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The local government in South Africa is important in providing critical services to communities, although local government is tasked with critical service delivery functions, many faces systemic challenges when fulfilling this responsibility. Mkhondo Local Municipality is no exception, challenges such as inefficiency, inadequate resource management, and limited public participation. This study is grounded in consequential theory, which underscores the significance of outcomes in assessing actions. This theoretical framework facilitates the exploration of strategic actions to enhance service delivery in Mkhondo. The aim of this article was to propose effective strategies to enhance service delivery at Mkhondo Local Municipality. This article adopted a qualitative methodology, with purposive sampling to select ten experienced participants from the supply chain management and finance units. Data was collected through one-on-one, semi-structured interviews with 10 key municipal staff members. The interview transcripts were analysed thematically using NVivo 12 to identify and organise the emerging themes. The results highlighted several barriers, including ineffectiveness of performance monitoring, inadequate procurement transparency, and minimal community involvement. The article recommends the implementation of performance-based accountability, improved stakeholder participation, and transparency in municipal procedures. It is recommended that municipal strategies are aligned with consequential theory to significantly improve service delivery. These interventions can foster greater transparency, efficiency, and public trust, providing a model for similar municipalities across South Africa.

The research analysed a scoping assessment of conflict management studies among employees in developing nations, drawing on existing information. The study aimed to identify the conflict management tactics utilised by employees in developing nations and to assess the obstacles and outcomes related to conflict management practices in these contexts. This research was founded on a pragmatic viewpoint. A scoping review methodology was adopted utilising the PRISMA-ScR architecture. An iterative search was undertaken utilising terms such as “employee relations,” “conflict management,” and “developing countries,” based on six studies from various developing contexts. Studies were evaluated for relevance by examining titles, abstracts, complete texts, and methodological rigour following the removal of duplicates. A quality appraisal checklist evaluates the clarity of research aims, methodological transparency, relevance, credibility of findings, and overall confidence in the research, utilising thematic analysis.  The study indicated that the scoping review illustrates effective conflict management solutions employing a collaborative approach in developing nations and emphasises instances where interdisciplinary institutions enhance team cohesion, employee satisfaction, and workplace efficiency. These solutions encounter obstacles stemming from institutional deficiencies, insufficient funding, or inadequate training. The report advised that emerging nations require robust institutions that offer targeted training to enhance conflict management systems at all organisational levels

The globalized and technologically advanced business environment presents significant challenges to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which play a critical role in national economic growth and innovation. These challenges include strategic orientation, effective resource allocation, and adapting to changing markets, often resulting in premature business failure. Therefore, the paper reviews recent literature on how tangible resources such as financial capital, physical assets, and technology influence SME growth, focusing on studies from the past decade that apply frameworks like the Resource-Based View. A systematic literature review was conducted, involving a comprehensive search of academic databases. Thematic analysis was applied to synthesize the findings on resource impact and management in SMEs. The review revealed that financial capital, physical assets, and technological infrastructure significantly influence SME growth. However, the extent of impact varies across contexts, depending on managerial capabilities, access to finance, and market conditions. Addressing this gap, the article aims to inform both theory and practice on SME sustainability and development and suggests avenues for future research.  

This study explored the bank-specific and macroeconomic factors influencing capital adequacy in South African commercial banks. In this research, a balanced panel data set comprising 11 recapitalized banks was employed, spanning the period from 2008 to 2019. Employing panel regression techniques including OLS, Fixed Effects, Random Effects, and the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM), the analysis examines the influence of profitability (ROA), bank size, leverage, broad money supply, and the central bank’s monetary policy rate on the Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR). The results indicate that profitability, bank size, leverage, and the broad money supply are critical determinants of capital sufficiency. Banks with increased profitability and increased exposure to the money supply typically demonstrate more robust capital positions. Larger bank size and increased leverage levels negatively affect capital adequacy ratios. The little impact of the delayed CAR signifies minimal persistence in capital buffer methods over time, implying that banks may not significantly depend on prior year capital conditions in their current capital planning. The study highlights the complex nature of capital sufficiency, influenced by microeconomic factors such as size and leverage, as well as macroeconomic indices like the money supply. The findings substantiate the Capital Buffer Theory and furnish critical insights for regulators, bank executives, and policymakers seeking to bolster the resilience of the banking industry in South Africa.

