The OC’s Volunteer Programme initially received 67 999 volunteer applications from more than 170 countries and after an intensive interview and screening process have now completed the process of finalising the Organising Committee, Host City and Football For Hope Festival volunteer numbers required for Africa’s first FIFA World Cup.

Volunteers will, over the coming month, undergo three days of training in each Host City, starting Friday March 12 in Johannesburg and Mbombela. In Cape Town the training will kick off on April 9 at the International Convention Centre.
They will be given general tournament, as well as area-specific training, in their functional areas, which range from administration, spectator services, broadcasting, marketing, IT, media, transport, ticketing etc. They will also undergo ‘Know your Country’ and ‘Know your City’ training, as well as a motivational session where groups of between 900 and 2 600 volunteers at a time per session will learn how to do SA Tourism’s popular Diski Dance. International volunteers selected will undergo an online training process.

“We’re confident the infrastructure required for the 2010 FIFA World Cup is now in place and our focus is very much on the day-to-day delivery of the tournament. Volunteers are absolutely integral to the success of the tournament and their training programme is critical to us at the Organising Committee. During the interview process we’ve come across outstanding men and women, young and old, in South Africa and around the world, who will help us deliver this tournament. We want to thank all those who applied and wish those who were selected well as they start their training this week. We’re convinced they will help ensure all visitors to the 2010 FIFA World Cup will have an excellent, lasting impression of our country,” said the OC’s CEO Dr Danny Jordaan.

Image from: Visual Paradox.com

The Imagine City Hall Initiative is aimed at inspiring the people of Cape Town and beyond to register their support for the development of the Cape Town City Hall as a dedicated cultural venue.

Imagine City Hall was born as an idea between the Africa Centre, Cape MIC, the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO) and Cape Town Partnership’s Creative Cape Town programme: organisations with a vision, audience base, resources and the critical support of various stakeholders to make the City Hall function as a dynamic project. The key aim of project is to garner support for the City Hall as dedicated premier cultural venue for all Capetonians, which should ideally forward the broader arts and heritage of the city and the continent.

Since 1996, the Cape Town Partnership has been working on lobbying government, carrying out research, developing a business plan and funding proposals, and establishing structures (with the support of former Mayor Helen Zille) to manage and redevelop the space as a dynamic cultural space suited for the 21st century. Now, after the Cape Town Library’s move into the refurbished Drill Hall in 2009, the space it had occupied for close to 40 years is ready for an injection of new life.

The first glimpse of its possibilities will come when the Africa Centre uses the grand old spaces for the Spier Contemporary art exhibition from 13 March – 14 May 2010. The exhibition is designed to use the space in a dynamic way to attract and engage both seasoned art critics and those who have never attended an art exhibition. For the duration of the exhibition, the venue will also house a cafe and a shop, as well as hosting regular events by outside initiatives as well as workshops for children.

The re-imagining of the space will take into account the important heritage of the building. The classic lines of the 1905 Italian Rennaissance building, juxtaposed with the exhibit of contemporary artworks, provide a natural focus for the Central City’s cultural renaissance.

The partners have turned to social media to engage citizens in the project. A Facebook group has been set up. There are already close to 500 fans, and their comments reflect their wide support for the project.

Musician Tina Schouw wrote: “I think this is a great initiative. I fully endorse the City Hall’s role as a cultural hub… it could be the place to inspire and grow upcoming artists through the sharing of creative tools for their development.”

The group also inspires people who performed in the Hall as youngsters, such as Richard Martin who says he remembers “our school band at Florida Primary playing at the City Hall in the 70’s…I later returned to play a brass concert with BBSA (Moravian Brass)…funny this was also the place where the Arch (Tutu) and Jonathan Butler appeared together in the 90’s with the same hairstyle…”.

For further information about the project read the City Hall explanation or watch the video.

Triple XTERRA world champ, South African Conrad Stoltz, was first to cross the finish line, winning the 55km race. “I stopped three times to refill my water bottles. Pros don’t stop,” Conrad explained when asked about the heat. Also known as “The Caveman,” American-based Stoltz was impressed with the course: “It’s of a high technical standard and really challenged the riders.”

