sheyie2007:
lol.. mtn?, well, we've got glo, visafone(Nigerian owned).. we can nationalize the shit anytime... what else? don't mention shoprite man, and those rubbish.. we've got ours.....it's obvious you've not been to NG.. man, I've been to yours, stop bragging!

How many malls were built in Nigeria by SA investors, one of my friend (civil technician) whose company was contracted to construct malls in Nigeria told me Nigeria does not have building materials to build modern shopping malls. Materials had to be shipped from SA to Nigeria. We will colonise the economy of Nigeria and make it dependent to our business. We have our Shoprite, PEP store, Chicken Licken, Steers, Woolworth's, MTN, DSTv, Multichoice, Standard Bank, Lotto, Edgars, and we are hijacking your film industry as well. You are nothing without us.

Msauza:

How many malls were built in Nigeria by SA investors, one of my friend (civil technician) whose company was contracted to construct malls in Nigeria told me Nigeria does not have building materials to build modern shopping malls. Materials had to be shipped from SA to Nigeria. We will colonise the economy of Nigeria and make it dependent to our business. We have our Shoprite, PEP store, Chicken Licken, Steers, Woolworth's, MTN, DSTv, Multichoice, Standard Bank, Lotto, Edgars, and we are hijacking your film industry as well. You are nothing without us.

are you kidding me? he told you they searched the whole nigeria and couldn't find one? why don't you go and confirm it yourself? remove all your shoprite and stuffs, and see what we have silly!

sheyie2007:
are you kidding me? he told you they searched the whole nigeria and couldn't find one? why don't you go and confirm it yourself? remove all your shoprite and stuffs, and see what we have silly!

you have crude oil.

Msauza:

How many malls were built in Nigeria by SA investors, one of my friend (civil technician) whose company was contracted to construct malls in Nigeria told me Nigeria does not have building materials to build modern shopping malls. Materials had to be shipped from SA to Nigeria. We will colonise the economy of Nigeria and make it dependent to our business. We have our Shoprite, PEP store, Chicken Licken, Steers, Woolworth's, MTN, DSTv, Multichoice, Standard Bank, Lotto, Edgars, and we are hijacking your film industry as well. You are nothing without us.

post this shi# on the front page if you've got balls... I dare you! there's no point responding to your comments dude... you're a lost cause... all you do is post people's opinions and make references to Google... just get back to the topic and stop spreading negative and false information about nigeria. goodluck to you.. and pls travel out!

andrewza:

you have crude oil.

that's all you know about Nigeria...

Read here

http://www.southafrica.info/africa/nigeria-161112.htm

We are not finished we will suck their blood until their arteries are clearly visible on their skins.

sheyie2007:

that's all you know about Nigeria...

who cares about the rest.

Msauza: Read here

http://www.southafrica.info/africa/nigeria-161112.htm

We are not finished we will suck their blood until their arteries are clearly visible on their skins.

A south African website? seriously? always negative about the world outside theirs.. why should a waste a ounce of my bytes

andrewza:

who cares about the rest.

Nigerians and the western world..

scipher:
post this shi# on the front page if you've got balls... I dare you! there's no point responding to your comments dude... you're a lost cause... all you do is post people's opinions and make references to Google... just get back to the topic and stop spreading negative and false information about nigeria. goodluck to you.. and pls travel out!

The truth will kill you and let me tell you I like to nail it where it hurts the most. I enjoy rubbing the salt into those open wounds without using any strong language.

sheyie2007:
A south African website? seriously? always negative about the world outside theirs.. why should a waste a ounce of my bytes

Read it, that was a plea by Olusegun Aganga, the Nigerian minister of trade, to ask SA companies to invest more in Nigeria because Nigerian companies alone are to small to meet the demand. That was last year November when he paid a special visit to SA to beg and plea on his knees.

this guy is crazy already. Imagine he says we've got no building materials. I mean this guy knows of a dangote for crying out loud

Msauza:

Read it, that was a plea by Olusegun Aganga, the Nigerian minister of trade, to ask SA companies to invest more in Nigeria because Nigerian companies alone are to small to meet the demand. That was last year November when he paid a special visit to SA to beg and plea on his knees.

twisters, no thanks!

souldust: this guy is crazy already. Imagine he says we've got no building materials. I mean this guy knows of a dangote for crying out loud

he's not only crazy, he has issues..

sheyie2007:
Nigerians and the western world..

\
the west only cares about that oil same has the east.

South Africa goes shopping

These days South African businesses are everywhere in Nigeria, and trade between the two countries has jumped from $11 million to $11 billion in 11 years.



By Leonard Lawal, Fortune

September 27 2007: 9:51 AM EDT


⁠

(Fortune Magazine) -- The Palms shopping center in Lagos is the largest mall in sub-Saharan Africa. It's managed by a South African company, Broll, and most of its stores - Game, Shoprite, NuMetro, Nandos - are South African brands. The largest mobile-phone company in Nigeria? It, too, is South African: MTN, which has captured nearly 50% of the market.

