I came here with not much knowledge about South Africa, I knew that it had a history of struggles with the apartheid, but after seeing the World Cup in South Africa last summer I didn't really think there was much of a difference between the US and the SA. I was very wrong. I am residing in the poorest most underdeveloped part of South Africa and going into the fields and seeing the villages and townships that my friends come from I can see the struggle. The main concern is education. The schools for these villages are not much but a cement building, as are most in the area. I was lucky enough to sit in a building that at least had a roof, but I sat there shivering. Most children are expected to help out a lot at home and have no time for their school work. Further, the education that they are receiving in the worn out buildings is not something that will help them compete in the developing world. More than likely most of these kids will stay in the same village, send their children to the same school, and perpetuate the poverty.
The apartheid ravished the poor blacks, many were pushed into these villages and given little help to rebuild. Education was very sub-par and to my knowledge in many areas there has not been improvement to the system. While the apartheid is technically gone the after effects have not been considered. The lack of improvement for the poor blacks is clearly seen here. The lack of building of education is also clearly seen, the national percentage of literacy is at a staggering 86.4% in comparison to the US which is at 99% and Cuba that has a literacy rate of 99.8%. The lack of education in the villages, I have learned, leads to higher rates of AIDS, unemployment, and of course poverty. This has also, sadly lead to a high rate of infant mortality, at 62% the same that it was at during the apartheid.
The people that I have met here, and I, hope to someday be able to start our own boarding school in one of the poorest villages here. The school would provide employment for local people in the community who very much need it, and provide a safe place to study and live for the children in the area. It will take work but the people here so badly want it and need it. In the upcoming weeks I plan to take a trip with some people here to one of the poorer villages to talk with the locals about their concerns around education.
It would only be one school, and one drop in the bucket, but the people here so badly plead for help that I can't help but think what one school would do for that community. Most children drop out around 6th grade, and with encouragement and belief that these kids can go somewhere better and do something more. I believe that South Africa can be a model for the rest of Africa. Hey, it has to start somewhere right?