Meurant Botha, Co-Organiser of the MTB Challenge, is very happy with how the revised format, which saw the event taking place over two days, worked out. “Saturday had a more laid-back family vibe, whilst Sunday was noticeably more competitive with some great racing. This is exactly how we envisioned it.”

Due to the extreme heat, the event doctor, Dr Basil Bonner from MediClinic, enforced a cut-off on the 55km route at 10h30. “This was 90 minutes earlier than we had originally planned. Our first priority at events of this nature is the safety and well-being of the participants. The extreme conditions necessitated the enforcement of the early cut-off.”

Despite the heat wave, a record number of cyclists took part in this weekend’s MTB Challenge, the country’s biggest mountain biking event. “There’s a wonderful atmosphere here at the Boschendal Wine Estate. Both days saw parents picknicking on the lawns while their offspring played in the Canal Walk kiddies zone. Our family-friendly set-up plays a large part in the event’s phenomenal success,” commented Botha.

The Imagine City Hall Initiative is aimed at inspiring the people of Cape Town and beyond to register their support for the development of the Cape Town City Hall as a dedicated cultural venue.

Imagine City Hall was born as an idea between the Africa Centre, Cape MIC, the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO) and Cape Town Partnership’s Creative Cape Town programme: organisations with a vision, audience base, resources and the critical support of various stakeholders to make the City Hall function as a dynamic project. The key aim of project is to garner support for the City Hall as dedicated premier cultural venue for all Capetonians, which should ideally forward the broader arts and heritage of the city and the continent.

Since 1996, the Cape Town Partnership has been working on lobbying government, carrying out research, developing a business plan and funding proposals, and establishing structures (with the support of former Mayor Helen Zille) to manage and redevelop the space as a dynamic cultural space suited for the 21st century. Now, after the Cape Town Library’s move into the refurbished Drill Hall in 2009, the space it had occupied for close to 40 years is ready for an injection of new life.

The first glimpse of its possibilities will come when the Africa Centre uses the grand old spaces for the Spier Contemporary art exhibition from 13 March – 14 May 2010. The exhibition is designed to use the space in a dynamic way to attract and engage both seasoned art critics and those who have never attended an art exhibition. For the duration of the exhibition, the venue will also house a cafe and a shop, as well as hosting regular events by outside initiatives as well as workshops for children.
The re-imagining of the space will take into account the important heritage of the building. The classic lines of the 1905 Italian Rennaissance building, juxtaposed with the exhibit of contemporary artworks, provide a natural focus for the Central City’s cultural renaissance.

The partners have turned to social media to engage citizens in the project. A Facebook group has been set up. There are already close to 500 fans, and their comments reflect their wide support for the project.

Musician Tina Schouw wrote: “I think this is a great initiative. I fully endorse the City Hall’s role as a cultural hub… it could be the place to inspire and grow upcoming artists through the sharing of creative tools for their development.”

The group also inspires people who performed in the Hall as youngsters, such as Richard Martin who says he remembers “our school band at Florida Primary playing at the City Hall in the 70’s…I later returned to play a brass concert with BBSA (Moravian Brass)…funny this was also the place where the Arch (Tutu) and Jonathan Butler appeared together in the 90’s with the same hairstyle…”.

Joe Bloggs writes: “This is an awesome building and sad to see it in the state it’s currently in. It’s in the city centre and hence it should be a symbolic central melting pot of culture utilised by the greater public of Cape Town. Concerts, events & exhibitions is a fine starting point.”

Further information about the project is at http://www.creativecapetown.net/imagine-city-hall-explained/ or watch the video.