Indeed, in Nigeria these days South African businesses are everywhere. Entech, a South African engineering firm, is leading a $3 billion redevelopment of Lagos's Bar Beach and Victoria Island waterfront. Another South African firm, Group Five, is building a power station in the Niger River delta.

And the largest tourism project in the country, in Tinapa, is a joint venture between Standard Bank, Broll, and Southern Sun - all South African firms. (Standard Bank also just swallowed Nigeria's IBTC bank.)



A Khartoum boom, courtesy of China

South Africa's invasion of Nigeria, which began as a trickle after the end of apartheid in 1994, has turned into a flood over the past five years. Trade between the two nations has jumped from $11 million in 1994 to more than $11 billion in 2005, the last year for which reliable statistics are available. And the number of South African firms doing business in Nigeria has increased from just four in 1999 to hundreds today.

A Shoprite store in Lagos. Trade between South Africa and Nigeria has jumped from $11 million to $11 billion in 11 years.

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"They have chosen the sectors they intervened in very carefully," says Frank Aigbogun, publisher of Businessday, a leading financial daily in Lagos, which has Johnnic Communications, a South African media giant, as a partner. "They filled a void in the investment space in Nigeria. Remember that the Europeans and Americans, wearied by endless years of military rule, did not quite know how to respond to the evolving democratic environment."

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Most Western companies that invested in Nigeria focused on the lucrative oil sector, leaving huge swaths of the economy open to South African entrepreneurs.

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Lagos bound

The pioneer, says Olusola Obadimu, executive secretary of the Nigerian-South African Chamber of Commerce, was South African cable company DSTV/Multichoice, which captured 95% of the satellite-TV subscription market in the 1990s.

Some South African companies doing business in Nigeria:

MTN

"No Western company will take the kind of risks they took," Obadimu says. "But their teams came down, felt the pulse of the populace, and they succeeded." MTN followed in Multichoice's wake a few years later - "They rode on that kahuna," as Obadimu puts it - when the government auctioned off mobile-phone bandwidth.

Has captured nearly half of Nigeria's mobilephone market.

Broll

Operates the largest mall.

Entech

"Western telcos were not interested for obvious reasons of lack of infrastructure," he says. "But South African firms knew of the success of DSTV/Multichoice, and they invested. It reflects the long-term vision of the government in Pretoria, which saw Africa as one trading bloc. It's a small country but highly industrialized, and they need new markets."

Engineering firm is leading a $3 billion Lagos development project.

A Texas company in Sudan

South African leader Thabo Mbeki, whom former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo had befriended during the struggle against apartheid, won concessions from the Nigerian government to facilitate trade. Among them were agreements to protect South African firms against future nationalizations and to eradicate double taxation, meaning South African firms that pay taxes in Nigeria are exempt from paying taxes on profits repatriated to South Africa.

Not all South Africans have been welcomed with open arms, and it's not uncommon to hear them described by Nigerians as "neocolonialists." There are complaints about price gouging and other unfair practices.

MTN is a particular target. It took a boycott some years back to get it to charge customers by the second instead of rounding up to the next minute. And the Nigerian Senate recently rebuked MTN and other carriers for their high dropped-call rates.

"These people are exploiting us," says Tokunbo, a Nigerian MTN engineer who asked to be identified by his first name, referring to South African businesses. "Western companies won't engage in some things these South African firms do in cahoots with our fellow Nigerian officials." MTN did not respond to requests for comment.

None of that has lessened South Africa's investment offensive. South Africa's Eskom collects debts and runs the prepaid-card operations for the local energy monopoly, Power Holding Corp. of Nigeria, a notoriously inefficient company scheduled for outright sale.

Ariva, another South African company, operates the national lottery, and Telkom is bidding for Multilink, a wireless-network provider. Even the ballots in this year's contentious elections were printed in South Africa.

As Warren Trokis, a manager at Shoprite, a South African grocery chain in Lagos, explains the attraction, "Business is good here, and Nigeria is safer than South Africa. In South Africa armed robbers will take your money and kill you, but here in Nigeria, they will take your money and apologize." 

Msauza:

Your comment is so stupid, it shows how exposed am I coz there are so many Nigerians in SA doing prostitution and drugs. Many of the Nigerian ladies are prostitutes here and ask for R30 a round and their husbands are working in my garden for R50 a day. How will you know Zulu coz you hardly see Zulus in Nigeria? Tufiakwa!!!

you know that word becos you watch our movies. It is not the few mins you spend with a prostitute (you have premature ejaculation) that made you know that word.

andrewza: \
the west only cares about that oil same has the east.

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Nigeria read it thoroughly, dimwit

souldust: this guy is crazy already. Imagine he says we've got no building materials. I mean this guy knows of a dangote for crying out loud

My friend who was in Nigeria when Modern Shopping Malls were constructed helped me to come with the piece of this information.

