Meet Malefa Topo, researcher and project manager

Malefa Topo is the recipient of our Master’s bursary for 2015 and she joins the project as a full-time master’s by research student and project manager.

Malefa is a Wits graduate, having completed her B.Com (honours) degree in the department of Information Systems in 2014. During her honours program, Malefa researched the use of Electronic Medical Record Systems (EMR) in health facilities, and health consumers’ satisfaction with the quality of health services. In her application letter for the project bursary she said that doing research in her honours programme “helped me develop a strong passion and enthusiasm to carry out further research studies”.

Her long term career goal is to be a project manager in the information systems field.

Although a South African, Malefa grew up in Lesotho and completed a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems at the National University of Lesotho. She attended school at Holy Family High School where she was Head Girl. She describes herself as an extrovert and is a natural leader.

We are delighted to have her join the project. She has already contributed to our research plans for 2015 and her excellent organising has made a positive impact on the project. 

Writing retreat

Six members of the project team retreated to Foxwood House during January to spend three days writing conference and journal papers based on the research that was carried out in 2014. In tranquil surroundings, and fortified by the excellent food, we worked on four papers for publication during 2015.

Paper presented at the African Cyber Citizenship Conference

Professor Backhouse attended the African Cyber Citizenship Conference (ACCC2014) held in Port Elizabeth on the 5^th and 6^th November. 

She presented a paper written jointly with Prof Cohen, examining the ways in which information systems researchers define Smart Cities and how African cities are interpreting these definitions. The paper is titled "What is a Smart City for information systems research in Africa? Review protocol and initial results."

The African Cyber Citizenship Conference is a multi-disciplinary conference that brings together researchers in philosophy, psychology, information systems, law and other disciplines to debate issues related to “Cyberspace and its impact on society”. 

The conference proceedings are available from the conference web site.

A copy of the paper is available here:

Backhouse J and Cohen J (2014). What is a Smart City forinformation systems research in Africa? Review protocol and initial results. Proceedings of the African Cyber CitizenshipConference 2014, 5-6 November, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

Stakeholder Workshop, October

Prof Cohen introduces the project

On the 8^th October the project hosted a workshop with stakeholders to report on our research for 2014 and get input into our agenda for 2015. The workshop was attended by representatives from the City of Johannesburg Group ICT and Information Management, City of Johannesburg Library and Information Services, Joburg Water, and the Gauteng City Regional Observatory, among others.  

Information Systems Honours students Candice Visser, Jason van Staden and Omar Ally presented their research results. Professor Backhouse presented research into how smart cities are being defined by researchers and by cities in Africa.

There was lively discussion of the student’s research results which included analyses of what residents view as important to them as well as their views of the city’s performance in these areas. This analysis makes it possible to identify areas where the city needs to prioritize service improvements, because they are really important to residents. It also makes it possible to identify areas in which the city is performing really well, but are perhaps areas that residents do not really value. This kind of research makes it possible to better target the use of resources. 

Delegates listen attentively as Ms Mpendulo of the City of Johannesburg
Library and Information Services makes a point

Stakeholders at the workshop gave input into areas that need further exploration and made generous offers of assistance in accessing information for ongoing research. 

Students present at Postgraduate Conference

Jason van Staden presents his research

Omar Ally listens to the presentations

Honours students on the Information Systems for Smart Cities in Africa project, Omar Ally, Jason van Staden and Candice Visser had the opportunity to present their research findings at the 3^rd Annual School of Economic and Business Sciences Postgraduate Conference on September 19, 2014. 

Jason van Staden presented the findings from his research that looked at the factors that influence City of Johannesburg residents intention to use local e-government. Candice Visser presented the findings from her research titled "Towards a Smart City: An importance-performance analysis of resident's service needs". Omar Ally's research looked at the service needs of young people living in Braamfontein.  

The presentations were well received and generated a lot of interest from fellow students and staff who had questions about the data collection process, the opportunity for new research, the comparisons with smart cities from across the globe, the impact websites can make on service delivery, and the city’s current  state in terms of meeting residents’ needs.

The annual Postgraduate Conference brings together over 250 postgraduate students from the School to present their research to their peers. This year's conference was held at the Protea, Parktonian Hotel in Braamfontein. 

Bursary for full-time Master’s study

The Information Systems for Smart Cities in Africa research project is offering a bursary for a student to complete a full-time Master of Commerce by research in Information Systems during 2015 and 2016.

 

More information about the research project can be found on this site. In 2014 the project has examined conceptions of Smart Cities by information systems researchers, the approaches being taken by different African cities to Smart Cities agendas and the demand for information-enabled services in the City of Johannesburg. In 2015 we will explore the types of information, potential sources, and the ways in which information might be packaged into services to meet the needs of residents. We will examine service catalogues created in previous studies and adapt them to the local context. We will also examine how South African cities have connected demand to services to understand approaches and how effective they have been, as well as how information services have been implemented and are used.

 

The bursary is valued at (South African rand) R40 000 per annum and can be used towards fees and living expenses. The research project will also cover expenses incurred in conducting the research. The successful student will be provided with shared office space and the tools needed to complete the research. In return they will be expected to take responsibility for aspects of running of the research project and to participate in seminars and departmental activities. More information about postgraduate studies at the University of the Witwatersrand can be found at http://www.wits.ac.za/prospective/postgraduate.

 

Interested applicants should have a good honours degree in information systems with solid research experience. Please apply online (https://www.wits.ac.za/applications/portal/index) for entry into the MCom degree and also send a complete CV and a letter motivating your selection to the project to Professor Judy Backhouse (judy.backhouse@wits.ac.za). Applications for the bursary close on the 10^th October 2014. You can contact Professor Backhouse by e-mail or on +27 11 717 8161 for more information.

Paper Accepted to ACCC2014 Conference

Professors Judy Backhouse and Jason Cohen have had a paper accepted for the African Cyber Citizenship Conference 2014 (http://accc2014.nmmu.ac.za/) which will be held from the 5^th to the 7^th November this year in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

 

The paper, entitled “What is a Smart City for information systems research in Africa? Review protocol and initial results” presents the initial findings of a systematic literature review of research into information systems for Smart Cities. In particular the paper analyses the ways in which a Smart City is defined by information systems researchers and investigates the possibility of a consensus definition. It also interrogates the smart city efforts of five African cities (Cairo, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Lagos and Nairobi) to understand the relevance of the definitions used by researchers to practitioners.