Africa loves its football; the passion of its fans and teams throughout this world cup has been astounding. But will the fans still be singing when the game stops?

The government claims that the economic growth triggered by the World Cup will bring many out of poverty. In recent years the poverty gap has grown faster than the economy indicating that poor households have not shared in the benefits of economic growth. This suggests the economic stimulus provided by the World Cup will not benefit the poor in the way claimed. Who really benefits in a country which has recently overtaken Brazil as the country with the widest gap between rich and poor and where 57% of individuals were living below the poverty line in 2001...?

Another question raised is whether the amount spent is justifiable when so many live in poverty. The government is spending 39 billion rands on new infrastructure (roughly 5 billion dollars) – but will this infrastructure really benefit the poor?

"Who really benefits in a country which has recently overtaken Brazil as the country with the widest gap between rich and poor and where 57% of individuals were living below the poverty line in 2001."

The World Cup is expected to gross 93 billion rands (roughly $10 billion - about 0.5% of GDP) and create 174,000 permanent jobs and far more in the short term. This is summed up by Tony Samara, a specialist on South African culture, who says “In a city where you are struggling to provide housing, education, drug counseling services, in a city that is dealing with a horrible epidemic of methamphetamines - to spend that much money on building a stadium, it is a question of the allocation of resources.” And is it a smart allocation of resources for essentially a 90-minute soccer match when you have a city struggling with all these social and development issues?

In addition to this, some of the poorest of people certainly do not benefit from the prestigious tournament, for example, many homeless people have been moved to camps out of the cities where matches are being staged.

One argument for the World Cup is that “the indirect spin-offs from improved perceptions abroad could have an even greater, longer-lasting impact, not only on South Africa and its development but on the continent as a whole." This would lead to increased investment and tourism potential which is estimated to provide the 174,000 permanent jobs following the World Cup.

After all, the power of global football should not be underestimated; when civil war broke out in Burundi, football was suspended - but in 2005 when FIFA re-established links with Burundian FA, funding a new FA headquarters, football played a major part in reuniting the nation!

The Confederations Cup (staged 12 months before the World Cup as a warm up for the main event) comes with a series of training schemes sponsored by FIFA including training for an African Union of Broadcasters to commentate, interview and film better, sports medicine courses, security training to deal with stadium trouble, and extensive training in management, refereeing and coaching. These skills not only improve the quality of football structure in South Africa and beyond but also develop transferable skills which are beneficial to other areas of the economy.

So, let us hope the government is right and the sound of the Vuvuzelas can still be heard from the Cape to the Kalahari, and onwards across a continent to the streets of Cairo and beyond.

Words: Tim Heard
Photos: First pic - Flickr user krmcguire, of the South African players celebrating after scoring against Mexico in the 2010 World Cup.
Second pic – Flickr user IFRC (David Chancellor/International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent), of impoverished South African children after at game of football in Mabopane near Pretoria; a township severely affected by HIV.