19. South Africa

This chapter provides an analysis of sport development, transformation, policy development, participation, and systems development in South Africa. This perspective is provided against the backdrop of exciting developments in Africa where sport and development initiatives have been growing rapidly in popularity. This chapter shows that South Africa’s sport system and structures simultaneously address the divisiveness of its apartheid past and establish a foundation for an inclusive and competitive sport performance framework. In terms of governance and organizational development for sport and development initiatives, the discussion provides an overview of the transformation phases including streamlining seven independent sport institutions into two macro-sport institutions. The National Sport System in South Africa rests on two institutional pillars, namely, government and civil society. Civil Society sport is structured through the nongovernment South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) at national level, nine regional sport confederations, and a range of district and city sport confederations. This chapter also deals with sport at schools, sport participation, participation rates, and top sports. It was found that South African sport policy and the associated legislation are comprehensive in its content and strategic focus although the monitoring and evaluation system to assess performance are still evolving. An analysis of the policy and strategy system of sport and recreation in South Africa shows that although an important basis has been laid in terms of the White Paper, the Act, and the National Sport and Recreation Plan, much still needs to be done to establish a well-synchronized policy, implementation, and performance management system.