It is just over 20 years since I journeyed to Blantyre to see a rare sight on this continent – a former head of state on trial before his own people.
The trial opened on a crisp winter’s morning, in the shadow of Mount Soche, at the High Court in Blantyre. At sundown you can watch clouds roll down the slopes of Mount Soche like a huge fluffy blanket – the people of Blantyre call it the ‘chip’ – one of the great sights of Africa.
The only thing in danger of going down on this winter’s morning, in 1995, was the remnants of a regime that had ruled Malawi for decades.
Hastings Kamuzu Banda was to stand trial for the Mwanza incident on May 18, 1983, even though he never made it to court as his lawyers deemed him too infirm.
Police caught four leading politicians, who were trying to flee Malawi, at Mwanza near the border with Tanzania. They pounded them to death with sledgehammers, put them back into their car and pushed it over a cliff to make it look like an accident. The vehicle caught on a tree and the only damage investigators found was a broken indicator light. The former president, his right hand man, John Tembo, and Cecilia Kadzamira, were charged with the killings.
Banda was one of Africa’s notorious big men – although, like most, he wasn’t very tall – who ruled with a lion’s tail fly-whisk in one hand with the other clenched in an iron fist. Under his homburg hat and three-piece English style suits, he saw himself as above his people and, like the British colonialists before him, believed his word was law. Women couldn’t wear short skirts; men with long hair and beards were shorn of their offending locks at the airport. The Jehovah’s Witnesses were killed, imprisoned and exiled, according to human rights reports.
Criticism was unwelcome, to say the least. Everyone, from journalists to poets, could be locked up without trial. In 1987, Goodluck Mhango, a veterinarian who had nothing to do with politics, was imprisoned merely because his journalist brother overseas had written an article criticizing the government. He was beaten up severely and spent more than four years behind bars.
One journalist I interviewed in Blantyre was held for more than 20 years in a cell that used to flood in the rainy season. He was diabetic and the paucity of prison food worsened this into glaucoma, sending him blind. Twenty years later, I interviewed him in freedom in his glorious garden in Blantyre that he could hear, smell, but not see. He recounted the story that got him in trouble about the former nurse from Zimbabwe, Kadzamira, who was Banda’s companion and on the state house payroll as an official hostess.
“All I did was question what an official hostess was,” says the former journalist with a smile.
I nodded my head in sympathy and wondered how difficult a letter from the editor, or a right of reply, was for the high and mighty to comprehend.
All of this madness in a country, now known as the warm heart of Africa, then known as the land where silence rules.
This silence was breaking when I first arrived in Malawi to report in January 1995, months after Banda lost elections to President Bakili Muluzi. On the way from the airport, I engaged the taxi driver in political talk – a practise a lot of journalists carry out when they hit the ground running. As we talked, he told me in Banda’s day it was difficult to start a taxi business.
“In those days, the police would be at your house asking where you got the foreign currency from to import the vehicle. In fact, if you wanted to talk politics I would have dropped you off at the side of the road!” says the driver as we hurtled into the city.
Banda, Kadzamira and Tembo were acquitted for lack of evidence. Banda died at home in bed in 1997. At least we were free to report the stories, even though, I am told, Malawi has veered back towards its cold and silent past.

The Cold Silent Heart Of Africa

He hits the ball with deadly ferocity but there’s more to Kevin Anderson’s game than a booming serve. In recent weeks, the tennis player from Johannesburg, South Africa, has proved he is a match for the best. He made the final of the Wimbledon warm-up tournament, Queen’s, where he was beaten by Andy Murray. At Wimbledon, the tournament every player wants to win, he gave the champion, Novak Djokovic, an almighty scare. On the way, he beat Grand Slam champions Stan Wawrinka and Lleyton Hewitt.
After winning 6-7, 6-7, 6-1, 6-4, 7-5, Djokovic, the best player in the world, said Anderson also deserved to win.
“It’s good to hear that he felt the same way. It’s tough losing matches like that but it would be unfair on myself not to try to take as many positives out of it as possible,” says Anderson.
The 29-year-old Anderson, who stands 2.01 meters tall in his tennis shoes, grabbed the world’s attention when he won the first two sets against Djokovic.
“I was in a very good position but the margins are so small. In the third set, I was trying to find a way to keep the pressure on him and by giving him that early break, he got some confidence and ended up being too classy for me. But, for the most part, that is how I want to be playing.”
His form this year has been rewarded. After reaching the final at Queen’s, he earned a career-high world ranking of 14.
Anderson has long been seen as a dangerous player but the world’s stars probably lost little sleep. That could change.
“I think it’s been my hunger to keep improving and put myself in this position. I made some small improvements but those small improvements make a big difference. Also, just playing different guys more, playing in different match situations and different rounds; it’s tough to beat that kind of experience. I think everyone’s improving, so you’ve got to work hard and when you see the results it gives you more motivation.”
His hard work is finally earning South Africa’s highest ranked tennis player the recognition, many believe, he deserves. Before this year, Anderson was not as well known as a top sportsman in a sport-mad country should be. He hopes his newfound fame can help revive tennis in South Africa.
“Schools sent a bunch of their tennis players to Wimbledon to watch me play and train and interact with me&#8230; It was great but it’s such a difficult thing because you need to start tennis at a young age. My hope is the better I do, the more influence I can have.”
South Africa has a rich history of great tennis players such as Johan Kriek, Kevin Curren and Wayne Ferreira. Anderson is reaching their level. He has won two tournaments on the ATP World Tour – the SA Tennis Open in 2011 and the Delray Beach Open in 2012.
Curren, a finalist at Wimbledon in 1985, is interested to see what Anderson can do.
“He’s done very well with what he has with his game. It will be interesting to see whether he can step it up to that next level&#8230; I don’t think the guys like to play him because he’s a dangerous opponent,” says Curren.
Being the highest ranked South African doesn’t worry Anderson.
“I’ve been the highest ranked player since 2008. I’m really proud and happy to do that, especially for players that are looking up to me. I feel excitement rather than expectation. I feel like I give my best and there’s nothing more I can do; I’m comfortable with that.”
Winning the SA Open in Johannesburg is the highlight of Anderson’s career so far.
“It’s my home event and 15 minutes from where I grew up. To win my first tour title there was a great feeling; friends and family were watching and it was a special week.”
Family is the reason tennis has been so prominent in his life.
“My dad taught me and my brother when we were growing up. He was incredibly passionate about the game and had high hopes for both of us. We worked really hard as kids and practised a lot. Tennis is an individual sport and that really appealed to us. It’s a sport that relies on pretty much just your ability, sometimes in team sports it’s not always in your control,” he says.
“My dad played himself. Tennis was big in their family. When he lived in Zimbabwe they had a grass court. He was really into sport but I think the individuality of tennis appealed to him.”
Anderson attended the prestigious St Stithians College in Johannesburg. In his final two years of school, he went to British International College because he had started to travel as a junior player to Europe and the school allowed distance learning.
His tennis skills allowed Anderson to attend the University of Illinois in the United States (US). He has lived in the US ever since.
“It’s an expensive sport, especially in South Africa, where you’re trying to play internationally. Even when you’re juniors, you need to travel with a coach and even a physio and these are very expensive endeavours. One of the big reasons I went to college [in the US] was to establish a base outside of South Africa. In the US, traveling around is much easier and there are always players to practice with.”
Despite being South Africa’s best tennis player, Anderson has been criticized for not playing for his country. Over the years, he has withdrawn from South Africa’s Davis Cup team; the result of a busy diary.
“I don’t want to speak out of turn, but as a rugby player you dream of playing for the national team. As a tennis player you dream of winning Wimbledon. Golf doesn’t have the Davis Cup, so it’s much less taxing on the body. It’s one week during the year rather than two or three weeks. The way tennis is set up makes it more difficult than other sports.”
You could argue that by blasting tennis balls past Djokovic’s head, he’s doing his bit for South African tennis.

