183 Final Project

Historical Fragmentation and Modern Innovation in South Africa

           South Africa’s history is one that is filled with a plethora of hardships; perhaps too many. These are the types of hardships that have been defined by racial tension, financial instability, and corruption. Due to its industrialization, many consider the country to be one of the few First World countries in its continent, although it is so isolated from the rest of the world. Much of what South Africa has been able to accomplish as of recent has been quite remarkable, given its fractured past. South Africa has become more environmentally sustainable, it has improved the public sectors of its economy, and perhaps most notably, it has given its citizens the opportunity to connect on the internet. In this paper, I will discuss South Africa’s tough, although short, history, and how the country has been able to overcome suppression and corruption with initiatives to create more technological connectivity.

            The first contact of the country was by the Dutch East India Company in Cape Town in 1652. It was used as a place to grow crops, and slaves had also been imported there from Eastern Africa. In 1820, British settlers arrived and used it as land to create colonies. From then on, Southern Africa saw years of gruesome warfare, including the Anglo-Boer/South African War from 1815 to 1915, where hundreds of millions of dollars were spent, and 71,000 people total died. Shortly thereafter, The Union of South Africa was created in 1910 with the inclusion of the four colonies: the Cape, Natal, Transvaal, and Free State. In 1921, “the South African Communist Party was established at a time of heightened militancy… More discriminatory legislation was enacted” (History, n.d.). The newly established country was facing internal tensions that looked to have no end in sight.

            From 1948-1994, South Africa was defined by the Apartheid era. This form of segregation, which lasted almost five decades, still carries lingering effects in the country pertaining to economic and social inequality. South Africa at the time, a country where 20% of its citizens were white, was ruled by the minority. Blacks and other non-white people were stripped of basic human rights and were unable to interact with white people. The idea of Apartheid came about when the Nationalist Party took over the country, and, subsequently, “Millions of black citizens were forcefully removed from their homes, restricted and confined within tribal homelands according to their ethnicity” (AUHRM Project Focus Area: The Apartheid, 2016). In addition, the economy was growing at a somewhat slow pace, as there was little to no foreign investment or trading. Although, many described some periods of this era as the Apartheid Boom since many countries were severely affected post-World War II.  But, as the 1900s progressed, political groups emerged with the intent of ending the authoritarian rule. Many activists were suppressed and jailed, but the government was forced to succumb due to the decades of isolation.

            When Apartheid ended in 1994, South Africa’s constitutional democracy no longer consisted of race. It elected the country’s first president in May of 1994, Nelson Mandela, who, was also black. It was an extraordinary achievement for the nation, seeing as blacks were forbidden from political positions for the previous 46 years. Mandela’s priorities were to reverse the Apartheid policies and revive the economy. The first course of action from his administration was the Reconstruction and Development Programme in the first year of his term (The Nelson Mandela Presidency – 1994-1999, n.d.). The RDP’s main purpose was to create jobs, build housing, and provide healthcare for all marginalized groups. In 1996, the Growth, Employment, and Redistribution Act was introduced, which was a macroeconomic policy to liberalize the economy (The Nelson Mandela Presidency – 1994-1999, n.d.). Mandela stood as a figure to reestablish race relations, while also improving the lives of those who had lost so much. The economy during his presidency saw inflation drop 9% (from 14% to 5%), the budget deficit drop 6.5% (from 8% to 1.5%), and interest rates drop from 16% to 9% (Davies, 2013). South Africa’s future was looking upwards. The problem was, the economy essentially doubled while the effects of Apartheid, like high unemployment, remained. Mandela’s successor was a man named Thabo Mbeki, who held the role from 1999 to 2008. Mbeki notably was involved in foreign affairs, such as the creation of the African Union. It was said that he was calling many of the shots under President Mandela. Mbeki did not recognize any dissidents and provided many controversial statements, such as the denial of the HIV epidemic in Africa (Schmidt, 2016). Mbeki was ultimately unable to help the country’s socioeconomic problems. In an article by the International Peace Institute, Mbeki’s presidency was described as a legacy parallel to the African identity. He was eventually forced to resign his presidency for misuse of power, partially in relation to trying to take down his main competitor, Jacob Zuma, who was Deputy President at the time.

