Xenophobia can be detrimental for 2010 World cup

2010 world cup preparations have meant several developments and opportunities for South Africa and Africa as large. Gautrain, stadiums, refurbishing of old buildings and construction of new ones are just a few examples of development projects that are being carried out in South Africa. I remember going through Hilbrow with my friends few weeks back. As we passed by one dilapidated building, one of my friends commented that it reminded her of buildings that appear in horror movies, which was true anyway. You will think I am one of those ‘top liars’ if I can show you that building today. It has been refurbished and looks fantastic thanks to 2010. It is good that South Africa is becoming ‘new South Africa’ in real sense. It is even fabulous to see South Africa creating jobs for a large number of people through several projects in progress.

However, I think South African citizens have a huge assignment to accomplish before 2010 world cup: mannerism checkup. People have to review their attitudes in order to pave the way for the big occasion. Killings of refugees in South Africa do not reflect well on a country regardless of several justifications put forth. Who knows what those current incidences of xenophobia can lead into? What if it results in a situation whereby South Africa is viewed by the world as unsafe for foreigners? Who knows what the next step the world can take in response as the news spread internationally? I bet people are not aware of detrimental effects that xenophobia is likely to spell for 2010.

Can high HIV/AIDS prevalence be blamed on ignorance?

It is quite surprising that HIV/AIDS prevalence does not get any better despite national and international effort to alleviate it. For uneducated people this can plausibly be blamed on lack of information. This claim is particularly applicable for isolated members of the society with limited access to information. Such communities do not benefit from media or word of mouth campaigns by several organisations. For instance, in Lesotho, there are people who live in mountain areas which are generally inaccessible. Thus, those people are still very oblivious and dissident about HIV/AIDS due to lack of information. Therefore, for them it is quite reasonable that a high rate of HIV/AIDS prevalence is the result of ignorance. However, it is shocking to realize that even the most educated people fall victims of this disease. Musicians sing about HIV/AIDS but die from it. Teachers teach about it, activists give precautions to public, counselors provide counseling sessions to the victims, nurses and doctors witness its existence everyday in their work place but they become HIV/AIDS victims. Everyone who visits the hospital witness the misery of the HIV/AIDS victims. There are messages allover the country; at schools, on roadside billboards, on flyers everywhere, inside most public places and on some consumer products. Despite all these, professionals and the literate populace still die of HIV/AIDS. Let us start taking responsibility and refrain from blaming the circumstances. It is unfortunate that the society that is mostly threatened by HIV/AIDS is the working class group which comprises young energetic members of the community. As such, HIV remains a threat to development as generally holds back socio-economic development of countries. Young people should take HIV/AIDS as ‘a wake up call’ to revive their power to take action. Responsibility should be viewed as an outstanding cure for HIV/AIDS

Knowledge is power

There is nothing powerful than knowledge on Earth. The knowledge that the WOWers 2008 have gained from the world of work programme is very instrumental to their day-to-day lives and in future as they begin to explore the world of work. The insightful knowledge that we gained has taught us that learning is an on going process and it never stops. All we need is to prepare our minds to absorb more knowledge. The presentations on conflict resolution and emotional intelligence were an eye opener to our individual personalities. Awareness of one’s personality is fundamental as it helps one to deal with others while resolving conflict. The level of education one has is not important in the world of work if it is not complemented by a much appreciated personality. The presentations have shed the light to us that, in the real world of work, it is not our qualifications that matter but the personal traits and skills. For most of us, personal traits come naturally but thanks to world of work I have learned some tricks on how to improve my own character and how that helps to shape interpersonal relations at the work place. The sooner we realise sources of knowledge available for us the better. There is always a room to learn and gain more knowledge. Knowledge increases our chances of competitiveness which is ideal in the world of work. Whether we become small entrepreneurs who own small businesses or we are employed any employment sector, we are need to be competitive in order to gain a better share from what the world of work has to offer. With skills such as leadership, communication, assertiveness, team work, negotiation, innovativeness, emotional intelligence etc, the world becomes a flat playing ground for young professionals and every competitor in the world of work. All we need is to learn more and more because knowledge is the power that can make us win the competition that awaits us.

Gross Happiness Index

Development is an ambition of every country in the world. Therefore in order to determine how much development is taking place in countries, there are several international measures that are used to compare development of different countries. For instance Gross National Income, Gross National Income per capita and Gross Domestic Income are used to measure economic development. However, countries like Bhutan measures development through the use of Gross Happiness Index. Gross Happiness index measures factors that are perceived to be the basis of happiness and wellbeing of people within the country. According to views from Bhutan, in order to achieve acceptable happiness for all citizens, a country should strive to: respect traditional cultures, ensure equitable distribution of wealth and resources, maintain responsive governance and protect natural environment. The suitability of GHI in African countries such as South Africa is very questionable. To start with, as compared to Bhutan, South African population is very high and diversified and that poses a serious challenge to promotion of cultural values. This is because there is a lot of acculturation going on in South Africa due to cultural diversity. Secondly, one of the factors that determine people’s happiness is equitable and sustainable socio-economic advancement. With this high population and early stages of technological innovation, protecting the country against noise polution and air polution remains a challenge. This means South Africa will always lack behind in development while compared to Bhutan with its very manageable population. However, it should also be noted that Bhutan opted for GHI because it felt that other measures of development put it at a disadvantage while compared with other countries. Therefore, happiness and overall development are achiveable. Most of the factors that are percieved to bring about happiness are typical indicators of development. What differs is the way they are measured and percieved. Without people's happiness development is a myth.

A wonderful lesson from WOW 2008

Joining a World of Work programme is a very brilliant choice a student can make. I got really inspired by a presentation on networking. As an introvert, networking has always been a great challenge for me. I had spent most of my life thinking that networking was unnecessary. That was despite my husband's usual advice that networking is a key to success. Wow! after that particular presentation, I came to realise how true that is. There are several opportunities that we miss by not networking to our full abilities. The steps that were outlined for networking are easy to follow and highly practical.

It is amazing how simple things can change our lives yet we let them slip through our fingers everyday. During lunch hour on the day that I had listened to the inspiring presentation, I met my former classmate who is currently employed. I was not used to him that much. As a result I greeted him the usual "hi" and passedby. Right at that moment, I thought about networking and the opportunities that it can create. Then, I quickly turned and berged for his attention in order to start a conversation. I asked him about the type of work he does, his employer, what the job entails e.t.c. Amazing! he does the job that I am inspired to do; corporate social responsibility. We talked for less than 5 minutes but, belief it or not, I learnt alot about the job that is at the top on my list of priorities.

The secret learned: There are tonnes of opportunities on our doorsteps everyday in our lives. 'the only limitation in our lives is the limitation of our thinking' (Unknown).