Dangerous And Determined

With almost a year until the Olympic Games in Rio, athletes are preparing to perform on the world’s greatest sporting platform. Our weeks are not measured by days but by number of training sessions. Citius, Altius, Fortius is not just the Olympic motto, it is our lifestyle and we are doing everything to become ‘Faster, Higher, Stronger’.
Our training and competitions have been improving, quietly, over the past three years. Like gladiators working hard in the dungeons, we have been building our strength, shaping our bodies, and preparing our minds. As the time draws near for us to perform in front of billions, curiosity rises among the crowds, eager to know what they can expect to see.
Science in sport has increased dramatically and the older, more brutal, Spartan ways of training have been superseded by smarter methods of quality rather than quantity. Brute strength alone does not have a place in modern day competition. The athlete of today requires natural talent, an inborn competitive nature, instinctive decision-making abilities, and the strength of mind to continuously overcome difficult challenges.
In addition to the above, athletes need a passion for their sport and dedication to training. Over the last few years, I have been religiously building a strong physical foundation. My workouts have focused on full body and functional exercises to develop a base that will be strong enough to withstand the next phase of my training – perfecting my race. I don’t believe I have ever swum my perfect race and I am beginning to believe one can never swim a perfect race, but I aim to be as close to perfect as possible. This means every tiny detail must become as natural as breathing: the split-second explosive start, fast turns, efficient strokes, perfect technique and powerful kicking. There is no time to think what must be done; it should have already been done.
For this to happen every hour of the day must be accounted for. This includes:
Swim training: 50-60km per week
Gym Workouts: 4-6 hours per week
Other Workouts (Barre Class): 2 per week
Nutrition: 5 meals per day (plus snacks)
Sleep: 7-8 hours per night
Rest: 1-2 hours of sleep per day
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Unbelievable goals will be set to increase our failures, destroy our confidence, and reduce us to tears. We will be hammered into shape and mentally manipulated by our coaches to push us past our breaking points. It is physically demanding. Sleep is essential. I always arrive early, day after day to face the same grueling beat down. I will be drained by the thought of how much there is still to do and drained by my coach’s rigorous requests. But, suddenly, I will get the goal we are after and the tears will stop, the pain will go away, and my confidence will skyrocket. Then, my coach will tell me to do it all over again.
Athletes can generally handle pressure extremely well but as the Olympics approach, stresses need to be managed. They have to be reduced as these can have big impacts on our focus. Creating a good entourage will help manage these pressures, increasing the possibility of success. This includes:
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My friends and family helping to take the pressure off by having fun
My coaches ensuring I have the best program to follow
My teammates challenging me and keeping me focused
My sponsors ensuring I have the tools necessary to train and compete
My fans encouraging me
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It is because of this support; my passion and experience, that I have managed to go from no ranking to top 20 in the world this year. I even swam my fastest time in one of my events, breaking the African record, but this is still not good enough. I have to get stronger, I have to get leaner, and I have to be fitter than I have ever been in my life and that is just to make it into the semi-finals.
Enhanced training techniques, fierce competition, and the quest for glory have created athletes who are swimming faster, jumping higher, and performing stronger which could make the Rio Olympics quite possibly the most exhilarating Games ever; and I will be a part of it.

Drained, Weeping And In Pain Towards The Gain

Kenya’s economy is set to grow at a faster pace than previous years. The World Bank’s Kenya Economic Update (KEU) estimates that Kenya’s economy is poised to grow by 6% this year, 6.6% in 2016 and 7% in 2017, making it one of the fastest growing economies in sub-Saharan Africa. Similarly, in a review of Kenya’s economic performance, the International Monetary Finance (IMF) forecasts real GDP growth of around 6.5% this year, supported by rising infrastructure investments, lower energy prices and a dynamic private investment environment.
The country’s past growth has also had a strong showing, especially after rebasing its economy. Average annual growth for 2007 to 2013 was 5% in the new GDP series, up from 4.3% in the old series. This single event also increased its economic size by 25% to an estimated $55.2 billion making it the ninth largest in Africa (up from 12th, surpassing Ghana, Tunisia and Ethiopia) and fifth largest in sub-Saharan Africa (after Nigeria, South Africa, Angola and Sudan).
Relative growth comparisons also show an above average performance. Average growth between 2010 and 2013 stands at 6.2% compared to a 5.3% average for sub-Saharan Africa. The IMF’s latest Regional Economic Outlook: Sub-Saharan Africa projects regional growth at 4.5% this year, which is two percentage points lower than its Kenyan forecast. The World Banks’s Country Director for Kenya, Diarietou Gaye, cited the country’s expansive fiscal and monetary policies as having played a huge role in making Kenya the growth center of East Africa.
To add to the momentum, the recent renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) by United States President Barack Obama for a further 10 years further supports the growth story. Kenya, which is already a leading exporter of garments to the United States, expects to earn about $10 billion before the 10 years are over. With the new deal, Kenya also expects to offset sluggish demand from its traditional European export markets which have struggled in recent years. Through AGOA, Kenya can also hope to generate the much needed foreign exchange revenues to help narrow its widening current account deficit currently standing at about 10% of GDP.
However, risks exist. Security concerns have seriously affected the tourism sector, a key foreign exchange earner. Contraction in the sector is partly blamed for the slowed GDP growth. Data from the Economic Survey 2015 indicates that earnings from tourism were down 7.3% to 918 million. Agriculture, which accounts for around 25% of the economy, is another sector that has had mixed performance. Often vulnerable to bad weather and volatile world commodity prices, the sector frequently suffers from fluctuating production and revenue levels.
The manufacturing sector also had a less than optimal performance. Commenting on the KEU report, the World Bank’s Finance and Private Sector Development Specialist, and a co-author of the report, Maria Paulina Mogollon, cautioned Kenya on the need to increase competitiveness of its manufacturing sector so that the country can grow, export, and create much-needed jobs. In recent years, manufacturing’s contribution to Kenyan exports and growth has lagged.
Despite the challenges, Kenya still has a good chance to become Africa’s great success story. From its growing and youthful population, stable macro-economic environment, a dynamic private sector, a new constitution and its pivotal role in East Africa, Kenya is undoubtedly the new regional growth center.

