South Africans' confidence in the country's ability to host a successful
2010 Fifa World Cup is on the increase, with 76% of South Africans believing
the country will be ready - up 6% from the last reading - according to
market research company African Response.
The results of the African Response 2010 Barometer for November 2007 -
the quarterly survey has been running since March 2006 - reflect the views
of 1 199 respondents, representative of the South African population,
who were interviewed in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban between
July and September.
According to the survey, 67% of South Africans are confident that the
public transport system will be ready by 2010 - up from 59% in the previous
quarter - with Johannesburg residents the most confident at 78%, possibly
due to visible progress with the Gautrain rapid rail link construction.
Seventy percent of South Africans feel that the country's
roads will be ready for the demands of the world's biggest sporting event
- a 16% increase over the previous survey - while confidence in South
Africa's airports being ready for 2010 increased from 71% to 77%.
Confidence in SA's ability to meet the World Cup electricity demands increased
slightly, from 52% to 57%, while confidence in policing and security for
2010 rose from 55% to 62%.
Will Bafana Bafana be ready?
According to the survey, South Africans' confidence in their national
soccer team's readiness for the tournament increased by 4% to 56% in the
third quarter - with Johannesburg residents again leading the way at 69%,
and Capetonians the most sceptical at 46%.
At the same time, African Response reported increases in the number of
South Africans who:
- Have attended a sports event over the last two years - 46% (+1%)
- Are likely to attend a 2010 World Cup match - 57% (+4%)
- Are likely to watch some 2010 matches on television - 86% (+0.5%)
The survey also found that the public are growing to like the 2010 Fifa
World Cup logo, with 64% of South Africans indicating their approval compared
to the previous quarter's rating of 55%.
Are border formalities a concern?
In its latest survey, African Response asked South Africans to express
their opinion on the relaxation of border formalities in preparation for
World Cup.
This derived from the news that Zimbabwe, Zambia and Mozambique are hoping
to play a role in 2010 by offering "border free" tourism packages
to World Cup visitors.
Fifty-one percent of South Africans disagreed that border formalities
should be relaxed to ensure that the passage of travellers through border
posts would be swift and trouble-free, while 37% believed that border
formalities should be relaxed.
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5 December 2007
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