Brazil’s decade

So here I am on my way back from Brazil... What an eye opener. Travel should be mandatory for everyone. (Hey, how many places outside of South Africa do you think Julius Malema has been to?)



Travel opens up your mind; the experience of different cultures allows you to gain perspective. Brazil is the ninth largest economy in the world. As a member of the BRIC (Brazil, India, Russia and China), it's poised to be an even larger economic powerhouse.

This decade, Brazil will host both the Football World Cup and the Olympic Games. It has a population of 178 million people (census 2003), concentrated in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Minas Gerais containing approximately 41% of the total. Twenty million of whom live in Sau Paulo alone (that's almost half of the South African population in one city)!

Seeking opportunities

We were there seeking 2014 and Olympic opportunities – just when you thought we were happy with just our FIFA World Cup. We went with a South African Tourism delegation by invitation from Brazilian Tourism.

We spent two days in Rio and Sau Paulo. In Rio we visited the Estádio do Maracanã, the home of Brazilian football - which is being refurbished for 2014. Christ the Redeemer, Sugar Loaf, Copacabana, and some business interest such as the various expos they exhibit such as the Trade, Construction and Furnishings of Stadia, Sports Expos and the annual Rio Oil & Gas Expo.

The nightlife in Rio is incredible; it is like a happy, crime-free South Africa. I kept thinking if I were South Africa I'd be like: "I want to be like Brazil when I grow up"

While Rio was more tourist-focused, São Paulo was about commercial partnerships. We presented to a conference made up of about 30 people, including the president of the Brazilian tourism authority and the executive director of the LOC in Brazil.

SA's learnings from 2010

The basis of the presentation was South Africa's learnings from 2010. SA Tourism gave a fascinating presentation about the programmes it ran, such as Fly the Flag, Diski and an online initiative where they followed couples from India, UK and America throughout their 2010 journey in South Africa. I presented services we can offer for agencies working on 2014 and a representative from Merchants (the call-centre outsourcing division of Dimension Data) presented learnings from the call centre industry.

We also met the South African Consulate, the SAA Regional Office and the largest football federation in Brazil – the FCC. I also met a sports marketing agency that has made volleyball the second-most popular sport in Brazil.

Learning about my trip is probably of no interest to you, I know, but the exposure I got to Brazilian commerce, aspirations and spirit is worth 10 x business class tickets if you want to follow the world cup to Brazil and, in fact, many other opportunities. That country is going places, and we have to get involved.

I am excited and it doesn't hurt that I was upgraded to business class on the journey home; it will leave me with just enough energy to go and register for a Portuguese course when I land.

Tchau (bye)!