South African Youth Statistics

Hey Everyone,
I found this article in a local magazine and thought it was very interesting. Check it out and feel free to post any comments.
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If South Africa was represented holistically in terms of 100 young people (aged 5-15) in a room, it would look something like this:

80 are Black
9 are White
9 are Coloured
2 are Indian

50 live below the poverty line

50 will not work in the future

18 are HIV positive

24 speak Zulu as their first language
17 speak Xhosa as their first language
14 speak Afrikaans as their first language
8 speak English as their first language

30 are unlikely to be married by 35

57 live in urban areas

2 head a household

17 say Nelson Mandela is their role model
12 say Rebecca Malope is their role model
5 say President Thabo Mbeki
10 have no role model

68 believe racial prejudice still exists

51 are homophobic

75 attend township schools
53 will continue until grade 12
36 will complete it
8 will go onto University

3 have had abortions
41 have had sex
29 are regularly sexually active

6 have used cocaine
11 have used heroin
6 use club drugs
11 have used inhalants
23 are binge drinkers
21 smoke cigarettes

17 have tried to commit suicide

30 have been in a fight this month
14 are in a gang
17 have recently carried a weapon

8 have forced someone to have sex

0 have lived under structural apartheid
100 live with its economic effects

Birthday in South Africa

On June 9th, I celebrated my 23rd birthday in South Africa. This was the first b-day I did not celebrate in Canada. At first it all was a bit weird, being away from friends and family. As the day went on, it became a bit better.

Apparently, there is a South African tradition to pour water on the person who is having the birthday. I came home for lunch and Abey and Saratu decided to continue the tradition. I was quite soaked and then Bende came home and got me again. I can't wait for someone else's birthday so I can join in myself.

In the evening, everyone made me a very Canadian birthday supper - Steak! This was the first time I have had steak since getting here so I really enjoyed it!

Children's Day

On June 4th, Me and a few members from the Epiphany program took 30 children to the Johannesburg Zoo. All the children we took were from an HIV/AIDS orphanage called Cotland's. Cotland's has both a sanctuary for children who have been orphaned due to HIV/AIDS and a hospice for children living with the disease.

We had been planning the day out since I had arrived in Jo'burg because we wanted to make it special for the children. The food for the event was sponsored by Shoprite & Coca-Cola. Shoprite donated about 60 oranges and Coke donated 48 drinks. When the kids saw the 8 of us walking up with all those oranges and drinks they were so excited. We decided to give them the food at the beginning of the day so they could focus for the rest. A slight misjudgement by us. These treats made the kids super hyper. This made the experience a bit more interesting to say the least.

Overall, both the kids and the hosts enjoyed the zoo a lot. I especially loved seeing all the animals I had never got to experience in Canada. This particular zoo boasts over 340 different species of animals including: elephants, lions, polar bears, giraffes, and monkeys! The entire place was so big we could not take it all in over the course of a day!