According to Roper there were many challenges with the development of the Grand Towers Abuja Mall. One of these was securing financing from local banks. “The banks are prepared to fund, but they don’t really understand property because it is a new development for them as well. So having to negotiate it with the banks initially was not easy. Now that the banks see the mall standing, they all want to do other developments with us, and they are also starting to understand it better.”

Roper said that the construction process also posed difficulties. He says that most Nigerian construction firms don’t have the experience to build large modern malls. For this reason, many of the skilled technical people were brought in from South Africa.

Many of the materials used in the mall had to be imported, which brought the added challenges of dealing with delays at ports and getting the products through customs. “If you build a modern shopping mall for someone like a Shoprite, they’ve got strict guidelines and requirements from a quality [perspective] and what their fit-out must look like. And you don’t have those things in [Nigeria], and a lot of the things got imported – the air conditioners, the roof, the tiles,” noted Roper.

Despite these difficulties, Novare sees potential for many more malls in Nigeria and the rest of the continent. According to a recent statement by the company, it is looking at five other mall developments in sub-Saharan Africa. Building on these should commence at the end of 2012.

If you want to read more click here.
http://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/nigeria-moving-forward-but-still-a-difficult-business-environment/19400/

souldust: you know that word becos you watch our movies. It is not the few mins you spend with a prostitute (you have premature ejaculation) that made you know that word.

My friend to be fair, I don't like watching Nigerian movies, there are many Nigerians that I sometimes mingle a lot with and they speak pidgin. From start I thought they couldn't speak English properly and they further told me that is how they speak English in Nigeria. That word they like to use a lot. At first I thought it meant a strong language and one of them explained to me the meaning of it.

ATLEAST SOUTH AFRICA HAS BEEN ABLE TO ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING LISTED BELOW ACHIEVEMENTS SINCE 1994: SINCE THE BLACK MAN TOOK POWER

Fast Facts & Quick Stats About South Africa

Political
•According to the Open Budget Index 2012, South Africa has the 2nd most transparent budget in the world. In 2010, SA was ranked 1st. (International Budget Partnership)
•South Africa is the only African country that is a member of the G20.
•South Africa ranks 5th overall on the 2011 Ibrahim Index which measures the quality of African governance, Mauritius, Cape Verde, Botswana and Seychelles took the first four places out of 53 (Mo Ibrahim Foundation)
•South Africa ranks 28th out of 167 countries surveyed in the 2011 Democracy Index, compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit, ahead of France, Italy, Greece and all of the other BRICS countries. WorldAudit.org ranks South Africa as the 43rd most democratic country in 2011.
•In the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Survey of Democratic Freedom, South Africa ranks 31st out of 184 countries.
•According to the Global Competitiveness Report 2010/11, South Africa has the 34th most efficient government out of the 139 countries ranked.
•WorldAudit.org ranks South Africa as the 47th least corrupt nation out of 150 nations surveyed in 2011, ahead of Italy, Greece and all the other BRICS nations. Transparency International ranks South Africa 64th out of 150 countries in its corruption perception index 2011.
•South Africa ranks as the 61st strongest state out of 177 countries in the Fund for Peace's Failed State Index 2011. The index measures state vulnerability based on 12 social, economic, political and military indicators.
•In terms of the Global Competitiveness Report 2012, South Africa’s biggest improvements over the past year have been Reliability of police services (we moved from 104 to 95); Brain drain (we moved from 62 to 48); Intensity of local competition (we moved from 63 to 49), Availability of latest technologies (we moved from 51 to 39 and Gross national savings as a % of GDP (we moved from 98 to 72).
•"Personal satisfaction" with the country's democracy rose from 49% in 2008 to 60% in 2011, according to the continent wide Afrobarometer research group.
Economic

