I blogged about my reasons to stay in SA a while back.
I’ve found another article by Deon Terblanche containing 24 reasons why he wants to stay in SA.
Here’s Deon’s list:
South Africa ranked 44th out of 131 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report 2007/8
Three South African cities were voted amongst the world’s top 100 Most Liveable Cities in a study conducted by Mercer Human Resource Consulting. Cape Town was ranked 85th, Johannesburg 90th, and Port Elizabeth 97th
South Africa is ranked 20th out of a total of 128 economies in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2007, ahead of many developed nations, including the United States (31), Switzerland (40), Austria (27) and France (51)
South Africa is ranked 35th out of 178 countries for ease of doing business – ahead of Spain, Brazil and India – according to Doing Business 2008, a joint publication of the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation
South Africa ranks in the top four countries worldwide in terms of the transparency surrounding its budgets – ahead of the US, Norway and Sweden – according to the Open Budget Index
The number of tourists visiting South Africa has grown by 188% since 1994, from 3 million to 8.4 million in 2006 (Department of Environment and Tourism)South Africa is the first, and to date only, country to build nuclear weapons and then voluntarily dismantle its entire nuclear weapons programme
South Africa will become the first African country to host the Soccer World Cup in 2010, and the first country in the world to have hosted the Cricket, Rugby and Soccer World Cups
South Africa is home to both the largest land mammal (elephant) and the smallest mammal (shrew)
South Africa is the only country to house an entire floral kingdom (fynbos), one of only six on the planet
South African Breweries ranks as the second largest brewing company in the world. It supplies up to 50% of China’s beer
Cape Town has the fifth-best blue sky in the world according to the UK’s National Physical Laboratory
21 South African beaches were awarded Blue Flags, an international indicator of high environmental standards for recreational beaches in 2007
South Africa ranks 57th out of 157 countries in the world in terms of economic freedom, ahead of Italy (64), Brazil (101), the United Arab Emirates (63), Greece (94th), India (104th) and China (126), according to the Index of Economic Freedom 2007
South African media ranks 26th out of 167 countries in the Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2007, higher than any country in Asia, the Middle East or South America, and ahead of Japan, Spain, Italy and the United States
South Africa accounts for almost 45% of the GDP of the entire African continent, with an economy three times the size of the second biggest country (Egypt)
The South African Constitution is widely regarded as being one of the most progressive in the world, drawing from the experiences of the world’s most advanced democracies
Almost a quarter of South Africa’s non-interest budget is spent on education
Johannesburg ranks second among cities in countries from Asia/Pacific, the Middle East and Africa in dealing with urbanisation and environmental challenges, in the MasterCard Insights Report on Urbanisation andEnvironmental Challenges
South Africa’s per capita GDP, corrected for purchasing power parity, positions the country as one of the 50 wealthiest in the world
Worldaudit.org ranks South Africa as the 40th most democratic country out of 150 nations
South Africa is the 35th best place in the world to do e-business, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2007 E-Readiness Report
South Africa is the best-ranked country in terms of price stability; our fiscal policy is ranked 11th, our international trade competitiveness 21st, and we are the 28th most-attractive destination for foreign direct investment, according to the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005
The value of South African real estate has improved by 30% over the past five years
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Popularity: 5% [?]
July 30th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
I have been in Japan for a couple days now and there are a host of things that jump out at me when I read this post. For starters the customs officials from the guy who questioned me to the guy who searched my bag were all very polite and helpful. The streets are super clean. Excellent service here is a given, so much so that people in retail tend to thank me when they serve me as if to thank me for giving them the opportunity to serve me. Theft barely seems to be an issue here. One of our ladies left her bag in the subway and it was actually in Lost and Found half an hour later. Banks don’t have half a ton of missile proof glass between customers and banking officials, just a counter top.
Taxi drivers drive according to the speed limit and often wear a tie and white gloves. There is more of that and, I guess, a number of not so great aspects but they do shine a bright light on the nonsense we deal with every day in our promised land.
Sure there are many great things about SA but that just adds to the tragedy if our government manages to royally fudge it all up.
July 31st, 2008 at 9:40 pm
ALSO! South Africa is the only country where sports fans wear makarapas, the sculptured hardhats. We should all be wearing them proudly come 2010 when we are “live” on TV networks around the world. Visit http://www.makaraba.co.za
August 14th, 2008 at 11:17 am
Like elephants, I cannot detect one reason in the list that would be a compelling reason to move (back) to South Africa.
The list should not be headlined “24 reasons to live in South Africa” but rather “Stats and facts about RSA.”
elgars last blog post..
August 15th, 2009 at 11:20 am
agree with elgar.
Life Expectancy is only 42.45 years. If you like living and love Life, then get out.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_Expectancy_by_Country
May 10th, 2010 at 8:51 pm
Well, naysayers, I’m a Canadian who is moving to Cape Town from Vancouver, the number 3 city in the world. I can tell you there ARE good reasons to live here if you change your lenses from those tinted with historical pain to those tinted with present opportunity. Rub your eyes, wipe the junk out, and look again.
May 15th, 2010 at 2:31 pm
So Dianna: are you saying that the 42 years of life expectancy is suitable for you? I think it is you that need to remove the blinkers!!! Lol.
Have yiu seen the crime rates in RSA? Do yiu live in a fenced house? Good luck getting a taxi or any public transport! Lol good luck going to a hospital! And yes, good luck trying to go overseas using your RSA Rand currency.. Lol.
Dianna, I may be wrong as you probably love living in a 3rd world country. Does not matter how many facts about RSA is being published, it remains a shit country and that is why people are running and migrating to better. I feel sorry for those that want to leave but can not.but I do nit feel sorry for those idiots that live in denial and can leave and do not. Which one are you – maybe RSA is your only option as Canada kicked you out and no other country wants you. Actually makes sense for RSA to want you as you will fit in perfectly! Lol.