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The Importance of Knowledge for Influencing Citizens’ Attitudes and Practices of Water Sustainability: The Case of the Eastern Cape

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Digital-for-Development: Enabling Transformation, Inclusion and Sustainability Through ICTs (IDIA 2022)

Part of the book series: Communications in Computer and Information Science ((CCIS,volume 1774))

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Abstract

Water shortages in developing economies exacerbate the challenges of socio-economic growth and the development of Smart Cities. Information flow through intelligent technologies is a crucial element of Smart Cities that has the potential to improve the knowledge of citizens regarding water sustainability. The role of knowledge in citizens’ attitudes and practices of water sustainability is under-researched. This study used a positivist paradigm and collected quantitative data using an online survey to examine the relationships between knowledge, attitudes, and practices of citizens regarding water sustainability. The respondents were citizens in the Nelson Mandela Bay and Buffalo City Metro municipalities in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The findings revealed that knowledge is closely correlated to the attitudes and practices of citizens regarding water sustainability. The contribution is the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices (KAP) Model for Water Sustainability, which provides a deeper understanding of the KAP profile of citizens. It can be used by both researchers and practitioners for designing campaigns and technological solutions that aim to improve citizens’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward water sustainability.

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Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements are due to the National Research Fund (NRF) and the Nelson Mandela University Research department for the funding of this research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha, South Africa

    Dumani Kunjuzwa, Brenda M. Scholtz & Ifeoluwapo Fashoro

Authors
  1. Dumani Kunjuzwa
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  2. Brenda M. Scholtz
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  3. Ifeoluwapo Fashoro
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brenda M. Scholtz .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Patrick Ndayizigamiye

  2. University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Hossana Twinomurinzi

  3. University of Mpumalanga, Mbombela, South Africa

    Billy Kalema

  4. University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Kelvin Bwalya

  5. University of Mpumalanga, Mbombela, South Africa

    Mncedisi Bembe

Appendix A

Appendix A

Table A1. Inferential Ranking Statistics – KAP Scores (n = 172)
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Table A2. Univariate ANOVA results
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Kunjuzwa, D., Scholtz, B.M., Fashoro, I. (2023). The Importance of Knowledge for Influencing Citizens’ Attitudes and Practices of Water Sustainability: The Case of the Eastern Cape. In: Ndayizigamiye, P., Twinomurinzi, H., Kalema, B., Bwalya, K., Bembe, M. (eds) Digital-for-Development: Enabling Transformation, Inclusion and Sustainability Through ICTs. IDIA 2022. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 1774. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-28472-4_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-28472-4_7

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-28472-4

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