            Jacob Zuma became South Africa’s President after Mbeki, and he held the role from 2009-2018. The root of South Africa’s modern corruption and demise begins with Zuma. And with the sudden rise of the internet, big data, and connectivity occurring towards the beginning of his presidency, it could not have come at a worse time. In hindsight, Zuma could not have had a worse reputation as President and was riddled with scandals and corruption. Jacob Zuma had faced indictments twice before finally being charged again in 2021 with 16 counts of corruption, fraud, and money laundering. There were various instances in which he engaged in illegal activities, but the first was the 1999 South African Arms Deal. He was charged alongside French arms manufacturer, Thales, where he illegally benefitted from bribing the company for weapons, tanks, aircraft, etc. Conversely, Thales was bribing Zuma to win tenders. People initially scoffed at the deal due to the cost of the package (30 billion Rands) and how the arms were obtained (Zintle Mahlati, 2021). Zuma was a very polarizing figure, much like former American President, Donald Trump, who coincidentally is also facing indictments of his own. He had many friends, and, perhaps his closest, were the Gupta brothers. The Gupta family emigrated to South Africa from India, and it was responsible for multiple extremely successful business ventures in the country in the technology and financial sectors. But they are directly tied to Zuma and the state capture of South Africa, which is why they fled the country for the United Arab Emirates in 2016. State capture is defined as “a form of corruption in which businesses and politicians conspire to influence a country’s decision-making process to advance their own interests” (Arun, 2019). In exchange for this, the Gupta’s had “lucrative” contracts with the government where they were able to appoint officials. In all, the public sectors that were categorized as captured were finance, natural resources, and technology, as well as the tax collection and communications government agencies (Arun, 2019). As a result, South Africa was left without tens of billions of dollars. In the indictments, as well, include Zuma abusing journalists covering the issues, tax evasion, and non-disclosure of payments with benefactors.  This led to Zuma being sent to prison for 15 months on June 29, 2021, and South Africa’s economy had been left in shambles due to his illegal activities.

            It is safe to say that South Africa’s economy came second to business interests in Zuma’s mind. Under him, South Africa averaged a staggering unemployment rate of 25.4%, and the average GDP growth rate during his presidency was 2.1% (South Africa’s Economic Performance Under President Jacob Zuma, 2018). Furthermore, many foreign investors began looking elsewhere due to such a weak currency. By the time Zuma exited as President, the South African Rand had depreciated 84%. This is how Zuma left the South African economy, all the while globalization faced an exponential trend in technological growth. In 2018, when Zuma’s presidency ended, the percentage of internet users in South Africa was 62.4%, and within two years, this number jumped over 10% (Galal, 2022). South Africa is regarded as the most advanced economy in all of Africa, yet its high poverty rate had left so many unconnected. Just as comparison, 72% of residents in Venezuela penetrated the internet in the same year. In 2016, South Africans launched an initiative, #DataMustFall. South Africa had the most affordable data and Wi-Fi plans in all of Africa, yet many were unable to afford it. Much of what this initiative set out to do was create more internet access for students to become more educated and literate. The problem is that South Africa ranked 66th globally for internet costs, and the economy was simply making these companies unable to lower the prices without entering a deficit (Prior, 2020). In 2019, newly elected president, Cyril Ramaphosa, promised South Africans a reduction of 50% in data prices in the State of the Nation speech after adequate inquiry of the market and infrastructure.

