Her Zulu name means strength. It could just as easily mean hope, though, or courage, or tenacity – all attributes that are immediately noticed as soon as she speaks. She is also a friend to many, a star pupil, and yes, even an aspiring lawyer.

Mandisa is one of the young teens living at St. Vincent Children’s Home, an orphanage in the small community of Mariannhill, South Africa. Tucked away in the far southwest corner of this missionary community, past the overflowing hospital, past the two elementary schools, past the historic convent, the children’s home lies along a narrow path that forms once the main road ends. The cluster of small brick buildings constructed by Trappist monks over a hundred years ago overlook a former cow pasture, and the congested cinderblock homes of Mpola township crowd the opposite hillside. The buildings of the orphanage form a cloistered square of wild grassy patches and a rickety swing set – a rudimentary, even primitive play space by our western standards, but likely the only place of comfort and safety that the children have ever known.

Like Mandisa, most of the children at St. Vincent’s come from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa’s most impoverished province. Over half of the population in the province live on less than two dollars per day. Over a quarter of the people are infected with HIV, making KwaZulu-Natal among the hardest hit areas in the world by the AIDS pandemic. Devastated by poverty and by disease, the communities whose children end up at St. Vincent’s struggle to attain even the most basic needs. Without intervention such as employment, schooling, or an adopted family with greater resources, these are the communities to which the children will return when they reach the maximum age of eighteen years old at the orphanage.

So it was with a torn heart that I responded when Mandisa first confided to me her dreams of becoming a lawyer. “A lawyer!” I exclaimed, “you’ll make a great lawyer!” And the truth is, she would. She speaks better English that most of the other Zulu-speaking children at the orphanage, better even than probably the kids in the surrounding townships. Equally confident around children and adults, foreigners and South Africans, strangers and friends, Mandisa exudes a sense of vibrancy, maturity, compassion that make her both a leader and a friend. Yes, the question is not if Mandisa would make a great lawyer, but if she could. Lacking both financial means and a supportive environment that could encourage her through the process of continued education, Mandisa faces formidable challenges to pursuing her dream.

South Africa is a middle-income country which lies on the southern tip of Africa. This beautiful country is bounded by the Atlantic and Indian
Oceans. Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe lie on its North, while Swaziland and Mozambique lie on its East. Although the country is
categorized as a middle-income country, it is blessed with abundant natural resources that help in boosting up its economy.

Even though, many cities and towns constitute S.A, advanced development is significant in four major areas only which are: Port Elizabeth, Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban. Unfortunately, the other parts of the country aside from these four major areas manifest poverty and poor development. However, some of these areas are recently showing growth in economic development.

Unlike highly industrialized countries, development in third world countries is rather slow. Despite this reality, South Africa utilizes its resources and skills in establishing global trading. The three major exports for which the country is famous for are diamonds, gold, and platinum.

These three major products are exported into the United States, Japan, United Kingdom, China, and Italy. All these other countries rely mainly on the country for the supply of these goods. The country was able to export $7.5 million worth of products and merchandise to the United States alone in 2006. Over the years, the amount of S.A’s export significantly increased, thus improving the economy of this country.

The United States has established trading with South Africa which is manifested in the export-import commitment that these two countries have entered upon. In fact, the United States is exporting an exuberant amount of merchandise to the country as well. The top three major imports of the country from the United States include chemicals, machinery, and petroleum products. Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Saudi Arabia import some goods to South Africa as well. These countries import energy, capital goods, food, and fuel to S.A.

Aside from chemicals, machinery, and petroleum, the United States also import telecommunications equipment, new and used passenger cars, materials handling equipment, trucks, buses, special purpose vehicles, civilian aircrafts, and industrial machines.

Based from the amount of these imported goods, fuel seems to be taking the top priority. South Africa imports not only petroleum, but coal as well. This only shows that there is a great need for fuel in the country. Food products such as corn, oats, barley, and sorghum are some of the fastest growing imports too.

The import and export activities of South Africa are well guided by the Foreign Trade Organization which establishes guidelines and requirements for export and import activities. Duties, taxes, and import surcharges are imposed by the organization for the protection of the
trading ventures of South Africa.