According to Matheson (2010), when legacy planning is untimely and when no evaluations are performed at key stages of the mega-event (that is, from pre-event to post-event), problems are likely to occur. Bob and Swart (2010) rearticulate that the legacy concerns that have given rise to the debates in the academic literature surrounding mega-events are the massive financial investments that are required by the host countries, especially those in the developing world. Furthermore, van der Merwe (2007:68) states:
Mega-events which are hosted in the developing countries can be termed a ‘mixed blessing’ since, although they may bring promise of numerous economic benefits and the hope of uplifting the host nation in a number of ways, these events also tend to be the ‘source of much controversy’, and if not carefully planned, can lead to enormous financial losses.
Ritchie and Adair (2002) emphasise the importance of legacy planning for host destinations.
They state that, without careful strategic planning that keeps the destination and community development in mind, it might be difficult to justify the large investments that are required to host the event. Bohlmann and van Heerden (2005: 393) advocate the need for comprehensive legacy planning, which could ensure that “hosting a mega-event would contribute to the development of the community, and thereby benefit residents for a long period of time”.
Figure 3.7 below illustrates the five key components of a legacy programme that are relevant to the 2010 FIFA World Cup and to the building of a positive legacy for the African continent. The figure illuminates the fact that the strongest legacy results are likely to be achieved by using a comprehensive programme comprising five components which are initiated at the bidding stage and refined throughout the mega-event life cycle. The implementation of such a programme should help to ensure that the goal of masterminding the legacy is integrated into the overall vision of the event (A.T. Kearney, 2005: 5).
Figure 3.7: The five components of a legacy programme Source: A.T. Kearney (2005: 6)
According to Matheson (2010: 12), venue and infrastructure improvements have ranged from housing and tourist accommodation projects, through transportation and communication developments, water system and sewage disposal plant improvements, city developments, to the creation and development of sports, entertainment and leisure facilities (Andranovich et al., 2001).
As was mentioned previously, in November 2006, the African Legacy Programme, which was made the joint responsibility of the South African government and of the LOC, was initiated in response to the objective of making the 2010 FIFA World Cup an African event, which
Stakeholder management Key stakeholder support for
building a lasting legacy is crucial to planning and
recruiting resources.
Leveraging event resources The legacy programme can be accomplished through knowledge transfer,
and funded by mega-event resources.
Branding and sponsorship With the right branding, the legacy programme should be independently funded by businesses and organisations.
Socio-economic development The legacy programme must fit into a wider national agenda directed towards
social and economic development.
Community mobilisation The legacy programme can kick-start the
process, but community leaders and citizens must drive lasting social change.
Pursuing the right initiatives Securing funding and support
would leave a lasting legacy for the entire African continent. Cornelissen (2011b: 514) explains:
The LOC and national government’s Africa Legacy Programme had four aims: to support the achievement of the goals contained in the concept of the African Renaissance and the objectives set by continental frameworks such as the African Union and the New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development; to ensure high levels of participation in the tournament by the African Union and the New Economic Partnership for Africa’s image globally as a means to counter Afro-pessimism.
The programme aimed to support the realisation of African Renaissance objectives, by means of such programmes as the NEPAD, which was devised by the AU to ensure maximum and effective African participation during the 2010 event. The programme also aimed to strengthen, develop and advance African football, as well as to improve Africa’s global image, while it also aimed to overcome any remaining Afro-pessimism (Department of Sports and Recreation, 2008). The African Legacy Programme received strong support from key stakeholders, including FIFA, CAF, the UN and the AU. For example, the 8th Assembly of the AU Heads of State and Government reaffirmed its undertaking to become fully and substantively involved in the preparations leading up to the hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Member states also pledged all-round support and urged the international community to provide the necessary support to South Africa for the event (Department of Sports and Recreation, 2008).
According to the South African government (South African Tourism, 2007), projects embarked upon under the African Legacy Programme fell mainly within the domains discussed below:
Peace and nation-building: Driven by former African Heads of State and the UN, the initiatives undertaken in this domain are aimed at supporting those continental efforts that promote peace, nation-building and democratisation in Africa. The projects envisaged in terms of such initiatives include the Peace Caravan, which is a campaign that focuses on countries that have experienced social challenges for protracted periods of time, and on interactions with the relevant key stakeholders (Department of Sports and Recreation, 2008).
