SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL / SOCCER - WORLD CUP 2010 - Little change from World Cup - for the poor township residents of Alexandra

Record ID: 455575

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL / SOCCER - WORLD CUP 2010 - Little change from World Cup - for the poor township residents of Alexandra
  • Date: 13th July 2010
  • Summary: MASHAPA POURING WATER
  • Embargoed: 28th July 2010 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: Lifestyle,Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVAC20YTG6Q4CH7KXUVH8UJZCQ8O
  • Story Text: As the World Cup ends, many South Africans wonder whether the tournament will have any significant positive change on their lives.
    In the impoverished township of Alexandra in Johannesburg, many of the homes are built poorly and the stench of sewage lingers in the air.
    Many locals had believed the first World Cup to be hosted on the African continent would dramatically change the country and lift many out of abject poverty.
    But Nulundi Mashapa, a mother of seven, said the problems in her neighbourhood were endless.
    "I have seen opportunities but I don't know if things will change afterwards. Now at least the kids have a place to go and play and are safer. But the problems of the township remain, like electricity, water, and poor housing," she said.
    "It leaks when it rains, there are blackouts, especially when it is cold and raining, and there are big rats which bite the babies, so I have to take the babies to the clinic because I don't know if the rats are contagious or not," she added.
    Locals have said they have enjoyed being exposed to different cultures and say local authorities have improved some roads and general infrastructure in record times to be able to stage a successful tournament. New justice procedures often see criminals sent to prison within a couple of days of committing a crime.
    But the question here remains whether these changes will stay or whether the country will revert back into normal mode now the international teams have all gone home.
    One local, Delly, said some people needed to be realistic over what a World Cup could achieve to improve the lives of communities like that of Alexandra.
    "There are quite a few who are going to benefit from that but some are not going to benefit because of a lack of facilities staying here, no money to afford transport or to buy a ticket, all those things, but unfortunately we try to get on the TV, to listen, to buy a paper, and so to get on there you have to pull up your socks and do something and get on the track, so by sitting here you're not going to get anything at all," he said.
    South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world and some 5.5 million, 12 percent of the population, are infected with HIV.
    Millions of black South Africans still live in townships lacking basic services, glaring reminders of decades under apartheid.
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