            In terms of data accessibility and suppression, South Africa has had a generally open policy. Since 2000, there has been the Promotion of Access to Information Act, which allows the constitutional right to access all information, and sections have been amended multiple times to protect peoples’ rights (An Overview of South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act, 2023). Nonetheless, internet accessibility in the continent of Africa has long been a challenge. In November of 2021, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, South Africa’s Minister of Communications announced a plan to bring internet to all South African homes by 2024, a country that currently sees 23% of its households without internet access (Monzon, 2022). We have already begun to see other initiatives underway working to accomplish this goal. Project Isizwe has emerged as a non-profit advocate for human rights for internet access in South Africa. Its goal is to provide Wi-Fi zones to residents of underprivileged communities at a very low cost of 5 Rands, or $0.33, per day. It also provides 250 megabytes of data, free of charge, to eligible residents. (Monzon, 2022). There is also a company called Fibrepoynt, which is part of the Technology Innovation Agency of South Africa and is bringing antenna-based internet to the whole country. This is essentially faster internet for everyone and is the equivalent to AT&T Fiber Optic Internet in the United States. The goal of the TIA in the creation of Fibrepoynt, as stated on its official website, is not only putting, “South Africa on the map but responds to the socio-economic challenges and the country’s strategic broadband imperatives to make internet accessible to everyone.”. One of South Africa’s priorities is bringing affordable and efficient internet to those who are unable to access it. With the economic revival and the riddance of many of the problems, such as corruption, South Africa has been able to put much of its focus into the vitalization of technological advancements.

            The origins of the country of South Africa began in the early 1900s after British colonization. It has endured great hardships where the citizens of the country only saw glimpses of hope for themselves. The Apartheid era in South Africa, which resulted in some of the inequality that exists today, saw the minority controlling the majority. Basic rights were stripped, and hatred was created. With the following leaders of the country, decades were defined by corruption, denial, and economic suffering. The arrest of Jacob Zuma in June of 2021 showed South Africans that the country can withstand injustice and, subsequently, that they are entitled the same freedoms and amenities that much of the world enjoys. South Africa, in just these few short years following the massive undercutting of the law, has put in a massive effort to make internet accessible to all of its citizens. My main point for writing this paper is to show how far the country has come in such little time.

Works Cited

Arun, N. (2019, July 14). State Capture: Zuma, the Guptas, and the sale of South Africa. BBC News. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-48980964

AUHRM Project Focus Area: The Apartheid. AUHRM Project Focus Area: The Apartheid | African Union. (2016, December 13). Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://au.int/en/auhrm-project-focus-area-apartheid

Davies, M. (2013, December 9). Nelson Mandela: His Economic Legacy. BBC News. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/news/business-23041513

Galal, S. (2022, August 2). South Africa Mobile internet user reach 2027. Statista. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/972866/south-africa-mobile-internet-penetration/

History. South African Government. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.gov.za/about-sa/history

Monzon, L. (2022, March 22). The challenges in getting internet access to all South Africans – it News Africa – up to date technology news, IT news, Digital News, Telecom News, mobile news, gadgets news, analysis and reports. ITNewsAfrica.com. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.itnewsafrica.com/2022/03/the-challenges-in-getting-internet-access-to-all-south-africans/

The Nelson Mandela Presidency – 1994 to 1999. South African History Online. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/nelson-mandela-presidency-1994-1999

An Overview of South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act. Consent Management Platform (CMP) Usercentrics. (2023, April 11). Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://usercentrics.com/knowledge-hub/south-africa-popia-protection-of-personal-information-act-overview/

Prior, B. (2020, August 2). #DataMustFall – The Complete Story – mybroadband.co.za. Retrieved April 24, 2023, from https://mybroadband.co.za/news/telecoms/341887-datamustfall-the-complete-story.html

Schmidt, A. (2016, June 15). Adebajo: Mbeki Legacy is African identity. International Peace Institute. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.ipinst.org/2016/05/thabo-mbeki-philosopher-king-book#5

South Africa’s Economic Performance Under President Jacob Zuma. South African Market Insights. (2018, September 5). Retrieved April 23, 2023, from http://www.southafricanmi.com/jacob-zuma-sa-economy-5sep2018.html

Zintle Mahlati, S. M. (2021, May 26). These are charges Jacob Zuma pleaded not guilty to in his corruption trial. Independent Online. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/these-are-charges-jacob-zuma-pleaded-not-guilty-to-in-his-corruption-trial-c4f74f81-3f2e-4e31-836f-83fea1579679