Onwards and upwards

Will the announced nuclear program energize South Africa’s manufacturing and construction?
My background is power engineering. Building power plants across Africa generates as many stories as they do electricity. It is ironic that, in Africa’s most electrified economy, there are tales of powerless people and an economy running out of juice.
Eskom, South Africa’s national power generator, is cooking with gas (turbines) – at the cost of around $78 million a month – while grinding away at the late completion of the new 9,000MW Kusile and Medupi coal power plants. Medupi’s first 800MW unit is generating power and will be on commercial load in September, with up to 1,600MW coming onto the grid each year for the next five years.
Keep your gas cylinders full and your camping lights charged – there’s more to this story!
South Africa has a 40GW-headache to cure in the next 20 years. The first 10GW is merely to match current demand. Generation capacity is 40GW with only about 30GW available due to the UCLF (unplanned capacity loss factor) being high. The national demand is over 40GW as mines and smelters have shut down to help Eskom. Medupi and Kusile will merely tick this box.
The second 10GW is needed to replace the old coal plants before 2025. They have been run hard well beyond their time. The third 10GW is needed to attract investment for growth and the fourth 10GW is for reserve capacity to allow for maintenance.
Coal may be easier and cheaper, but it’s dirty stuff and our economy has to be environmentally attractive to foreign investment. Few investors will stump up if it will worsen their carbon footprint.
So, 40GW in the next 20 years! Simply put, double Eskom. It has to be greener than ever before too – no dirty coal. That means nuclear topped up with clean coal IPPs. Wind and solar may be very sexy but they don’t deliver the big base load power that we need.
Like it or not, nuclear is the leading renewable energy source and South Africa is in play on the global nuclear stage to procure 9,600MW of nuclear power.
Contrary to the naysayers, nuclear energy’s lifetime cost is lower than most technologies, it’s expensive at the start, but cheaper to run.
South Africa’s nuclear regulatory body has defined that only the safest technology will meet the environmental and safety specifications for any new build program.
Russia, France and China are likely frontrunners, but who has the better and safest kit and who can offer a compelling financial deal? That’s where technology, money, politics and common sense meet in a witches brew.
The International Atomic Energy Authority (IAEA) Integrated Nuclear Infrastructure Review (INIR) sets the readiness criteria for building nuclear plants. A nuclear power plant is split into three main sections: The Nuclear Island, The Conventional Island (Turbine) and the Balance of Plant. South Africa is ready to manufacture and construct on the last two sections, which are similar to the local content on Medupi and Kusile, with some nuclear safety alignment.
The nuclear codes and quality standards take a quantum leap in the Nuclear Island and that is where the nuclear certified contractors like Group Five, Lesedi Nuclear Services and the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (NECSA) are qualified. The country’s industry will have to partner with the successful vendors to hone those skills, train a workforce and learn from the build program in Europe, China and Russia.
There’s a buzz again. Nuclear vendors expected a request for proposals in August with a preferred Nuclear Vendor Country announced by March. Next year will see tendering for the local manufacturing and construction sector, with contracts signed in 2017 and construction starting in 2018.
The capital expenditure for 9,600MW will be approximately $40 to $50 billion, plus government costs and interest on capital. All this leads to trillions being spent over 15 years. That’s a big number that will reignite local industry and a knowledge economy after the last seven years of misery.
Perhaps it will be “boom” again?
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Additional reporting from Des Muller, head of Group Five Nuclear Construction Services.

Double or quit?

Have you ever been a victim of fraud or identity theft, where some of your personal documents were stolen and the data used fraudulently? Today, with online shopping and social media being a way of life, you cannot afford to be complacent about protecting your financial information. In today’s ‘virtual’ world, we are much more vulnerable than ever and must be more vigilant in safeguarding our finances. Here are some tips to minimize the risk or damage of this happening to you.
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Are your sensitive documents kept securely,
Where are your certificates and other important documents? Are they lying around in unlocked drawers or are they locked away securely in a fireproof safe? Apart from securing the physical documents, scan and secure them electronically.
It is not enough to just casually discard old financial statements; they can become prime target for thieves. Invest in a paper shredder; a personal one for home use is not very expensive and with this you can effectively destroy documents rather than simply tearing them up.
Secure your devices
Are your smartphone, laptop or other devices password protected? If your password or PIN is compromised, this could lead to devastating losses should someone gain access to your financial information. Do not share your passwords or PINs with anyone. If you think you might forget them and absolutely need to write them down, then store them securely and change them periodically using different passwords for different accounts or devices. Set strong passwords; be creative with your choice and avoid easy-to-guess passwords such as birthdays and names of family members.
In addition, secure your devices with a firewall and security software packages that have anti-virus and anti-spam features. If you are technologically challenged, get an IT specialist or a tech savvy friend that you trust to help you download and install this.
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What’s in your wallet or handbag? Sensitive documents should be kept securely in a bank deposit or a home safe, particularly those with your name and address on them. Make a photocopy of your current cards, driver’s license, and any important documents; these copies will come in handy if you need to cancel quickly or need to order replacements. Have your bank emergency numbers handy so that you can make those calls if you need to.
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Beware of scams
Your bank and other legitimate companies will never request for sensitive information such as bank details, passwords and PINs by telephone or email; these are usually fraudsters attempting to defraud you. Contact your bank directly and report such incidents.
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Do you use public computers?
Avoid using public computers for sensitive transactions as your information could be compromised. If you do use a public computer, be sure to clear your history before you log out completely, otherwise other users can intercept your information. Free wireless internet hotspots are often not at all secure. Use secure websites for your online shopping. The address will usually start with ‘https’ and there should be a key or closed padlock in the status bar. Shop only with trusted retailers.
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What are you sharing on social media?
Do you share personal information on social media, such as your address or telephone number?  It seems so natural to put seemingly innocent information about yourself and your family out there but it makes it possible for fraudsters to authenticate your identity. Geo-tagged photos inform people of exactly where you are; this could expose you and your family to crime.
Even if you put all these measures in place, there is no guarantee that your financial information will be completely secure. However, by protecting yourself, you limit access to sensitive information and protect your personal finances from fraud.
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For more personal finance tips, follow Money Matters With Nimi on Twitter: @MMWITHNIMI and Facebook: MoneyMattersWithNimi

IS YOUR INFORMATION SECURE?