•In 2012, at 5.5%, South African interest rates were at a 30-year low.
•South African Tax Revenue has increased from R100 billion in 1994 to R742.7 billion in 2011-12.
•South Africa’s debt to GDP ratio is 32% (USA 100%, Japan 200%, UK 90%). The World Bank recommends a ratio of 60%.
•SA ranks 1st among upper middle-income economies in the World Bank “Connecting to Compete 2012: Trade Logistics in the Global Economy” report. Overall, SA ranks 23 out of 155 countries included in the Logistics Performance Indicators (LPI). Its main competitor on the African continent, Nigeria, is ranked 121.
•South Africa sold $1.8 billion worth of cars to the US in 2010, putting us ahead of Sweden and Italy as suppliers to the US market. Car sales are projected to grow 10% in 2011 to 460,000 units.
•South Africa exported 36.9% more vehicles in 2010 than 2009.
•The South African stock market rose 16.09% in 2010, ranking 8th out of the G20 nations and ahead of all of the G7 countries (Bespoke Investment Group).
•South Africa is ranked 1st out of 142 countries in respect of regulation of security exchanges according to the World Economic Forum Global Competetiveness Report 2011/12
•South Africa is ranked 1st in respect of auditing and reporting, according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12.
•South Africa ranks 1st out of 60 countries in the Economist’s House Price index for the period 1997 – 2009.
•South Africa's banks rank 2nd in the world for soundness, according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12.
•The South African Rand was the second best performing currency against the US Dollar between 2007 and 2011, according to Bloomberg’s Currency Scorecard.
•SA ranked 1st in Platinum output, 2nd in Palladium output, 3rd in Gold output, 6th in Coal output and 9th in wool output. (Economist)
•SA is ranked 2nd out of 183 countries for good practice in protecting both borrowers and lenders when obtaining credit for business (World Bank Doing Business Report 2011)
•SA is ranked 3rd in the world for protection of minority shareholders interests, according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12.
•South Africa ranked 6th in house price improvement indices as a % change in 2009, and 1st as a % change 1999/2009. (Economist).
•SA is ranked 10th out of 142 countries for Strength of Investor Protection, according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12.
•SA is ranked 10th out of 183 countries for good practice in protecting investors in business. (World Bank Doing Business Report 2011).
•South Africa ranks 7th out of 45 countries in the "Big Mac Index 2012". The price of a Big Mac is 42% less in South Africa than in the USA. In Switzerland and Norway, it is 62% more.
•South Africa is ranked 12th out of a total of 134 economies in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2010, ahead of many developed nations, including, the UK (15th), United States (19), Canada (20), Australia (23) and France (46).
•South Africa ranked 15th in terms of "largest deficits" but as a percentage of GDP is not in the top 40 countries. (Economist).
•The JSE ranks 16th in terms of "largest market capitalisation" and 19th in terms of largest gains. (Economist)
•SA is ranked 23rd out of 81 countries in the Jones Lang LaSalle's "World's most Transparent Real Estate Markets" placing it well ahead of China, Brazil, India and Russia. "Robust governance, strong auditing and a developed legal system" were cited as the main reasons for leading the developing markets in this rating.
•South Africa ranks 24th out of 192 countries in the Economist’s "Largest Gold Reserves" Index and 30th in terms of official US$ reserves.
•In a survey of 192 countries, South Africa’s unemployment as a percentage of economically active population ranked 27th.
•SA ranks 28th in terms of number of cars produced and 18th in terms of number of cars sold. (Economist).
•South Africa is ranked 34th out of 183 countries for ease of doing business according to Doing Business 2011, a joint publication of the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation.
•South Africa ranks 41st out of 192 countries in the Economist’s "Biggest Exporters" Index.
•South Africa ranked 50th out of 142 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12, up from 54th in 2010/11.
•South Africa ranks 54th in a comparison of the overall tax burden of 150 countries worldwide.
•South Africa ranks in the top 20 countries for agricultural output.
•According to a survey of 62 countries by the World Bank and the IMF, South Africa has the 36th highest foreign debt, ahead of the US, Japan and all the European countries surveyed. The economist ranks South Africa 29th out of 60.
•MTN has been ranked Africa’s most valuable brand in the BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands 2012 survey. MTN becomes the first and only African brand to make the list, debuting at position 88 in the world.
Tourism

•The number of tourists visiting South Africa has grown from 3.9million in 1994 to 11.3 million in 2010. South Africa is ranked among the top 5 countries in the world in respect of tourism growth (growing at 3 times the global average).
•SA ranks 24th in terms of tourist arrivals at 11.3 million (France 79 million, UK 28 million, Switzerland 8.5 million, India 5.2 million). (Economist)
•Cape Town was named the top tourist destination in the world in the 2011 Traveler’s Choice Destinations awards.
•OR Tambo airport is the best airport in Africa, according to the World Airport Awards 2010/11. It was also in the top 3 most improved airports in the world for the same period.
•27 South African beaches were awarded Blue Flags, an international indicator of high environmental standards for recreational beaches in 2010.
•South Africa is ranked 66th out of 139 in the World Economic Forums Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2010/11.
•According to CNNGo (CNN's Travel Website), Cape Town is the 9th most loved city in the world in 2012.
Sport

•South Africa was the first African country to host the FIFA Soccer World Cup in 2010. It is only the second country in the world to have hosted the Cricket, Rugby Union and Soccer World Cups.
•In 2009, the Springboks become the first international team to be World Champions in both 15-a-side and Sevens rugby.
•South Africa is home to the world's largest individually timed cycle race (the Cape Argus Cycle Race), the world's largest open water swim (the Midmar Mile) and the world's largest ultra-marathon (the Comrades Marathon).
•5 South Africans hold the world extreme swimming world record for swimming 2.5kms around Cape Horn.
•Since the 1940’s, South African golfers have won more golf majors than any other nation, apart from the United States.
•According to The Cricketer magazine, Newlands in Cape Town is second-best Test Match venue in the world in 2012. Lords was first.
•The United States Olympic Committee pays out medal bonuses of $25,000 for gold medal winners, $15,000 for silver medals and $10,000 for bronze. SASOC will give South African gold medal winners almost twice as much with each medal earning R400000 ($47,700). South African silver and bronze medallists will earn R200,000 and R80,000 respectively.
•Oscar Pistorius is the first double amputee to participate in a track event at the Olympic Games. He bowed out of the 400m in the semi-finals having finished second in his heat at London 2012.
•Natalie Du Toit became the first amputee ever to qualify for the Olympics (Beijing 2008), where she placed 16th in the women's 10K race
Education