Football support and development: The domain includes initiatives that are directed at building football-related capacity. Such initiatives included working with other partners on the continent towards developing administrative and refereeing prowess as well as toward
developing advanced coaching and medical expertise skills (Department of Sport and Recreation, 2008).
Environment and tourism: In terms of this domain, the initiative, which had been dubbed
‘The Greening of 2010’, focused on the following issues of concern: waste management, water and energy savings, sustainable stadium maintenance, sustainable transport solutions and carbon savings; using the funds that were raised to support awareness campaigns.
Although the focus of the initiative was on South Africa in particular as the host nation, related opportunities for continental collaboration would also be investigated. The hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup was expected to make a significant impact on the increasing of awareness about those environmental issues that affected the lives of all those living on the African continent (Department of Sports and Recreation, 2008).
Culture and heritage: Projects in this domain were to be implemented with full and active participation from key arts and culture stakeholders, including traditional leaders. Such projects included the training of young curators from different parts of Africa in the field of art, culture and heritage issues; the training of young translators from different parts of the continent in different languages; the establishing of a museum dedicated to the display of contemporary African art; the organising of numerous pan-African arts, craft and music festivals; and the arranging of annual African Legacy conferences to be held on the continent (Department of Sports and Recreation, 2008).
Communications and information communication technology: The 2010 FIFA World Cup event provided a unique communication opportunity for African communicators to express and to promote African solidarity; to market the continent and to improve international perceptions; to promote the continent to visitors; to promote values supporting peace and development; and to create a positive communication climate, in which to promote development and to expand opportunities. Such an opportunity was made possible both by the intense world attention that was focused on the event, and by the continent’s ability to control global news during the event (Department of Sport and Recreation, 2008).
Continental security cooperation: The 2010 FIFA World Cup presented a unique opportunity for the creation of a legacy which was characterised by enhanced cooperation amongst countries. Such cooperation effectively enabled the addressing of those security threats that affect the continent such as terrorism, the cross-border smuggling of illegal substances and
human trafficking. Legacy spin-offs in this regard include the joint training of security service members to combat crime, the establishment of mechanisms directed towards securing joint control command, the implementation of additional control and communication systems aimed at promoting cooperation in respect of peace and security in Africa, and the use of South Africa’s National Security Framework, which had been devised for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, as a blueprint for future mega-events that would be hosted on the African continent (Department of Sports and Recreation, 2008).
Though several initiatives have already been adopted in relation to the legacy objectives mentioned above, careful planning and implementation by the stakeholders was to determine how successful and sustainable the programmes concerned ultimately would be. A.T. Kearney (2005) notes that by devoting time and dedicating the resources required for planning and implementation, host nations and regions could secure a positive future long after the event concluded. In addition, the OECD (2010: 16) cautions:
A legacy programme should be driven by robust leadership and implemented with dedicated resources and skills which are distinct from the efforts required to host the event, but co-ordinated effectively with them. Much evidence suggests that the efforts required to stage the event are all consuming and the resources allocated to it cannot be expected to deliver on all of the legacy activities and wider benefits at all.
According to Smith and Fox (2007), a clearly designed and implemented legacy programme is likely to generate a number of positive benefits for the host destination community and for stakeholder groups. Although several legacy programmes had been designed and implemented for previous mega-events, the African Legacy Programme was rather unusual, simply because it aimed to achieve a continent-wide legacy as opposed to a legacy that was confined to the host country, South Africa.
However, the design of the African Legacy Programme has been criticised either for being rather overly confident, or for South Africa having advanced and strengthened its own position thereby. Tawfik-Amer (2011) argues that by using the African narratives, South Africa’s aim was designed only to gain African support for its bid. Whatever the case might be, what is lacking in the analysis of the legacy impacts of the 2010 event in Africa according to the aforementioned objectives, is in relation to the extent to which the leveraging of the objectives was achieved.