| Title | Chapter 4: The role of institutional theory in enforcing environmental management compliance within the Zimbabwean gold mining sector |
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| DOI | https://doi.org/10.4102/aosis.2025.BK497.04 |
| Landing page | https://books.aosis.co.za/index.php/ob/catalog/book/497 |
| License | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ |
| Copyright | Martha Matashu, Lilian I Nwosu & Calvin Mahlaule (eds.). Licensee: AOSIS (Pty) Ltd. The moral rights of the editors and authors have been asserted. |
| Publisher | AOSIS |
| Published on | 2025-09-15 |
| Long abstract | The global community is increasingly concerned about the environmental impacts of business operations. Mineral demand has risen because of population growth. While the gold mining sector has contributed to the expansion of the Zimbabwean economy, literature indicates it has also led to environmental degradation. This apparent gap inspired the researchers to investigate the potential contribution of institutional theory to environmental management in the Zimbabwean gold mining industry. An interpretive research philosophy was adopted for this chapter because it assumes that our understanding of reality is constructed subjectively through our perception of the social world. In-depth interviews were conducted with seven selected employees from five selected gold mines, and the forthcoming data were analysed using thematic analysis. It was established that gold mining organisations operate within a social network, with a motivational force underlying their behaviour. The results also reveal that the government and other regulatory bodies with rich resources exert coercive pressure on mining organisations to adopt greener practices. The study recommends that the government develop a framework to promote compliance with environmental management, as this is an emerging phenomenon. |
| Print length | 24 pages |
| Language | English (Original) |
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Moses Nyakuwanika is a lecturer in Management Accounting and holds a PhD in Accounting Sciences from the management accounting stream in the Department of Management Accounting at the College of Accounting Sciences (CAS) at Unisa in Pretoria, South Africa. He teaches Costing Accounting, Cost and Management Accounting and Strategic Management Accounting at undergraduate level and Applied Cost and Management Accounting and Financial Reporting at MA level. He has authored five research papers and he is the lead author for three. His lead-authored journal articles include ‘Sustainability’, indexed in WoS, Scopus,the DOAJ and the Journal of Sustainability Science and Management (JSSM), which is indexed in Scopus. Nyakuwanika’s research interests encompass microfinancing for institutions in developing economies, corporate governance to enhance institutional performance, government microcredit programmes and the use of environmental management accounting (EMA) for greener mining activities, specifically in gold mining. His research skills involve using qualitative propositions embodied in content propositions, general environment propositions and association propositions to develop conceptual frameworks. These frameworks are then validated using qualitative research methods, including in-depth and open-ended interview guides. He has supervised several candidates for the MCom in Professional Accounting and Corporate Governance, MCom in Applied Accounting and MBA programmes.
Huibrecht Margaretha van der Poll is a professor of management accounting at SBL, Unisa, South Africa. Since 2016, Van der Poll has served as the programme manager, guiding DBL supervisors and students. She holds a DCom in Financial Management Sciences from the University of Pretoria, South Africa. In 2022, she received the Unisa Women’s Prize for Excellence in Research for her project titled ‘Environmental management accounting (EMA): Addressing the challenges regarding implementation, management commitment, and opportunities in the 4IR’. Her research interests focus on environmental management accounting. Additionally, she is the vice-president for South Africa’s southern region at AGBA. As an NRF C3-rated researcher, she has published over 40 peer-reviewed articles in accredited journals, primarily in international journals and conference proceedings. She has also presented conference papers at both national and international events. Van der Poll has successfully supervised numerous candidates for MA and PhD degrees, including MBL, MBA, MCom, Master of Philosophy(MPhil), DBL, DCom and PhD.
John Andrew van der Poll holds a PhD in Computer Science from Unisa, Pretoria, South Africa. Van der Poll is a research professor in the digital transformation and value chain management area at the Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL), Unisa. He also serves as Vice-President for South Africa’s northern region at the Academy for Global Business Advancement (AGBA). His research interests focus on promoting formal methods for software development among upper management in the industry. He has published over 120 journal articles and peer-reviewed conference proceedings, presented at national and international conferences, and guest-edited a special edition of the Journal for Global Business Advancement (JGBA) for Inderscience. Most of his journal articles are indexed in the Web of Science (WoS), Scopus and the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). He has supervised numerous candidates for MSc, Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Business Leadership (MBL), PhD, Doctor of Business Leadership (DBL) and Doctor of Commerce (DCom) degrees. Currently, he supervises 11 doctoral candidates and five MA students. Van der Poll is a South African NRFC2-rated researcher, and has received an NRF Competitive Programme for Rated Researchers (CPRR) grant for 2023–2025.