South Africa, it is time to turn potential into achievement!
Can this African nation that won the admiration of the world for its peaceful transition to democracy after generations of white supremacy rule conquer the bitter divisions of its past to turn itself into the biggest mover and shaker of the African continent? Or will it become even more admired in foul governance, racial tension, poverty, corruption, violence and decay to turn into yet “another” African state? South Africa is a land of contrasts! It has immense mineral wealth, with 90% of the world’s known platinum reserves, 80% of its manganese, 70% of its chrome and 40% of its gold, as well as rich coal deposits; yet 43% of its population live on less than €3 a day. It has sky-high unemployment yet at the same time suffers from crippling, basic skills shortages. It was the first country to perform a heart transplant, yet its people’s health record is among the world’s worst. And, leaving aside war zones, it is one of the most violent and crime-ridden countries on the planet. Ignoring South Africa (and Africa) today is like failing to invest in emerging markets in the 1990s, in south-east Asia in the 1970s and 1980s or in Japan in the 1950s!
Can this African nation that won the admiration of the world for its peaceful transition to democracy after generations of white supremacy rule conquer the bitter divisions of its past to turn itself into the biggest mover and shaker of the African continent? Or will it become even more admired in foul governance, racial tension, poverty, corruption, violence and decay to turn into yet “another” African state?
South Africa is a land of contrasts! It has immense mineral wealth, with 90% of the world’s known platinum reserves, 80% of its manganese, 70% of its chrome and 40% of its gold, as well as rich coal deposits; yet 43% of its population live on less than €3 a day. It has sky-high unemployment yet at the same time suffers from crippling, basic skills shortages. It was the first country to perform a heart transplant, yet its people’s health record is among the world’s worst. And, leaving aside war zones, it is one of the most violent and crime-ridden countries on the planet.
Ignoring South Africa (and Africa) today is like failing to invest in emerging markets in the 1990s, in south-east Asia in the 1970s and 1980s or in Japan in the 1950s!
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