•SA has 30,000 schools (7,000 secondary, 23,000 primary). In 1994 only 12,000 had electricity. Now 24,000 have access to electricity.
•The University of South Africa (UNISA) is a pioneer of tertiary distance education and is the largest correspondence university in the world with approximately 300,000 students.
•South Africa’s learner to teacher ratio has improved from 1:50 in 1994 to 1:31 in 2010.
•The University of Pretoria’s Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) is the highest ranked African business school and is ranked 47th overall in the world (Financial Times Executive Education rankings 2012)
•The University of Cape Town's Graduate School of Business is ranked 74th in the world for the quality of it's MBA program, according to the Financial Times Global MBA rankings 2013
•According to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2011-2012, the University of Cape Town is ranked the 103rd best university in the world. Stellenbosch is ranked 268 and Wits 274.
•According to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12, South Africa is ranked 13th out of 142 countries for it's quality of management schools.
•61% of South African primary school children and 30% of high school children receive free food as part of the school feeding scheme.
•The first MBA programme outside of the United States was started by the University of Pretoria in 1949.
•Stellenbosch University was the first African university in the world to design and launch a microsatellite
•297 new ECD (Early Childhood Development) centres have been set up and registered in the first quarter of 2011
Environmental

•In 1991, South Africa became the first country in the world to provide full protection status　for the Great White shark within its jurisdictional waters. Countries including USA, Australia, Malta and Namibia followed suit later.
•Cape Town has the fifth-best blue sky in the world according to the UK's National Physical Laboratory.
•Johannesburg ranks 2nd among countries from Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa in dealing with urbanisation and environmental challenges, in the MasterCard Insights Report on Urbanisation and Environmental Challenges.
•South Africa is the only country to house an entire floral kingdom (Fynbos), one of only 6 on the planet.
•The Vredefort Dome (or Vredefort crater) in the Free State, is the largest verified impact crater on Earth at between 250 and 300km in diameter and is estimated to be over 2 billion years old.
•SA ranks 18th in terms of biggest emitters of CO², 9th as a proportion of GDP and 27th in terms of CO² per person. (Economist).
•South Africa has the highest level of international certification of its tree plantations in the world. Over 80% of South African plantations are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa
•All paper in South Africa is produced from plantation grown trees, recycled paper or bagasse (sugar cane fibre). Fibre is not sourced from the wood of rainforests, indigenous or boreal trees. This is a myth, often wrongfully perpetuated by e-mail footnotes. Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa
•The proportion of the South African population using improved drinking water sources was 91% in 2010, up from 83% in 1990. (WHO/UNICEF, March 2012)
Social and Infrastructure

•SA's population is the 27th largest in the world (there are 230 countries, only 80 have a population in excess of 10 million).
•The current police to population ratio is approximately 1:308 (SAPS – April 2011). This ranks South Africa as the 9th best
•There are 195,000 in the employ of SA Police. There are 411,000 in the employ of private security companies. TOTAL 606,000. Divide by 49,000,000. Conclusion: for every 80 citizens there is someone looking after some or other aspect of safety and security. Or put differently 1250 security ‘officials’ per 100,000 citizens! (Business Day)
•The percentage of the South African population with access to clean drinking water has increased from 62% in 1994, to 93% in 2011. Access to electricity has increased from 34% in 1994, to 84% in 2011.
•In 2010, 13.5 million South Africans benefited from access to social grants, 8.5 million of which were children, 3.5 million pensioners and 1.5 million with disabilities. In 1994, only 2.5 million people had access to social grants, the majority of which were pensioners.
•Since 1994, 435 houses have been built each day for the poor.
•According to Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamimi of the 914 poverty alleviation programmes launched by government 232 have collapsed
•Two South African cities were voted amongst the world's top 100 Most Liveable Cities in the 2010 study conducted by Mercer Human Resource Consulting. Cape Town was ranked in 86th place and Johannesburg 90th
•SA ranks 8th out of 142 countries on the Legal Rights index, (Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12).
•SA ranks 30th out of 142 countries on property rights (Global Competitiveness Report 2011/12).
•Johannesburg is ranked as the 87th largest city in the world. Tokyo is the largest with a population of 36 million (Economist).
•SA ranked34 out of 192 countries in terms of infrastructure and 12th for our rail network.
•South African media ranks 38th out of 178 countries in the Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2010, higher than France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and all of the other BRICS countries.
•SA has the 18th largest prisoner to population ratio (USA is number 1).
•In terms of total crimes recorded SA ranked 10th, USA 8th and the UK 6th.
•Out of 230 cities surveyed around the world, Johannesburg ranks the 151st and Cape Town the 171st most expensive city for expatriates to live in according to the 2010 Cost of Living Standards Survey from Mercer Human Resource Consulting, ahead of Tokyo (2), Moscow (4), Hong Kong (, London (=17), Paris (=17), Tel Aviv (19), Sao Paulo (21), Sydney (24), Rome (26), New York (27), Dubai (55) and Auckland (149).
•South Africa is the 19th largest producer of energy (economist)
•SA’s has the 17th longest road network in the world and ranks 29th in terms of most used, but does not feature in terms of most crowded. (Economist).
•SA ranks 25th in terms of "most air travel". (Economist)
•According to Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, Gugile Nkwinti 90% of the land re-distributed to emerging farmers (approx 930 farms) is lying fallow and unproductive
•SA’s rail network is ranked 11th in terms of longest networks and 9th in terms of millions of tons per km transported. (Economist)
•SA ranks 24th in terms of "lowest divorce rate" per 100,000 of population. (Economist).
•49% of Zulu speakers think the statement 'Cultural customs and traditions define who I am' is very true. 27% of Afrikaans speakers feel the same way.
•South Africa is ranked 26th in the world for gross indoor exhibition space at 180,000 square meters, which is approx 25% of all exhibition space available in Africa, according to the 2011 World Map of Exhibition Venues published by the UFI.
Health

