Last week I toured some of the most desperate areas of Johannesburg. Areas of Soweto and Alexandra ('Alex') Township can best be described as situations of dire poverty. Alex is approximately 8 km² and population estimates are between 450,000 and just under 1 million. Some areas contain dwellings that are nothing more than tin shacks and unsuitable for habitation. In the whole of South Africa, 41% (a 2008 statistic) of the population lives below the poverty line (cited at R367/month, or approximately $45USD/mo. (*Statistics cited in the NMF's 'Community Conversations,' p.15).
The cost of hosting the World Cup in South Africa is around R9.8 billion or 1.3 billion USD (2008 estimates). See: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/217096,2010-world-cup-to-cost-south-africa-much-more-than.html.
New stadiums have been built when many adequate structures already existed in the respective host cities.
Do you see the dilemma?
Hosting the World Cup is obviously an honor and a privilege, and a way to place South Africa on the world stage, but at what expense?
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