Assessing the Effectiveness of Sci-Bono Discovery Centre: A Comparative Analysis with Other Science Centres in the SADC Region | Chapter 5 | New Advances in Business, Management and Economics Vol. 3

Science centres play a vital role in igniting scientific curiosity, fostering literacy, and promoting innovation across the Southern African Development Community's (SADC) region. This report benchmarks SADC science centres, focusing on their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT analyses). It offers a comparative overview of existing facilities while identifying opportunities for collaboration and development to empower the region through science and technology.

South Africa leads with well-established centres like the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre, which provides interactive exhibits, science education programs, and public engagement initiatives in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Other SADC countries, while often emphasizing research through universities and institutes, show a growing interest in establishing dedicated science centres. The diverse landscape of scientific centres across the region underscores the need for collaborative efforts to drive innovation and capacity building in science and technology.

This analysis is based on desk research and includes recommendations for further direct engagement with science centres to obtain more comprehensive insights.

 

Author (s) Details

Mfanelo Ntsobi
World Conference on Qualitative Research (WCQR), Sci-Bono Discovery Centre, South Africa, Gautrain Management Agency, South Africa, Global Centre for Academic Research and South Valley University, Zambia and Davinci Business School, South Africa.

 

Blondel Nyamkure
Economic Research Southern Africa (ERSA), Wits Institute for Social & Economic Research (WISER), African Economic & Social Research Institute (AESR) and African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), South Africa.

 

Bongani June Mwale
Institute of Directors South Africa (IoDSA), Monitoring & Evaluation Working Group for the Presidential Climate Commission, South Africa, British Education Leadership, Management and Administrative Society (BELMAS), United Kingdom and The Professional Body for Supply Chain Management (SAPICS), South Africa.

 

Please see the book here:- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/nabme/v3/4257

Recent Perspectives of Integration, Inclusion, Development in the Financial Sector and Economic Growth Nexus in SADC: Empirical Review | Chapter 14 | Current Strategies in Economics and Management Vol. 3

Aims: The study examines the relationship between financial development, integration, inclusion and economic growth. Study Design: Empirical literature review. Place and Duration of Study: Southern African Development Community (SADC), January 1980 to December 2011. Conclusion: Empirical evidence suggests mixed effect of financial integration and inclusion on economic growth. While some studies argue that financial integration has positive impact on economic growth, others state that financial integration has a negative impact on economic growth. On the other hand, some studies consider sound financial development to be a pre-requisite for financial integration to have a positive impact on economic growth. Financial inclusion is believed to have a positive or negative impact on economic growth. Some studies ascertain that the positive growth impact from the financial inclusion does not hold in economies characterised by low financial development. Literature reveals that the direction of causality between financial development and economic growth is uncertain. The SADC region present a unique sample of countries where a lot of initiatives have been taken to embrace financial integration, inclusion and development through, for example, strategic plans, policy frameworks, protocols declarations, charters, as well as memoranda of understanding. In the SADC region, Botswana, Mauritius, Namibia and South Africa are the most banked countries. The types of financial intermediaries across SADC member states include central banks, commercial banks, money lenders, unit trust companies, pension funds, non-bank deposittaking institutions, foreign exchange dealers, mutual banks, stock broking firms and primary dealers. Countries with no stock exchanges are Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho as well as Madagascar. South Africa exerts some influence on the financial sector performance in the region.

Author(s) Details

Oscar Chiwira
Dean Faculty of Commerce, BA ISAGO University, Botswana

View Book :- http://bp.bookpi.org/index.php/bpi/catalog/book/191