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In South Africa, exploiting economic opportunities in the handicraft sector could create livelihood and employment for ordinary citizens living in rural areas. The potential contribution of handicraft small enterprises to sustainable livelihoods and poverty alleviation is yet to be fully exploited. It is also regarded as a sector with great growth potential, but the degree of support provided to the handicraft sector is low. The study aims to evaluate the socioeconomic factors influencing the viability of handicraft small businesses operating in KwaZulu-Natal. Data collection was drawn from a stratified random sample of 196 handicraft practitioners operating in different areas of KwaZulu-Natal Province with a structured questionnaire. Data analysis was performed with the STATA statistical package. The results obtained from the study have shown that 84 enterprises (42.86%) were not viable, whereas 112 of the 196 handicraft enterprises (57.14%) were viable. The percentage of overall correct classification for this procedure was equal to 77.96%. Percentage sensitivity for the fitted logistic regression model was equal to 60.71%. Percentage specificity for the fitted logistic regression model was equal to 82.14%. The p-value obtained from Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test was equal to 0.0884 > 0.05. This indicates that the fitted logistic regression model is fairly well reliable. The findings from the analysis showed that two factors significantly influenced the viability of handicraft enterprises. These two factors were the belief that handicraft business could sustain the handicraft practitioner, and the level of support for handicraft businesses from non-governmental organizations is decreasing. AcknowledgmentSouth Africa SarChi Chair, Nation Research Fund and Department of Science and Technology, South African, for providing funding for this research.

South Africa, a culturally rainbow nation comprising of various cultures. In tourism industry new trends has emerged whereby tourists consume/ experience indigenous cultures. The study presented a unique historical experience in tourism sector. In order to achieve long-term sustainability, South African tourism industry needs focusing on providing more cultural experiences.The study aimed at understanding impact of South African innovative cultures as an emerging trend in tourism industry and revealed how embracing South African cultures can lead to revisit intentions contributing to tourism business growth. Theoretically, the customer satisfaction theory was employed and enhanced understanding of experience development process in tourism sector. Positivism philosophy was used, Hypotheses were deductively tested SEM, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) tested reliability and validity, random sampling employed to respondents. AMOS and SPSS 25 obtained CFA, path model determining best model fit. Findings indicated a positive relationship in innovative cultures in the Southern African tourism sector.The results indicated that tourists are more interested in experiencing the cultures of their tourism destinations and this will impact the level of satisfaction that they acquire, as well as their overall revisit intention.

The purported study explored Online Travel Agencies (OTA) influence on consumers brand relationships towards hotels and provided convenient and easy purchase decisions for South African Millennial consumers who travel or intend to travel. Empirical and theoretical investigation in in low and high-end hotel groups was executed, explored the research problem aimed at filling the gap. Hypotheses were quantitatively tested using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) tested reliability and validity. A quantitative methodology philosophy was used, and random sampling employed to selected respondents among the millennials and Amos and SPSS 25 obtained CFA and path model to determine best model fit. Findings indicated that there is a positive relationship between hotel brand loyalty and repurchase intentions. However, consumer may be attitudinally loyal and may need marketing incentives to ensure that the consumer become behaviourally loyal to ensure visitation to the hotel brand. Originality and value of the research is in the study proving significant insight into the travel industry and in its ability to provide marketers an understanding of customer satisfaction and retention, fresh contemporary evidence supported by reliable information contributing to body of knowledge giving lieu-way into further research on brand relationships in low & high-end hotels.

Titanium carbide (TiC) thin films were deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering (RFMS) onto a copper substrate by using Argon (Ar) gas plasma at a gas flow rate of 10.0 sccm. The effect of time and temperature at a constant RF power on the structural and tribological properties were respectively investigated by atomic force spectroscopy (AFM), X–ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and tribological measurements. All films were tested to have crystal structures with the preferential plane (111) and dominant plane (200) grain orientations. Thus, plane (111) has phase identification of Cu(Cu16Ti)0.23 for some samples, whereas plane (200) has a phase identification of Cu(Cu0.997Ti0.003) and Cu(Cu0.923Ti0.077) for other samples. The lowest thin film roughness of 19.797 nm was observed in the sample, with RF power, sputtering time, and a temperature of 200 W, for two hours and 80 °C, respectively. The FTIR spectra of TiC films formed under different sputtering times (2–3 h) and temperatures (80 °C–100 °C) on Cu substrates at a constant sputtering power of 200 W in the range of 5000–500 cm−1. The peaks at 540 cm−1, 780 cm−1, and 1250 cm−1 are presented in the FTIR spectra and the formation of a Ti–C bond was observed. On the other hand, a sample was revealed to have the lowest wear volume of 5.1 × 10−3 mm3 while another sample was obtained with the highest wear volume of 9.3 × 10−3 mm3.

Microfinance institutions render essential services to start-up small, micro, medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs) by way of extending loans to entrepreneurs. SMMEs operating in South Africa have relatively better access to microfinance loans in comparison with those operating in Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia. A survey was conducted in order to compare the relative ease of access to microfinance loans in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia based on a survey conducted in the four Sub-Saharan African countries. The ease of access to microfinance loans was assessed based on criteria defined by Barry and Tacneng (2014). A total of 401 SMMEs participated in the study. Loan applicants were asked to provide answers to questions that indicated the ease of securing loans and meeting loan repayment conditions. Emphasis was placed on the demand for collateral as a requirement for extending loans to applicants, the assessment of entrepreneurial and auditing skills of loan applicants, the difficulty of meeting loan repayment conditions, and adherence to regulations and guidelines recommended by governments. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate methods of data analyses were used for data analyses. The study found that about 21% of SMMEs were satisfied with the ease of securing loans, whereas the remaining 79% of SMMEs did not. The ease of access to microfinance loans varied by country in which South African loan applicants were the most satisfied in comparison with the remaining three countries. Securing microfinance loans, as well as fulfilling loan repayment conditions were easiest in South Africa, and most difficult in Ethiopia. In terms of ease of securing loans and meeting loan repayment conditions, the order of nations was ranked as South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia. In all four countries, the ease of access to microfinance loans was influenced by country of business operation, extent of benefits realized by SMMEs, and highest level of formal education.