Contact Beryl Eichenberger at 021 556 8200 / 082 490 6652 or Zayd Minty, Creative Cape Town Co-ordinator at 021-4191881

• It has been legislated that schools will be closed for almost over four weeks during the World Cup – Think about what you’re going do with your kids;
• Air tickets to Cape Town (for example) may cost about R8 000 per seat as some flights will have to leave the same night after a game due to accommodation problems in some places around the country. Flights will operate 24 hours. Expect NOISE. Expect TRAFFIC around airports at all hours;
• Fresh veggies and fruit will be scarce, if not even unavailable, during this time. For the World Cup in Germany, these had to be imported;
• Traffic will increase by about 30% at the times of the games as fans go to stadiums, Fan Fests and even Public Viewing Areas (PVAs). The best time to fly will therefore be while matches are on!
• Road areas around stadiums will be closed off;
• It is expected that 550 000 people will be travelling to/from matches and 100 000 per match day… expect considerable delays on match days;
• There will not be parking available at airports – so arrange drop offs;
• Close to 5 000 buses will be operational countrywide and there will be restrictions on truckers/hauliers, etc., so you need to plan with clients – especially regarding containers needing haulage; and
• “Fan Fests” will be a huge attraction and traffic to/from those areas will be congested. At one Fan Park in Germany in 2006, 500 000 people pitched up.

Along with being an ex-Manchester United and England goalkeeper, South African Gary Bailey is a 2010 FIFA World Cup Ambassador, and together with ex-Bafana Bafana goalkeeper, Andrew Arendse, run the informative website Gameplan 2010.

The mobile kiosk, which provides visible security in a range of locations in the city, has made a huge contribution to security in the city.

Tasso Evangelinos, Chief Operations Officer of the CCID told City Views the kiosk will be delivered this week. The kiosks will be placed where there is a need. “We change the locations daily,” he said.

Muneeb Hendricks, Security Manager for the CCID told City Views: “The mobile kiosks allow us to be visible in key locations. For instance, since acquiring our first safety kiosk, we have taken it to events, hotpot areas like Senator Park and other problematic locations.

“Our whole modus operandi is visibility and deterrence. The main aim of CID security is to prevent crimes from happening, as opposed to reacting after they happen. We try to make our strategy as preventative as possible.”

The security kiosk makes sense as no one will commit an offence in front of a security officer, says Hendricks. “We determine where our problematic areas are and then send the kiosk along.”

“We were thrown in the deep end with Senator Park, but had remarkable results there – drug dealing and general crime decreased considerably in the area just due to the presence of the mobile kiosk. It definitely works. We have ordered a second one. My plan is to have one kiosk per precinct.”

Another advantage of the kiosk is that it serves a number of purposes: “It carries all the CCID information. We provide maps, phone numbers which tourists & locals might need and information related to the city, such as CCID profiles, emergency contact numbers and restaurant guides. So, if a tourist gets lost, he or she can ask for directions, or get a map. If he or she wants to know where to eat, he will be helped with a restaurant guide.”

According to Hendricks, the kiosks are available to sponsors. “Buy one and you can brand it,” he urged people who want to kill two birds with one stone – by helping towards security in the city and marketing their product at the same time.
Evangelinos said he is currently negotiating sponsorship for two more mobile kiosks.

“The objective is to place two kiosks permanently near the Hotels & CTICC on the Foreshore. Our two current ones will be placed in Upper Long Street, near Senator Park, and on St Georges Mall and surrounds. I’m hoping for a fifth kiosk (another sponsorship) and that will be placed on Grand parade and surrounds after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The exhibition, from the Gordon Institute for Performing and Creative Arts (GIPCA), uses fine art, architecture, language and literature to critically explore the urban landscape and how it is constructed.

Third Worlds: Model Cities incorporates architectural models, photographs, an isiXhosa glossary, text and multimedia. Local settlements – such as Barcelona and Kosovo – are featured as are their ‘other’ namesakes, building a connection between different landscapes.

The collaborators are Tessa Dowling (Professor of South African Languages at UCT); Harry Garuba (Professor of English and African Studies at UCT);Svea Josephy (photographer and Senior Lecturer at Michaelis School of Fine Art); Noëleen Murray (an architect and academic affiliated with the Centre for Humanities Research at the University of the Western Cape and previously with UCT’s Centre for African Studies) and architect Carson Smuts, along with assistance from John Coetzee, Lorenzo Nassimbeni, Justin Brett and Shafiek Matthews.