•14.7 million South Africans have been tested for HIV, 13 million in public health facilities and 1.7 million in private health care facilities, as part of the HIV counselling and testing (HCT) campaign
•South Africa has 1 doctor per 1000 population and 3 beds per 1000 population (Spain 3 doctors per 1000 population and 3.4 beds, UK 2 doctors per 1000 population and 4 beds, South Korea 1.4 doctors per 1000 population and 7.1 beds, USA 2.7 doctors per 1000 population and 3 beds). (Economist)
•South Africa ranked 4th in terms of HIV/Aids prevalence amongst population behind Swaziland, Botswana and Lesotho. (Economist)
•SA ranks 20th in terms of death per 1000 of population (15) alongside Russia, Afghanistan is at No 1 (18.2), UK ranks 58th (10). South Africa does not feature in the world’s 44 highest infant mortality rates. (Economist)
Miscellaneous

•South Africa has 11 official, state wide, languages, more than any other country.
•The only street in the world to house 2 Nobel Peace Prize winners is in Soweto. Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu both have houses in Vilakazi Street, Orlando West. SA ranks 7th in terms of number of Nobel Peace prizes. (Economist).
•Two of the world’s most profoundly compassionate philosophies originated in South Africa – Ubuntu (the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity) and Gandhi’s notion of "Passive resistance" (Satyagraha), which he developed while living in South Africa.
•The Western Deep Level mines are the world’s deepest mines at approaching 4km.
•South Africa houses one of the three largest telescopes in the world at Sutherland in the Karoo.
•South Africa is the first, and to date only, country to build nuclear weapons and then voluntarily dismantle its entire nuclear weapons programme.
•SA ranks 12th in terms of beer consumption (China 1; USA 2; Russia 3; Brazil 4 and Germany 5).
•SA has 45 million active cell phones (population 49 million) – ranking in the top 5 globally in terms of cell phone coverage.
•SA has 66 colour TV’s per 100 households, 9 telephone lines per 100 population and 90 mobile telephone subscribers per 100 population. (Economist).
•2 Cape Town restaurants are in the top 50 restaurants in the world according to the S.Pellegrino Worlds 50 Best Restaurants list 2010. La Colombe restaurant in Constantia, Cape Town, was voted the 12th best and Le Quartier Francais in Franschhoek came in at 31
•South Africa has 8.5 computers per 100 population (UK 80, Spain 40,South Korea 47 and USA 80). (Economist).
•SA ranks 31st in terms of internet users per 1000 population. (Economist).
•SA ranks 16th in terms of cinema visits per 1000 population. (Economist).
•South Africa does not feature on the "brain drain" list of 20 countries. (Economist).

SOUTH AFRICA AT A GLANCE

Size: 1.2 million square sq kms (=Germany+France+Italy)

Key Economic Sectors: Mining, services and transport, energy, manufacturing, tourism, agriculture

Population: 49.32 million (mid 2009)

Official Languages: English, isZulu, isiXhosa, isiNdebele, siSwati, Afrikaans, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, Tshivenda and Xitsonga

Type of Government: Constitutional multi-party democracy with an independent judiciary. The country is divided into nine provinces

Major Cities: Johannesburg, Cape Town, Pretoria, Durban, Bloemfontein, Port Elizabeth, East London, Kimberley

Currency: 100 Cents equals one Rand

Transport Infrastructure: Excellent, 7,200 km of tarred national roads, 30,000 km of railway lines, 11 international-standard airports.

DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1994

Since 1994, South African government has:

Built 1.2 million homes. In 1994, two-thirds of South African households owned their own homes. Seven years later, this figure has risen to 77%/

Redistributed more than 2.5 million acres of land

Provided running water for 7 million people. Water is nor piped into 76% of households, compared to 68% in 1994

Provided electricity for 3.5 million. 80% of South African households now have electricity in their homes. In 1994, this figure was only 58%.

