 16.560, p=0.000 <0.05). The study concluded that motorcycle delivery innovations/solutions have a strong and statistically significant relationship with the performance of wholesale and retail businesses. The study recommends that wholesalers, retailers, and motorcyclists to have collaboration as they have mutual benefits. The study suggests that another study can be conducted to investigate the influence of embracing motorcycles by online businesses on their performance and growth.