Recently, there has been incessant talk about the National Development Plan (NDP) and how it, as our government so eloquently states, will mitigate the triple challenges that South Africa faces: poverty, unemployment and inequality.
Developmental theory tells us that ‘developmental states’ aim to attain industrialization through active participation in the formulation and implementation of industrial policy, while simultaneously implementing policy to redistribute income to minimize the unequal distribution of income resulting from industrialization.
One of the greatest dangers South Africa faces with industrialization is that the tendering processes in the public sector is corrupt. We cannot have a situation where the benefactors of the industrialization will be those with close ties to government and the ruling party. This would be disastrous for the country and will increase social tensions, while widening the income gap. A good education and healthcare system, which is often entirely subsidized by the government, are key characteristics of a developmental state. The equalization of income is also an important factor, with countries, such as South Korea, being considered among the most equal as well as enjoying the highest living standard in the world.
Bureaucratic competence is essential in ensuring that state institutions facilitate the swift and efficient implementation of the NDP. The state will have to bolster its departments with captains of industry and experts to improve its human capital base. In addition, they ought to be able to attract the brightest young minds and look for creative ways to lure them to the public service as opposed to merely giving them higher salaries. How will the National Planning Committee (NPC) fare compared to successful central planning economic bodies of countries such as Malaysia and South Korea? It remains to be seen. In these aforementioned governments, the state had a more interventionist stance in the economy, coupled with establishing a cohesive relationship with the private sector based on common national policy goals.
A competent bureaucracy is an essential, but not sufficient, condition for a developmental state to thrive. Equally important is the political capacity that will ensure that the state is both accountable and transparent. Unfortunately this is an area that the South African government needs to improve.
Although South Africa should draw inspiration and lessons from the developmental states of the Asian Tiger economies, it should note that the blueprint from these nations is not a one-size-fits-all solution. South Africa’s developmental state will require differing arrangements because no single economy is like another. South Africa is a resource-rich nation, whereas South Korea and Malaysia are more technologically-centric and industrialized economies. Our government should focus on formulating our own unique developmental state blueprint that will help tackle and alleviate our pressing challenges within our distinct African context.
The lack of cohesion between the ruling political party, the African National Congress (ANC), and its communist tripartite alliance is also a cause for concern. Very often the two have stark differing ideologies on pertinent issues such as monetary policy. The South African Communist Party (SACP) previously lobbied for a populist stance of growing the economy by removing the inflation target of 3% to 6% and lowering interest rates to stimulate demand for credit. This will result in inflationary pressures in the long-run and will lead to an eventual economic collapse. The communists often fail to understand that in as much as South Africa has pressing unemployment issues, the loss of employment for those who are already employed will permeate levels of poverty throughout our social structures and place an even greater burden on our social welfare system.
The NDP presents the ruling party with the opportunity to make amends for the lag in creation of jobs and reducing poverty. Perhaps the NDP is exactly what the ANC needs in order to salvage some of the lost faith that has resulted in the emergence of opposition parties such as the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) as well as the resurgence of the Democratic Alliance (DA) in last year’s elections.
There is no easy solution to attain economic growth. Placing a nation’s economy on a growth trajectory requires patience and, perhaps more importantly, resilience to astute economic policies.

A lot of work  ahead

In the last two years, a steady decline in the price of gold has brought the operations of many mining companies in Ghana to an abrupt halt. As a result, job losses and a reduction in royalties and tax revenues have been felt. Ghana is Africa’s biggest gold producer after South Africa, and with the mining sector contributing to 5% of Ghana’s economic output, the downturn in the sector has served a serious blow to the nation’s coffers.
Chinese investors, often depicted as parasitic investors, are keen to tap into this opportunity. The Chinese owner of the Akroma Gold project recently completed the purchase of Viking Mines in Ghana for $10 million. There are other new discoveries taking place and, while the sector might not be buoyant now, requisite preliminary studies should be done to mechanize deposits there.
Despite the tough economic climate, gold mining companies are able to meet their obligations, with Goldfields recently paying a $4.5-million dividend to the Ghanaian government and a total of $25.3 million since 2010. The fiscal framework that governs the mining sector in Ghana is a shining example to mineral-rich countries with a porous system due to a lack of transparency and regulation.
The Chinese have pumped billions into the Ghanaian economy. Mining in Ghana is integral to the development of communities; it brings jobs and economic vibrancy. But, for all the synergistic Sino-African trade partnerships being developed, an ability on the part of the Chinese to disregard the honesty and statutes that govern Ghana, especially in the mining sector, raises concerns over whether these agreements are lopsided.
Also, the Ghanaian government’s clampdown on illegal mining has only been marginally successful. Chinese companies use locals to front their mining activity, thus appearing to be credible operations. The lack of rehabilitation done by these companies also further exacerbates the problem. Many sites are left abandoned with no consideration for the environment.
Many large firms neglect their duties to rehabilitate the areas they have worked in, making them inhabitable. Companies, surveyed between 2009 and 2012, failed dismally to keep in line with the environmental protection agency requirements – a damning indictment of the attitude adopted by many foreign firms.
The inability of most locals to get finance to start their own enterprise ensures that development remains at an artisanal level.
Other areas in West Africa are showing promise though. Both Liberia and Sierra Leone are showing signs of reviving their mining sectors. Sierra Rutile is a company that was able to withstand the pressures brought by the Ebola epidemic. They recently raised $44 million to construct a dry mine at Gangama in Sierra Leone. The funds will be used to expand the existing mine. Rutile is used for the production of metal, specifically titanium. The investment will increase production and will provide more jobs.
Another mining company, Aureus Mining, has also signaled its intent to bring a new mine in Liberia into production. With the relative successes emerging in the region, there is confidence being shown by investors to reignite their interests in the mining sector and with it the hope that the sentiment spreads to other countries across West Africa.
The next step for the region is to engage stakeholders to develop concessions and form strategic partnerships. With industry being the buzzword for Africa to reach its full economic potential, the fact remains that infrastructural challenges are still an obstacle. Poor roads affect the transportation of materials. A lack or railways reduces the amount of goods that can be transported. The lack of power is another thorn in the side. The Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) must integrate by encouraging free trade between the regional countries. By identifying the above issues, governments can make a concerted effort to tackle them.

