Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the South African tobacco and alcohol industries: Experiences from British American Tobacco and Distell Group Limited.

South Africa declared a State of National Disaster due to the COVID-19 pandemic, instituting a nationwide lockdown on 26 March 2020. Sale of goods and services classified as non-essential, such as tobacco and liquor, were prohibited, leading to widespread concerns about viability, job losses and investment in these industries. The study highlighted the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the South African alcohol and tobacco industries, taking the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed British American Tobacco (BTI) and Distell Group Limited (DGH) as cases. The Chow Test was utilised to determine the presence of a structural break on the BTI and DGH share prices on both the pronouncement and enactment days of the COVID-19 lockdown. Furthermore, Threshold Generalised Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (TGARCH) (1,1) was also used to test for the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown. The sample data used was daily closing share prices from 9 May 2019 to 9 May 2020, from Google Finance. The results show a structural break on the share prices on the enactment of the 26 March 2020, COVID-19 lockdown. Furthermore, the lockdown had a negative effect on the share prices of BTI and DGH. The study concludes that the COVID-19 lockdown will have long-lasting impacts on the ability of the industries to attract financing for recovery and expansion, and existing shareholders will experience reduced earnings, if any. Policy makers should promote investment by increasing interest rates, promoting local demand and supply, and provide business support to mitigate job losses.

Qualitative benefits of livestock development programmes. Evidence from the Kaonafatso ya Dikgomo (KyD) Scheme in South Africa.

The objective of the study was to develop an index which circumvents the need for quantitative measures in evaluating Livestock Development Programmes (LDPs). This was done through a conceptual framework which integrates indexing and the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework (SLF) to attain qualitative benefits. The study utilised a cross-sectional survey of Kaonafatso ya Dikgomo (KyD) Scheme participants in KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Limpopo Provinces, South Africa, as a case. Data were collected through a questionnaire. Multiple sampling methods were used to identify 164 respondents. The results showed low benefits as exhibited by an index of 0.26. The Scheme showed highest benefits through social capital, followed by human, natural, financial and physical capital, respectively. The study concluded that concentrating on income proxies through conventional cost-benefit analysis (CBA) tends to mask the qualitative benefits exhibited by livestock improvement programmes. The theoretical lessons learnt included the exhibition and possibility of measuring qualitative benefits through indexing. Recommendations include further inquiry and refining the construction of the index to circumvent its subjectivity.

Determinants of genetically modified (GM) maize adoption and the intensity of adoption in OR Tambo District Municipality, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.

The objective of the study was to establish the factors that have significant correlation with the increase in adoption and intensity of adoption of genetically modified (GM) maize varieties. The study utilized a cross-sectional, descriptive and quantitative survey of smallholder dry maize producers. Multiple purposive sampling was utilized in the selection of 704 respondents and semi-structured interviews and pre-coded questionnaires were adopted as data collection instruments. The study sites were Mqanduli, Port St Johns and Flagstaff in King Sabatha Dalindyebo, Port St Johns and Ingquza Hill Local Municipalities in OR Tambo District Municipality. Through a Cragg's double hurdle model, the study revealed that level of education (1% level), membership to a farmer group (5% level), access to extension services and farm size (5% level) had significant positive influence on the decision to adopt GM maize. Intensity of use of GM maize was positively influenced by membership to a farmers group (5% level), access to extension services (5% level) and farm size (1% level). The study concluded that being part of a farmer organization, education, access to extension services and farm size were the most significant determinants in the dual decision to adopt GM maize and the intensity of utilization of GM maize. The study recommends awareness in line with the implemented policies and GM information dissemination toward farmer groups be promoted. The study also recommends that a balance be struck between optimization of land size devoted to GM maize and its subsequent adoption and extensive use thereof.