This paper reports on research that was undertaken in Information Systems at the University of Cape Town on the acceptance and adoption of e‐commerce amongst small businesses in the manufacturing sector. It addresses how these small businesses in a developing country perceive the potential benefits of e‐commerce and looks at their consequent adoption of e‐commerce activities in their own organisations. This includes the businesses’ perception of the benefits and opportunities of e‐commerce activities and to determine whether these businesses have the necessary technological capabilities for e‐commerce adoption in place. A secondary aim of this research was to determine the current level of e‐commerce adoption by small manufacturing businesses in the Western Cape. This was achieved by circulating a questionnaire to test the perception of e‐commerce benefits and e‐commerce adoption levels amongst small manufacturing businesses in the Western Cape. If the global usage of the Internet for electronic commerce by SME's is compared with the South African case, this research clearly indicates that the available technologies are not adopted to the extent that is necessary for survival in a rapidly changing environment.
Mobile banking (m-banking) is an innovative technology application, which has made available different value-added applications in both commercial and business processes. South Africa and Nigeria are reported to have high mobile applications usage in Africa, one of which is mbanking.This study identifies the factors that influence the user acceptance of m-banking in both countries. The aim of this research is to examine the relative differences/similarities of m-banking in South Africa and Nigeria. Several studies on the acceptance of m-banking have produced various results across different countries. This can be accredited to the dissimilar socio-cultural composition of such countries. The user acceptance of m-banking in a country is determined by distinct characteristic factors which are unique to that country.This research takes on a positivistic epistemology. This is an exploratory and deductive study which explains the factors that influence the acceptance of m-banking in two African countries by the use of a conceptual model. This study employed quantitative and qualitative data gathering and analysis processes. A crosssectional survey was conducted.. A total of 451 valid questionnaires were collected and analysed using Statistica 9 -analytic research software. The interviews were analysed using selective coding techniques.In this study, several factors such as cost, trust, satisfaction, social factors, utility expectancy (usefulness) and effort expectancy (ease of use) were identified from literature, and a conceptual model was formulated to test hypotheses generated from previous related studies. The dimensions of national culture -power, distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity and individualism were also integrated into the model.The result showed that SMS alert for account transactions is the most used m-banking service in both countries. The hypothesised relationships were validated by using regression tests, supported with responses from the interviewees. It was found that culture has an indirect effect on the user acceptance of m-banking. Security risk was the major disadvantageous factor while ubiquity and immediacy were the most advantageous factor. Additional factors such as awareness, convenience and literacy level were also revealed to influence the acceptance of mbanking in both countries.
The Internet has made significant inroads in industrialized, developed countries. However, since developing countries tend to have a limited history of trade, the marginal impact of the Internet on these countries' economies is considerably greater. With specific reference to the field of export development, e-commerce offers the possibility of accessing markets in a relatively low-risk, lowcost manner. These virtual marketplaces, in turn, connect multiple enterprises, each with their own characteristics and business processes, resulting in a need for smooth communications with various information systems. This research project attempts to gauge the current state of e-marketplace adoption in South African agriculture, an industry identified as the most complex and most critical in employment and export growth. A qualitative research approach was used to investigate the current experience with e-marketplace adoption or, in case of non-adoption, the factors that hold them from adoption. The results of this study conclude that the majority of key decision makers in the agricultural industry are already participating in e-commerce of some form, and that South African agricultural concerns are keen to get more involved in e-markets as ICT improve in the immediate future. C 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The chapter reports on research that was done in information systems at the University of Cape Town on the benefits of Internet utilisation and the barriers to its adoption amongst small businesses in South Africa. It addresses how these small businesses in a developing country perceive the potential benefits of e-commerce and look at their consequent adoption of e-commerce activities in their own organizations. Comparisons are made between studies conducted in first world countries, particularly regarding the role of government initiatives. A secondary aim of this research was to determine the current level of e-commerce adoption by small businesses in South Africa. This was achieved by circulating a questionnaire to test the perception of e-commerce benefits and e-commerce adoption levels amongst small businesses from various sectors in South Africa. If the global usage of the Internet for electronic commerce by small businesses is compared to the South African situation, this research clearly indicates that the available technologies are not adopted to the extent that is necessary for survival in a rapidly changing environment.
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