Work To Be Done But There Is Hope

It is a gathering of geeks that could be made into a Hollywood blockbuster; an eight-year-old Thor struggles to carry a hammer the size of her head; Pokémon’s Misty throws a Poké Ball for her dog painted as Pikachu; and a deadly life-size Blood Raven Space Marine poses patiently as he towers over a fan.
This is the scene as 5,000 geeks queue on a warm winter Saturday morning for what is called GeekFest, at Huddle Park Golf Course, Johannesburg.
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“This is the era of the geek. We will inherit the earth,” says Anré van Rooyen, one of the hundreds dressed as villains and heroes from comic books to computer games.
A year ago, it would have been unheard of. For some, it came through eyes glued to the television, others from cramped hands over the keyboard. It’s born out of the urge to identify with characters that don’t exist in real life. But hey, who cares about real life?
They call it cosplay. If the cape fits or a suit of armor swaggers, then so be it. It is an idea born in Japan and took off in America at comic book conventions. In Malaysia, at a recent conference, the queues stretched for miles as fans waited to get into a convention. In Africa, it’s growing in the south.
“We’re between the golden age and silver age of cosplay. In the rest of the world, the silver age of cosplay has died out; people are very rarely wowed by what they see. However, in South Africa, we’re all still learning and experimenting, trying to find local solutions for international problems. We’re still getting called freaks; we’re still being called weird. But most of all, we are still growing,” says Van Rooyen.
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Dressed as one of the characters from the Japanese anime Attack on Titan, Van Rooyen is more than your average cosplayer on the greens of Huddle Park. On this day, the woman who has been dressing for six years is one of the judges at the Cosplay Competition. Van Rooyen’s tough task is deciding which of the 70 entrants is the best dressed on the day. They are judged according to accuracy to character, craftsmanship skill and their performance.
“There was a general hike in attention to detail and crafting. The winners, Tayla Barter, Christopher Griesel and Chantélle Cridland, they absolutely blew us out of the water. For Tayla it was her crafting and amazing paint job; with Christopher it was the fact that he built his entire Blood Raven armor without a pattern and it just&#8230; wow; Chantélle had a bald cap on so good, that I freaked out for a second that she shaved her head. Her detail in her outfit was astounding, as well as impeccable sewing, (so good I hid my war-crime-sewing under the table). I’ve attended all three years of GeekFest now, and every year it just keeps getting better. I can’t wait to see what next year has to offer.”
The South African gaming characters rarely fail to turn heads. The only problem is getting hold of your own wigs and colored contact lenses in the post. Unsurprisingly, because of this they make their outfits instead – at least their armor gives better protection than postal tracking codes.
So, cosplayers band together, from Johannesburg to Cape Town, to help make their dream outfits with nothing but thread, needle and drills, PVC piping, and industrial glue.
“Have you seen any other international cosplay picnic where the cosplayers hiked in full cosplay halfway up a mountain in boiling temperatures to get photos by a waterfall? Our community is special and amazing and growing by the minute,” says Van Rooyen.
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“If you look at South Africa’s biggest cosplay group, Cosplay SA, they have 2,004 members, but we’re quite sure there are more than that. Its growth over the past 10 years has skyrocketed. We used to see all of 10 people at most events, and the same people at that, but now there are hundreds in each city,” says Ray Whitcher, a lecturer in multimedia design by day and Legion Ink Cosplay organizer by night.
It is a hobby for young and old, according to Van Rooyen.
“I am so excited to be part of this; to be part of what will soon be our silver age in cosplay. This is how we express ourselves; this is how we have fun. We’re all part of one family. Sure we got drama, sure we have the occasional bullying, but we have freedom to become someone we can’t be in everyday life. I can be Wonder Woman for a day and I can be Harley Quinn for a day. I can be a hero, a criminal, a crazy person, a boy, a girl. For one day, I can make the impossible a possibility. Oh, and I have way cooler profile pictures than muggles (non-geeks),” says Van Rooyen.
The defining factor is celebrating the love of your favorite character – they say imitation is the sincerest and sweetest form of flattery.

The Geek Will Inherit The Earth

As former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan observed in his Millennium Report, “New technology offers an unprecedented chance for developing countries to ‘leapfrog’ earlier stages of development. Everything must be done to maximize their peoples’ access to new information networks.” Information and communications technology (ICT) is considered an important tool for growth in developing economies.
Not only does ICT have immense benefits to an economy but some argue that, in an increasingly globalized economy, countries that fail to get connected will fall even further behind. One such proponent of this argument, and a man who is passionate about preventing Ghana from such a dismal fate, is Herman Chinery-Hesse, the founder and chairman of SOFTtribe, the largest indigenous software firm in Ghana.
Born to civil servant parents in Dublin, Ireland, Chinery-Hesse and his two siblings grew up in many African and European cities. This may have contributed to his restless desire to discover new things. He attended Westlake High School in Texas and then graduated from Texas State University with a degree in manufacturing and engineering technology. Chinery-Hesse then moved to London where he worked as a manufacturing engineer. It was here that he discovered his love for software.
“I was working for a company who were carrying out the computerization of the company and they selected me to be part of the team because I was schooled in the States, hence it was assumed I would be good at programming,” he says.
With some basic experience in robotics, Chinery-Hesse took up the challenge and learned everything he needed to know about the new computerization software. After a short period of time, he mastered the programming and was managing the company’s new production system.
This was when his love for programming was born.
“I liked programming more than engineering because you can see the results of your work straight away, with engineering you can spend your whole lifetime just building a bridge,” he says.
Chinery-Hesse already had a basic knowledge of programming. While in college, he and his roommate used software programming to generate call cards to make illegal calls. However, his skills were honed when he was in Britain. With his first paycheck he bought a computer and taught himself programming. His skills developed so well, he quit his engineering job and started programming and consulting from home.
Despite his success, Chinery-Hesse missed Ghana.
“The pan-Africanist in me never wanted to stay abroad, so I packed my stuff after a while, came back to Ghana for a holiday and never went back,” he says in his usual offhanded and matter-of-fact way.
On his return to the motherland, Chinery-Hesse had to decide whether to do manufacturing or programming. He originally chose manufacturing but realized there was one key barrier in his way.
“I didn’t have any money to set up a factory, but I had a computer and that was my factory.”
Chinery-Hesse set up his ‘factory’ in his bedroom with one computer and began programming. His company, SOFTtribe, grew organically with no major investment. Soon, Chinery-Hesse developed enough software programs to buy a second computer and then a third. His first client was a friend who, about 20 years ago, gave him a contract to computerize his farm for around $4,000. Without properly assessing how much work needed to be done, Chinery-Hesse accepted the challenge and began working. Other contracts, with clients such as Expertravel and Ghana Airways, soon followed.
At a time where information technology was almost non-existent in Africa, it was a risk to start his business.
“[President Kwame] Nkrumah told me there was nothing I could not do. If we want to build rockets, we can build rockets, it is just a matter of decision,” says Chinery-Hesse.
Following the dream of the man who led Ghana to independence, Chinery-Hesse was determined to prove that information technology was the way forward. There were challenges; in those days, a lot of clients had no idea what they needed and Ghana also has a culture of preferring not to pay for services.
Chinery-Hesse had to be innovative in his approach. He decided to package products, which provided key services, and sell it. SOFTtribe marketed and sold all its products to different sectors. Point of sale software was created for all the major multinationals, networking platforms developed for small businesses, as well as solutions for oil and gas, software products for the agriculture sector and consumer products for households.
SOFTtribe immediately made a turnover and doubled its growth each year until, at its peak, it had over 100 employees. Inevitably, the company had to move from Chinery-Hesse’s bedroom to its own office. Today, SOFTtribe is the most significant player in the software market in Ghana.
With growing competition from established brands, like Oracle, Microsoft and IBM, SOFTtribe is one of the last indigenous Ghanaian software firms still fighting the good fight.
Chinery-Hesse believes the government should do more to help local business win contracts and provide services that local business’ can utilize.
“When you help a foreign company set up in Ghana, they make money and transfer their money into dollars and ship it out of the country, which causes greater strain on the cedi,” says Chinery-Hesse.
Local business, like SOFTtribe, will keep the money within the Ghana’s borders and create more jobs for Ghanaians.
Chinery-Hesse believes Africans have the power to solve Africa’s problems. With SOFTtribe, he has proved this.