This study investigated the effects of digitalisation of tax administration on tax compliance among selected small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Ibadan North West Local Government Oyo State, Nigeria. The study was anchored on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), which explains technology adoption through perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and external constraints. A descriptive survey design was adopted, and structured questionnaires were administered to 367 SMEs across key business sectors. Of these, 352 valid responses were analysed using SPSS through descriptive statistics and ANOVA. The study examined the level of digital technology adoption, the perceived influence of digital tax administration on compliance, the drivers of non-compliance, and preferred policy measures for improvement. Findings revealed generally low digital technology adoption among SMEs, with 42.9% reporting very low adoption and 36.6% reporting low adoption. The major barriers were poor internet connectivity, high cost of technology and digital tools, limited technical skills, and inadequate awareness. Perceptions of digital tax reforms showed limited realised compliance benefits, as 48.9% of respondents reported no noticeable improvement in compliance, 21.3% reported improved ease of compliance, while 29.8% stated that compliance had become more difficult. Non-compliance was mainly linked to limited awareness of tax obligations, weak enforcement, affordability challenges, and low digital capability. The study concludes that digitalisation can improve SME tax compliance only when foundational readiness gaps are addressed. It recommends improving broadband reliability, reducing digital access costs, strengthening taxpayer education, simplifying digital tax processes, providing practical training, and ensuring consistent and fair enforcement.

This study investigated the effects of digitalisation of tax administration on tax compliance among selected small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Ibadan North West Local Government Oyo State, Nigeria. The study was anchored on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), which explains technology adoption through perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and external constraints. A descriptive survey design was adopted, and structured questionnaires were administered to 367 SMEs across key business sectors. Of these, 352 valid responses were analysed using SPSS through descriptive statistics and ANOVA. The study examined the level of digital technology adoption, the perceived influence of digital tax administration on compliance, the drivers of non-compliance, and preferred policy measures for improvement. Findings revealed generally low digital technology adoption among SMEs, with 42.9% reporting very low adoption and 36.6% reporting low adoption. The major barriers were poor internet connectivity, high cost of technology and digital tools, limited technical skills, and inadequate awareness. Perceptions of digital tax reforms showed limited realised compliance benefits, as 48.9% of respondents reported no noticeable improvement in compliance, 21.3% reported improved ease of compliance, while 29.8% stated that compliance had become more difficult. Non-compliance was mainly linked to limited awareness of tax obligations, weak enforcement, affordability challenges, and low digital capability. The study concludes that digitalisation can improve SME tax compliance only when foundational readiness gaps are addressed. It recommends improving broadband reliability, reducing digital access costs, strengthening taxpayer education, simplifying digital tax processes, providing practical training, and ensuring consistent and fair enforcement.

Sophisticated AI applications like ChatGPT and Grammarly offer distinct advantages for enhancing writing proficiency. They assist users in conceptualising ideas, organising material, and refining writing style, whereas Grammarly focuses on improving grammar, punctuation, and clarity with context-aware recommendations. This is particularly relevant for students who are non-native English speakers, as it supports them and helps bridge educational disparities. While these instruments markedly enhance scholarly writing abilities, their efficacy in tertiary education remains a subject of debate. Recent occurrences of academic dishonesty associated with the improper use of generative AI technologies have negatively impacted higher education. This study assesses the impact of artificial intelligence on enhancing academic writing abilities in students who are not native English speakers. In accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria, this study consolidates evidence from scholarly literature, policy reports, and institutional case analyses. Keywords, synonyms, and subject headings were employed to query three electronic databases from 2021 to 2025. The electronic repositories included Scopus, Emerald Insight, Google Scholar, and ProQuest. The evaluation of the publications was conducted through titles and abstracts, followed by an assessment of the full-text papers against the qualifying criteria. The results were derived and amalgamated into a narrative synthesis from selected publications. The results underscored AI's ability to customise and improve the educational experience for learners.