Real wages and productivity have increased by over 20%

Spending on education has increased tremendously. In 1994, the government spent R31,8 billion and by 2000, this figure had risen to R51,1 billion. At 6% of the country’s GDP, the country’s investment in education rates among the highest in the world

23% of South Africans have matric, compared to 14% in 1994. Basic literacy is also up, from 87% to 92%

Government’s deregulation of the airwaves increased number of radio stations, 90% of the rural population listens to the radio, compared to 79% in 1994.

In 1994, 74% of all households had a monthly income of less that R2 499. By 2001, only 62% were still in this category. Higher-income brackets have grown. Households earning a monthly income of R2 500 to R5 999 are up from 16% to 20%, and households that now have a monthly income of over R6 000 are up from 10% to 18%.

OTHER SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS

Other significant developments:

International ratings agency Standard and Poor’s in November 2002 revised its outlook on South Africa from “stable to positive”.

In August 1002, Fitch Ratings also revised the outlook on South Africa’s foreign currency debt from “stable to positive”.

South Africa climbed two places to 32nd out of 80 countries in the World Economic Forum’s latest competitiveness index (2002-2003), boosted by its performance in the technology rankings, where it jumped eight places from 48 to 38. Overall, South Africa was the highest-ranked African country.

South Africa’s score on 2002 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) by Transparency International (TI) slipped from 5.0 to 4.8 out of 10.

Conference destination - The International Convention and Conference Association places South Africa 20th on a list of top convention countries, and rates SA as the leading conference/meeting destination in Africa. For every eight tourists, one permanent job is created for a South African. About 30% of jobs created from tourism in South Africa are derived from conferencing.

Exports - Japanese researchers acknowledge that South Africa's export performance in the last four years is better and broader that that of Japan in the fifties and sixties, considered their boom years. (Source: INSIG Magazine, August 2002)

GDP per capita - The 2002 World Competitiveness Yearbook notes that South Africa has the sixth biggest increase in GDP per capita, compared to ninth place in the previous year.

JSE - The JSE Securities Exchange is the most traded stock exchange of any emerging country. At least nine of the 22 developed country stock exchanges are smaller than the JSE. (Source: INSIG Magazine, August 2002)

Productivity - In the past 15 years, South Africans have become 50% more productive. In the same period, American productivity has improved by 30%. The pace of improvement in South African labour force productivity is among the four highest improvement rates globally. (Source: INSIG Magazine, August 2002)

Small business - Small businesses in South Africa absorb more than half the people formally employed in the private sector and contribute about 42% of the country’s GDP. (Source: Department of Trade & Industry)

Vehicle manufacture - South Africa is the sole producer of Mercedes Benz Class C right hand drive vehicles, and BMW of South Africa (a subsidiary of BMW AG Germany) provides more than 70% of the leather requirements of BMW AG’s worldwide production. (Sources: Dr Roelof Botha, Gordon Institute of Business School and 2002 Initial Quality Study, JD Powers & Associates)

Wine - South African wines win international awards every year, and we have the longest wine route in the world. (Source: Fair Lady Magazine, April 2002)

DID YOU KNOW THAT...

South Africa offers the lowest industrial electricity rates in the world

South Africa generates two-thirds of Africa’s electricity

40% of the continent’s phones are in South Africa

20% of the world’s gold is mined in South Africa

South Africa’s constitution is the world’s most progressive, drawing on the experiences of advanced democracies.

The world’s biggest man-made hole, dug entirely by human sweat, spades, pickaxes is in South Africa.

The Gandhian notion of “passive resistance”, the strategy that won independence for India in 1948 had earlier roots in South Africa. Mahatma Gandhi lived in South Africa for 21 years from 1893.

The world’s first heart transplant was performed by Dr Chris Barnard in Cape Town on 3 December 1967. Now than 50 000 have now been performed worldwide

The world’s first and largest petroleum-from-coal refiners provide 40 percent of South Africa’s petrol. The company Sasol now competes globally in the energy industry.

The computed axial tomography scan was developed at Tufts University in the UK by South African physicist Allan Cormack and by Godfrey Hounsfield of EMI Laboratories.

The G5 long-range artillery piece manufactured in South Africa is exported to several parts of the world.

The swimming pool vacuum cleaner that does the job automatically, efficiently powered by the ordinary operation of the pool's filter, was invented in SA.

Large, unusually shaped concrete blocks weighing up to 20 tons. The structures are designed to break up wave action and protect harbour walls and costal installations.

They were designed by Eric Merrifield and first installed in East London harbour. They are now used all over the world.

NOBEL PRIZE AWARDEES

The following are South African Nobel Prize Awardees:



Max Theiler won the Nobel Prize for Physiology/Medicine in 1951, for his groundbreaking work on way to combat Yellow Fever.