‘If We Want To Build Rockets, We Can Build Rockets’

Before he had reached the age of 10, Amos Wekesa put all his energy into smuggling goods at Uganda’s border with Kenya in the mountainous area of Mbale. He also tried his hand at making mats from banana fibers to earn a little money to support his family that was surviving on around a dollar a day.
Today, all this is history and Wekesa is now considered one of the most successful tourism ambassadors in Uganda, with an annual income of $4 million. He achieved this by founding Great Lakes Safaris and Uganda Lodges Ltd – one of the leading tour companies in Uganda.
“I was born in 1973 in a small village of Wakaka – in the current Manafwa District – to a family that was caught up in abject poverty to the extent that, by the age of nine, I had not gone to school and had been involved in smuggling,” says Wekesa.
“The time we were born was not good for the average Ugandan because everything was in short supply. That is how we got involved in smuggling.”
Wekesa has never forgotten that “the gomesi our mother covered herself with was the same gomesi we also covered ourselves with.”
His life changed when the Salvation Army, which ran a home for less privileged people in the neighboring Tororo District, visited his village looking for two boys from impoverished families. Wekesa was one of the lucky two. He transferred to Tororo in 1983, a district closer to the capital, Kampala.
“At the age of 10, I was taken to nursery school. I remember going for P1 interviews and the head teacher taking me to P2 as I was too old to study with six-year-olds. I liked primary school and wanted to be like every other child,” says Wekesa.
However, when he went to secondary school (Wairaka College for O-levels and St. Peter’s Tororo for A-levels) he did not enjoy studying.
“I liked other activities like sports, drama and was always in leadership positions at all levels. This made me an average [student].”
“Success does not necessarily come because you excel in class but because you have learned something in life,” he says.
In 1996, Wekesa was put on a bus to go to Kampala and look for a tourism school.
“I did a certificate for nine months. In 1997, I went out to look for my first job [and] became a sweeper earning approximately $10 a month.”
Wekesa later became an office messenger at Nile Safaris, earning $20 a month. He then shifted to another tour company, Habari Travels, where he was paid a dollar a day. His last stint at being an employee was with Afric Voyage, for $65 a month. It was during this time that he managed to save $200 in a year and started a briefcase company called Great Lakes Safaris in 2001. Wekesa’s first office was below a staircase in downtown Kampala.
Equipped with a phone and receipts, Wekesa would approach rich people, with Mercedes Benzes and new Coronas, and convince them to hire out their cars.
“I would attend weddings without being invited and market my services as a dealer in posh cars for hire,” he says.
Wekesa would also walk to Parliament and convince MPs to hire out their four-wheel cars to him. He would then go to tour companies and ask them to drive their clients to different tourism sites. Being a driver and having worked as a tour guide, Wekesa had to entertain the tourists while keeping the MPs’ cars in good shape and also making sure the companies were happy with his services.
While doing the tours, and reading books about tourism, his passion for the industry grew.
Off the top of his head, Wekesa can tell you that Uganda is 91,135 square miles, with around 1,056 different species that constitute about 11% of the world’s species of birds. Queen Elizabeth National Park has around 656 species of birds – the highest concentration of birds of any protected area in the world.
“The United States (US) has 784 different species of birds and rakes in $32 billion annually through retail sales only. Uganda’s GDP is only $22.8 billion.”
Wekesa’s change of fortune started in 2001 – the year he bought the first car – after organizing a trip for a woman from the World Bank.
“I gave her a good guide to Queen Elizabeth. She came back happy and said this was the most beautiful country she had ever visited. She told me she would do something for me once she got back to the US.”
“This taught me a good lesson. The sustainability of a business is satisfied clients.”
In the same year, the woman from the World Bank recommended Great Lakes Safaris to a research group from the World Bank.
“I gave the group to one of the best tour guides in Uganda, Martin Okoth. One of the guys was so happy he also promised to do something… I never took him seriously.”
Business then died down and it became so difficult that Wekesa contemplated closing the company.
“Something in me said ‘be resilient’. People advised me to close but I had to cling on. All this time, I would see tourists at the airport and wonder how Uganda could have such tourist attractions and people live in abject poverty. I said ‘I’m going to try to be a solution to this problem’ as my passion for tourism was so high.”
“Later, I got a call from Washington from a guy called Tom Carter, an editor with The Washington Times. He told me he had travelled with me on one of his trips to Uganda and had written about his experiences. The story was published and that is when tourists started flowing in.”
The change in fortunes allowed Wekesa to buy more vehicles and in 2003 he started buying property outside the city. Today, he has an eco-friendly hotel in almost every national park in the country.
Wekesa spends a lot of his time teaching young Ugandans to use tourism as a business. He wants the government to follow his lead.
“We must appreciate the fact that the government is full of people who were around during the hard times in the country. Their mindset is fixed on agriculture. However, I’m now happy the president is talking about tourism.”
He says the government should invest more in marketing tourism. Kenya spends $40 million on marketing every year, Tanzania $12 million, Rwanda $5 million, while Uganda spends just $600,000.
Uganda has the potential to become a favored destination for tourists.
“We have the best diversity of cultures. We have more inland water than any other country, 10 national parks, 12 game reserves, all unique in their own way. Uganda is like Africa compressed. It’s a convergence of all different types of attractions,” he says.
Most of the five-star hotels in East Africa are run by Kenyans, Indians and South Africans. Rwanda is building an $18-million tourism school while Tanzania has the best school in the region.
“Uganda’s government should also develop infrastructures for these tourists to use.”
For those still in doubt, Wekesa has only this to say: “If you want to see the most incredible beauty in the world, come to Uganda.”