Rapid urbanisation in South Africa is reshaping the country’s spatial geography, largely driven by internal migration from rural areas and financially disadvantaged towns to urban centres. Key destinations, such as Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and Cape Town, attract migrants seeking work, education, and better lifestyles. However, this movement places greater strain on urban systems by increasing demand for housing, water, energy, sanitation, transportation, and other basic public amenities. It also adds to urbanisation, overpopulation, the spread of informal settlements, land-use disputes, and governance issues. These shifts underscore the urgency for municipalities to shift away from planning models built on stable demographics and toward governance systems that respond to migration and demographic shifts. This research explores the connection between internal migration and local governance in South Africa, with an emphasis on the effects for inclusive service provision and urban sustainability. A qualitative study technique was adopted, including a conceptual document review of academic, policy, and institutional materials. The research reviewed data on migration patterns, governance capacity, participatory mechanisms, and planning solutions in the context of local government. Results showed that several municipalities have not adequately embraced migration dynamics in their urban planning practices. Existing participation methods generally exclude migrants and other transitory communities, leading to underrepresentation and choices that fail to capture changing urban demands. Delayed planning decisions increase infrastructure pressure, service provision backlogs, informal areas, and spatial inequalities. The study suggests that internal migration needs to be central to urban planning and accountability. It advocates for migration-informed spatial decision-making, increased engagement of mobile residents in Integrated Development Plan (IDP) operations, and unified governance revisions to promote inclusive and urban sustainability.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa's Gauteng Province face high failure rates despite their economic importance, thus creating an urgent need to investigate business sustainability. This research examined the implementation challenges of ICT SMEs and the enhancement of competitiveness through shared value creation. A qualitative, interpretivist design was employed, with semi-structured interviews conducted with 12 purposively selected ICT SME owners and senior managers in Gauteng Province. The thematic analysis revealed three principal themes. One key finding was that implementation barriers operate at three interconnected levels: the business environment, industry level, and institutional level. At the Business-Environment level, issues include load shedding, regulatory complexity, and funding gaps. The competitive level interrogates incumbent dominance and high buyer power, while the institutional level reviews skills, competencies, time and cost constraints. Another important finding was that SMEs overcome these barriers through value-chain innovations such as energy efficiency, inclusive hiring, and intellectual property development; through strategic positioning, including focused differentiation and organizational agility; and through cluster engagement, such as vendor partnerships and peer networks. Integrating their selected strategies yields productivity gains, cost reductions, and incidental shared value. The study proposes a Resilience-Through-Shared-Value Framework that provides entrepreneurs with a four-phase process for turning barriers into advantages. It also provides policymakers with guidance on tiered compliance and on infrastructure support and development, and development agencies with a diagnostic framework for multi-barrier mentorship programs.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions such as SAP represent a vital investment for organisations seeking to unify varied operational activities into integrated, data-driven platforms. In institutions of higher learning, the use of ERP systems is a crucial component of digital transformation efforts aimed at improving administrative efficiency, institutional governance, and competitive positioning. This article examines the impact of SAP ERP implementation on both organisational and employee dynamics for administrative staff at the Durban University of Technology (DUT), emphasising technostress, digital fatigue, employee well-being, and post-implementation adaptation within a constrained higher education environment. Utilising a desktop appraisal methodology, the study synthesises existing literature to demonstrate how decisions made in the pre-implementation and implementation phases consistently affect employee experiences and organisational outcomes post-implementation. The study indicates that attaining enduring ERP effectiveness requires continuous capacity development, cooperative implementation approaches, and employee-centered support frameworks. The research develops an interdisciplinary model by integrating socio-technical, psychological, capacity-building, and normalisation perspectives, thereby improving the understanding of the human factors involved in ERP deployment within higher education. The study introduces the ERP Lifecycle–Employee Adaptation Framework (ELEAF), which outlines the progressive escalation of technostress during the pre-implementation, implementation, and post-implementation phases, linking each stage to a pertinent theoretical mechanism and a set of organisational interventions. The findings indicate that inadequate training, limited organisational support, dependence on key users, and absence of employee engagement contribute to technostress, digital fatigue, reduced job satisfaction, and challenges in post-implementation adaptation. The study further demonstrates that decisions taken throughout the ERP lifecycle have enduring impacts on employee well-being and organisational effectiveness beyond the system's implementation. This highlights the tangible consequences for higher education institutions, stressing the importance of continuous training, institutional support, systematic information sharing, employee wellness initiatives, and staff-centric ERP management to enhance long-term value achievement. It consequently lays the groundwork for future research on the human dimensions of digital transformation in resource-constrained environments.