The interdisciplinary research to investigate land and identity in a changing South Africa allows cities and built structures to be critiqued in a way that would not possible through a solely architectural approach.

Third Worlds: Model Cities is the result of a GIPCA Creative Arts Award. GIPCA was established to enhance the arts at the University of Cape Town and facilitate a broad range of collaborative and interdisciplinary projects that use the arts to explore culture and knowledge.

Third Worlds: Model Cities will run at the Michaelis Gallery, Hiddingh Campus, Orange Street, Cape Town from 18 February to 19 March 2010. The gallery will be open from 10.00 to 16.00 Monday to Friday. Entrance is free.

For more information about GIPCA and the exhibition contact Niek de Greef on (021) 480 7156 or email niek.degreef@uct.ac.za or visit www.gipca.uct.ac.za

The CCID will assist Correctional Services by providing logistical support to them as well as on a strategic level, by helping create opportunities to people who want to leave their lives of crime and turn their lives around.

Muneeb Hendricks, Security Manager for the CCID said with more than 200 CCID officers walking the streets of the central business district 24/7, it makes perfect sense to co-operate with Correctional Services.

We will become a force multiplier by providing logistical support to them. We will be extra eyes and ears for the department. For instance, if someone has absconded or not met their parole conditions, a photograph will be circulated to us and we will act on that information.By contributing our services, this closes the net on criminals. We will also use our data bases to help close the net further on these criminals.

We will also assist from a social development level. There are many people in the city who want to turn their lives around. They want a second chance. We try to help create opportunities for them by providing skills training programmes. We do this in collaboration with the CCID social department and a range of non-governmental organizations, says Pat Eddy, Social Development manager for the CCID.

Carpenters’Workshop met recently with officers from the Correctional Services Department to firm up the cooperation agreement.

The Correctional Services department has already started with 30 people on a programme through which they will be employed by Communicare. The 30 people will be trained in tiling, painting and plumbing. A similar project was due to start with Balco in February, which would target 20 offenders.

Praising the Correctional Services Department for these initiatives, Tasso Evangelinos, the COO of the CCID said: “The CCID wants to develop programmes which will place people ,who are on parole , who don’t want to be involved in crime, and who want to become constructive members of the community. We want to assist in creating opportunities for them.”
The partnership between CCID and Correctional Services was cemented in December when they supported each other in a security operation during one of the many raid on Senator Park.

“It is this kind of co-operation and partnership that will result in a win win situation,” Evangelinos said.

The exhibition Mandela – Leader, Comrade, Negotiator, Prisoner, Statesman, is a rich and nuanced account of Mandela’s legacy.

Presented in Cape Town for the first time, the exhibition was produced by the Apartheid Museum in collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the Nelson Mandela Museum and the Department of Education.
The story explores Mandela’s extraordinary life in thematic sections: character, comrade, leader, prisoner, negotiator and statesman. Within each theme, the narrative is presented through visual wall displays, supported by films.

Iziko’s Education and Public Programmes Department has developed a lively educational programme as well as other youth development programmes to accompany the exhibition, which will be on display for at least a year.

The award-winning cartoonist, Jonathan Shapiro, more commonly known as Zapiro, also pays tribute to Nelson Mandela in his exhibition entitled: “Drawing on Madiba”. The exhibition comprises a collection of Zapiro cartoons reflecting the highlights, lowlights and controversies surrounding Mandela.This exhibition will run concurrently to the Mandela exhibition at the Iziko Slave Lodge and concludes its run on 18th April 2010.

Quick facts:

• Venue: Iziko Slave Lodge, cnr. Adderley and Wale Streets, Cape Town
• Contact: Fiona Clayton (Mandela Curator) – 021 464 1262 or Joe Dolby (Zapiro- Drawing on Madiba) – 021 467 4682
• Slave Lodge reception desk – 021 460 8242
• Opening times: 10h00 – 17h00
• Admission: Adults: R15, Children, students and pensioners: R5, School groups: R5 per learner