The Smuggler Who Became A Sweeper  – Then A Millionaire

Kgomotso Mautloa dropped out of college. The nerdy former web-design student says it was not laziness, but the entrepreneurial spirit, that drove him to do it.
“You can’t teach someone to be creative, you can’t say this is how you become creative, it comes from the heart. A lot of guys who are designers are very passionate about their work because it comes from the heart. Every time you design something, you put a piece of your heart in it,” says Mautloa.
It all started with a chat with college mate, Ashley Moetlo, in 2006. Both from Alexandra, a township in northern Johannesburg, the pair saw a niche market for web design in the growing South African music industry. They couldn’t wait another year to qualify. That year, they quit and started a company named Green Robot Design.
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“The first client was a rap group from Daveyton, east of Johannesburg. They were about nine guys, really passionate about their stuff. They paid us for the first project and we bought a printer with the money. It was an awesome feeling,” says Mautloa.
But things did not turn out well, after a year, Moetlo left the company to return to university. Moetlo was the strategist, aligning and planning; Mautloa was the designer.
It was tough for a while and he had to work extra hard, Mautlao says.
“I started juggling both our roles so that the work could still be done. To some extent, that made me much stronger and more resourceful,” he says.
Mautloa took a day job with another company for a year and a half, while building his own business from home.
“I used to work tirelessly during the day and at home I worked on deadlines. It was not easy because I had to try and maintain a certain standard for myself… It’s always difficult to run your own business while working for someone else,” he says.
Mautloa says it was difficult but he made sure he delivered. After a year and a half, things started taking off for Mautloa, he had enough money to revive his own business, Green Robot Design. He then quit his job.
By 2009, Mautloa says more business was coming in. Today, Mautloa is the creative director in his company with seven people working for him, providing services in animation, brand activation, application development, print and online design as well as strategic planning, exploring different mediums of communication.
“For me, being an entrepreneur means being a thinker and a solutions provider. It also means to be a role player in the community, but more importantly, building the economy. We all have a role to play in building sustainable communities and companies that will change South Africa,” says Mautloa.
“We have been able to avoid complaints and we are efficient. That is one constant feedback that we have from our clients,” he says.
Mautloa says Green Robot Design helps small businesses develop their brands. He has also worked with South Africa’s big artists, like popular radio and ‘house’ jock, Mo Flava, and multi award-winning rapper, Khuli Chana.
“With the start-up people, our team can easily exchange views, they are open to our ideas and strategies, and they are hungry for success,” says Mautloa.
For his hard work and determination, Mautloa was nominated for the 2015 Vodacom Rising Star Award. He says there are opportunities to grow elsewhere. His next mission is to branch out on the continent.
“South Africa has an influx of many designers, there are a lot of us who want to get a piece of the big pie and I guess there is enough to go around. But that’s not where our focus is. Let’s look elsewhere, there are other countries that need our services,” says Mautloa.
So watch out Africa, Green Robot Design is coming.

It Was Tough  For A While

Every year, South Africa celebrates Women’s Month in August, commemorating the 1956 protest against pass laws that saw 20,000 women march to the grounds of the Union Buildings in the country’s capital Pretoria.
In the run-up to Women’s Month, it was fitting that the African Union (AU) summit in June was held in Johannesburg around the theme, ‘Women’s Empowerment and Development Towards Africa’s Agenda 2063’. The AU has declared 2015 as the year of women’s empowerment.
At the opening ceremony of the summit, Robert Mugabe, President of Zimbabwe and current Chairperson of the AU, lauded the African woman.
“Whenever I think of the virtues and the indomitable spirit that epitomizes the African woman, I am reminded of the heroines across the African continent who stood up against the forces of colonialism and occupation,” he said.
In an exclusive interview with FORBES WOMAN AFRICA after the summit, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the first female chairperson of the AU Commission, also a former South African home affairs minister, spoke about a new campaign.  She wants to replace the hoe (implement used in agriculture) with a motorized tiller.
“The women on this continent are unique in many ways. They really are the drivers of communities, of families, they are the curators of our culture… During our consultations to put together Agenda 2063 [a 50-year vision for Africa] and especially the first 10-year plan, we were told by women farmers that Agenda 2063 will mean nothing to them if they have to continue using the hoe. And it threw a big challenge to us; the more we looked at how women worked with the hoe, we realized it is actually like a symbol of poverty and symbol of submission too. We thought ‘they are right, how have we let it go for so long?’&#8230; So we decided to start this campaign to drive the hoe away, into the museum really, until there is no woman forced to use it.”
At the summit, the AU handed out tillers to each of the 54 African countries present “just to show it can be done”.
“But we think it will actually bring a different dynamic to agriculture because young people were not willing to go into agriculture. But once they see it is technology they can use, and they can use working upright, standing tall and proud, I think the tillers will restore the dignity of African women and change the image of African women farmers,” says Dlamini-Zuma.
Next on the cards for the AU is developing Africa’s blue economy. Dlamini-Zuma says water is a hugely ignored resource.
“Africa has actually neglected the fact that it’s almost like a big island with smaller islands – 32 of the 54 countries are either coastal or island states. We need to now develop the blue economy as part of the broader economy. We have developed the first maritime strategy.”
On July 25, in Addis Ababa, the AU launched the 2015-2025 Decade of African Seas and Oceans. Plans are on to build capacity and impart training in this sector.
“We want to look at maritime transport and see if it can have shipping vessels that fly African flags from African countries, and [in] time, see that the people employed are also from Africa. Because we are a continent with lots of young people, this is the one industry we can open and create jobs for our young people over the next 10 years, besides the revenue it can bring. We are also looking at aquaculture that can create jobs and food for the continent, but from the onset, we want to look at the environment and make sure we keep our oceans clean as we try and develop the industry.”
Tourism, both coastal and floating (cruise liners), will also be a big component of the blue economy.