Chief Albert Luthuli, former president of African National Congress (ANC), was the first South African to win a Nobel Peace Prize in 1960.

Desmond Tutu, former archbishop of the South African Anglican Church, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984.

Nadine Gordimer was the first South African to win a Nobel Prize for Literature in 1991. Through her magnificent epic writing, she has, in the words of Alfred Nobel, "been of very great benefit to humanity".

Nelson Mandela, the first democratically elected president of South Africa, was the Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1993 for his work on the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South Africa. The Prize was jointly won with FW de Klerk, who make history by releasing Nelson Mandela from prison.

JM Coetzee won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2003, for writing that "upholds the fragile experience of the individual against the barbaric arbitrariness of history", according to the Nobel Foundation.

hey guys, may i suggest a new topic for next month : which country in africa has the highest number of HIV infections and criminal r.ape cases combined ?

agaugust: hey guys, may i suggest a new topic for next month : which country in africa has the highest number of HIV infections and criminal r.ape cases combined ?

At least we know our statsics. Nigeria is rated among the worst for revaling infomation. Even so we know you have a high crime rate.

agaugust: hey guys, may i suggest a new topic for next month : which country in africa has the highest number of HIV infections and criminal r.ape cases combined ?

May I also suggest a topic of which country still suffer from 19century bygone diseases like Yellow Fever and Polio which was eradicated some 35 years ago in SA.

May I also suggest a topic of which african country with a so called good navy who can't even protect its territorial waters, where pirates run rampant hijacking without any consequences yet a foolish MAGGOT NAMED @AGUAGUST COME AND REPEATEDLY TALK BULLSH*T.
http://m.news24.com/news24/africa/news/french-tanker-hijacked-by-pirates-20130204

Lastly may I also have a section where we discuss the Living Standards,HDI Indexes, Literacy Rate, Availability OF Accurate Statistics, University Qualification Standards, Life Expectancy Rates And The Availability Of Primary Healthcare Services In Our Respective Countries Including Our HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD.

I will gladly debate these issues

andrewza:

At least we know our statsics. Nigeria is rated among the worst for revaling infomation. Even so we know you have a high crime rate.

relax andrewza, my missile was targeted at only snydergp and msauza, and i have hit my target. lol the two clowns like to rubbish other peoples country, so i fired a missile at them, and see their reaction....i pierced throught their armour ! lol

snydergp:

May I also suggest a topic of which country still suffer from 19century bygone diseases like Yellow Fever and Polio which was eradicated some 35 years ago in SA.

May I also suggest a topic of which african country with a so called good navy who can't even protect its territorial waters, where pirates run rampant hijacking without any consequences yet a foolish MAGGOT NAMED @AGUAGUST COME AND REPEATEDLY TALK BULLSH*T.
http://m.news24.com/news24/africa/news/french-tanker-hijacked-by-pirates-20130204

Lastly may I also have a section where we discuss the Living Standards,HDI Indexes, Literacy Rate, Availability OF Accurate Statistics, University Qualification Standards, Life Expectancy Rates And The Availability Of Primary Healthcare Services In Our Respective Countries Including Our HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD.

I will gladly debate these issues

honestly i dont really know which african country is on top of that list of worst HIV infections plus criminal r.ape combined, but the way you reacted like someone bitten by a dog with rabies, i begin to suspect that it may be s***h a***ca. snydergp, my missile did tear your armour into pieces again !

I am not suprised such dastardly, irrelevant, uninspiring and negative comments is coming from a Nigerian.....ITS LIKE A KETTLE CALLING POT BLACK!!!
For sometimes I have been reading comments posted by Nigerians and trully I have found such to be shallow in content and outrightly full of putting them down syndrome (PHD). Whenever a progressive and positive comments are made, it gets shut down not through a positive debate but a mob sychosis which is not intellectually stimulating.

All people are proud of their heritage and nationality but the problem however is when people begging to believe that their country is the best and start ridiculing those that differ. Such an approach shows weakness and cowardice to face the reality that Nigeria is an AFRICAN GIANT WITH CLAY FEET.

agaugust:

honestly i dont really know which african country is on top of that list of worst HIV infections plus criminal r.ape combined, but the way you reacted like someone bitten by a dog with rabies, i begin to suspect that it may be s***h a***ca. snydergp, my missile did tear your armour into pieces again !

Like I've said before u are a STUP*T BOY.

U have nothing of substance to contribute anymore, now as a boring Foolish Son u want to stir up something new.

On ur missile issue I suggest u should direct it to ur BRAIN because its not functioning anymore MY BOY.

snydergp:

Like I've said before u are a STUP*T BOY.

U have nothing of substance to contribute anymore, now as a boring Foolish Son u want to stir up something new.

On ur missile issue I suggest u should direct it to ur BRAIN because its not functioning anymore MY BOY.

snydergp, your armour is very weak, and you find it hard to swallow a taste of the bitter medicine you put in other peoples mouth. you like to give insults, but you cannot take it when they insult you back. lol. you are like a weak old woman, aged zulu housewife. lol