The Woman To Put  Poverty Into Museums

It’s a chilly night; a group of Africa’s highest paid people crowd around fires and set up their sleeping bags in Sandton to raise awareness for the homeless. They’ve brought the brands with them on hot water bottles, sleeping bags, charging stations, shoe shiners, a mini golf course and soup made by one of South Africa’s finest chefs. This may have been surreal but the 702 Sun International CEO SleepOut raised more than $2 million for Girls &amp; Boys Town, an NGO that helps troubled children.
Just a few miles away, in the cold streets of Johannesburg, people who are forced to sleep on the street huddle into an abandoned sports college. In the worn-down buildings with cardboard roofs, piles of rubbish and graffiti covered walls, there’s room for 50, but home to 300. The shelter is called Bekezela and rightly so, it means to be patient. But patience wears thin without running water, electricity or toilets.
“As South African people, we feel like outsiders here,” say many.
Despite this yawning gap on a cold night, there are links between the haves and the have nots.
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Migrants
Johannesburg is home to immigrants, in search of fortune, from Swaziland to Portugal.
For Maria Ramos, the CEO of Barclays Africa, her venture to Johannesburg began with university. Born in Portugal, her family left for Mozambique in the 1960s. Like many, she moved to Johannesburg for the promise of a better tomorrow. Accumulating degrees and accolades, she soon went up the ranks.
“I think the opportunity to have a lot of conversations has been the most eye-opening part for me, a lot of the conversations we’ve been having have been around the fact that when we put our minds together we can really rally around big issues and find solutions. I think it’s important because as South Africans and Africans we have a lot of challenges but we also have phenomenal opportunities to find solutions to those challenges,” says Ramos.
In Bekezela, challenges are plenty and solutions are few. A migrant from Swaziland, Thoko Mabila’s story is as far from the CEO of Barclays as can be. She came to Johannesburg at 18 in search of work and slept on the street at first. She trips over her words, she isn’t sure about her age. She worked as a domestic worker in Mayfair, a predominantly Indian area in the city center, but the family moved and she struggled to get work again. Her arm is adorned with Indian plastic bangles, from the family she worked for. Mabila was diagnosed HIV positive five years ago.
“I need to take ARV’s but they’re hard to get and when I get them, I can’t take them if I don’t eat,” says Mabila.
She doesn’t have the energy to work anymore and doesn’t know when her next meal is.
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“I just want the world to know about us, they need to know we’re suffering,” she says.
Leaders
Elected the Premier of Gauteng in 2014, David Makhura’s career began in student and youth politics. As the ANC provincial secretary, he oversaw policy implementation and governance. Kitted out in South African gear, Makhura is surrounded by a cluster of people hanging on his every word.
“We’re out here to make a contribution to feel and see that we’re helping somebody that might be in hopeless circumstances, we’re giving them hope. We’re giving them a second chance in life so they can see that life is worth living. Many of them could be our leaders,” says Makhura.
Across the tracks, there’s uncertainty for Bekezela, but their leader clings on to hope. Nhlanhla Khumalo is quiet and broody – he speaks English, but rarely chooses to. Living in Bekezela since 1998, he moved to Johannesburg from the Eastern Cape with his wife, Lucia Khumalo – the self-proclaimed “mother of Bekezela”. In 2012, he was granted a court order, the rights to Bekezela. The last three years he has been embroiled in a battle against Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) who want to build a railway through the land.
“Who’s fighting for us? It’s not our leaders,” says Khumalo.
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The 12-Year Stretch
Twelve years means a world of difference. For Faith Khanyile, the CEO of WDB Investment Holdings, it meant success with Standard Bank in the Corporate and Investment Banking division. Her 12-year stint was a stepping stone – she is now the chairperson of Standard Bank’s structured debt finance equity forum and director of Uthingo Management Services. Clutching on to her hot water bottle, she’s dressed in thick layers and huddled next to the fire; aware that it’s going to be a sleepless night.
“We’re here, we’re uncomfortable, we’re outside of our beds and away from our families – it’s just going someway to experience what they experience. Obviously they sleep outside every night. But for one night, we want to really be with them and experience what they go through,” says Khanyile.
For Lucas Sithole, his experience is far from warm clothes and hot water bottles. He’s lived in Bekezela for 12 years, where he sleeps on a board under a makeshift porch. He’s one of the city’s army of people who collect rubbish on the streets and then sells it to recycling companies. He wakes up at the crack of dawn – there is competition between recyclers and garbage trucks. He goes through dustbins – finding things to recycle, things to keep. He walks the length and breadth of the northern suburbs lugging a trolley triple his weight. Sometimes people give him clothes, like his prized leather jacket. He works long hours but for 12 years he’s had no running water and no room to sleep in.
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They’re worlds apart. After the 12-hour event, CEOs across the city returned to their luxurious homes and climbed into warm beds. The residents of Bekezela didn’t.

A Winter’s Tale Of  Two Sleepouts

There is a lucrative global market in memorabilia and sport is king.
In 2004, the baseball bat Babe Ruth used to hit the first ever home run at Yankees Stadium sold for an eye-watering $1.3 million. In 2012, a pair of Muhammad Ali’s boxing gloves was bought by casino owner, Lorenzo Fertitta, for $1.1 million. In 2002, the jersey worn by Pele during the 1970 World Cup final sold for $220,850.
According to Craig Trevis and his brother Wayne, the owners of Sandton Stamps &amp; Coins, a memorabilia shop in Johannesburg, to fetch a high price an item must be scarce and in good condition.
Welman Son, the owner of the Fresh Hook Fish and Chips shop in Johannesburg, is curious about a black and white photo he has owned since he was a schoolboy. It is an autographed picture of the Manchester United team that won the league in 1965. It has the signatures of the late and legendary manager Matt Busby, Bobby Charlton, George Best and Denis Law; some of the biggest names in football.
“I went to a Chinese school called Kuo Ting High School, in Johannesburg. During the holidays, my English teacher was going back home to Manchester and I asked if she would be able to get me something from Old Trafford. When I went back to school, she gave me this photograph and the autograph page as well,” he says.
Son is proud of his photo but keeps it in a cupboard.
“I’ve been a football fan, and Manchester United fan, since I was a kid,” says Son.
“I get ragged by supporters of Liverpool, so I put it away to avoid that kind of conflict. But I do boast about it. This was the team that won the European Cup for the first time in 1968.”
Son is reluctant to sell it, regardless of its worth.
“I want to hand it down to my daughter. She’s 26 and has a bit of an interest in football. The day we win, she’ll rejoice with me, and on days we lose, she’ll console me.”
If Son were to sell his prized possession, he might not get as much as he may imagine.
“In 1964/65, because [Manchester United] won the championship, they had a signing session. All the players sat at a long table where they signed the photos and passed them down. There’s no rarity or scarcity in it,” says Craig Trevis.
After a quick search on Google, the Trevis brothers find the same autographed photo on sale on eBay for £250. The photo was also sold by someone else recently for as little as £100.
The key to selling sports memorabilia is finding fans with more passion than sense. Sandton Stamps &amp; Coins sold a framed cricket bat signed by Indian hero, Sachin Tendulkar, for R28,000 (around $2,200). Although the item wasn’t rare – 500 were made – and Tendulkar is still alive, the fan was prepared to pay an unusually large sum for the signature of a player he idolized.
“He wasn’t leaving here without it,” says Craig Trevis.
The Trevis brothers wouldn’t pay much for the Manchester United photo. This matters little to Son and his daughter – for them it is priceless.

Tag: August 2015

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

The Cold Silent Heart Of Africa

Dangerous And Determined

Drained, Weeping And In Pain Towards The Gain

Onwards and upwards

Double or quit?

IS YOUR INFORMATION SECURE?

A lot of work ahead

Work To Be Done But There Is Hope

The Geek Will Inherit The Earth

‘If We Want To Build Rockets, We Can Build Rockets’

The Smuggler Who Became A Sweeper – Then A Millionaire

It Was Tough For A While

The Woman To Put Poverty Into Museums

A Winter’s Tale Of Two Sleepouts

The $1 Million That Could Be In Your Cupboard