Pretoria - South Africa got the thumbs up on Sunday for its role as host nation of the 2010 FIFA World Cup as international leaders sang the country's praises.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter was among the most vocal, describing the country and its citizens as role models while addressing the 1Goal Education for All Summit in Pretoria.

South Africa had set an example, not only through the hospitality the country had shown as a host nation, but also through its exceptional organisational skills, Blatter said.

"The trust FIFA has put into the country and its people have been answered with a big, big success. Thank you South Africa, thank you," he added.

Blatter joked that everyone had survived the vuvuzelas, even though it did not seem as if they would at the start of the tournament.

The Prime Minister of the Netherlands Jan Peter Balkenende also congratulated South African on the "outstanding organisation of the World Cup".

Balkenende said he had visited a church service in South Africa on Sunday where vuvuzelas were used during the service.

"It is an excellent example for other countries," he said.

The only comment the Prime Minister would make on the final match between Netherlands and Spain was to disregard octopus Paul's prediction that Spain would win the World Cup.

"Don't believe the octopus Paul because the female octopus Pauline from the Netherlands and the small bird Mani from Singapore are predicting another result.

President of the Gabon and African Union representative Ali Ondimba Bongo thanked South Africa for making the continent proud.

"The World Cup has drawn the attention of hundreds of thousands of international visitors and millions of viewers to the continent. I want to congratulate South Africa for the successful hosting of the World Cup as an African event," he added.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation Director General Irina Bokova said she was planning to take three vuvuzelas home for her children.

Source: BuaNews   

The lasting legacy of the first World Cup on African soil should be that of education.

Addressing heads of state during the 1Goal: Education for All Summit in Pretoria on Sunday, President Jacob Zuma said there was no greater legacy than that of education.

"The most important investment in the future of any nation is in education. No legacy can be higher than that," he said.

The President told the summit that there were approximately 72 million children across the world that were not going to school, and half of those children were in Africa.

The aim of the 1Goal campaign is to raise international awareness about these who children who are not in school.

1Goal aims to help the millions who do not have access to education by ensuring that governments keep their promises related to education and provide the money needed to get every boy and girl to school by 2015 or by the next World Cup in Brazil in 2014

Zuma urged the world leaders to renew their commitment to advancing the millennium Development Goals relating to education, which included giving every citizen in every society the benefit of an education.

World governments needed to redouble their efforts to ensure that the suffering of those most affected was not prolonged, he added.

Zuma called on African countries to focus on the basics, such as ensuring school fees and uniforms did not become a "barrier" to education.

"We have to fund feeding schemes to ensure that children are healthy and physically ready to study. We have to strengthen ties with community and non-governmental organisations, the religious sector and others to help us reach children in remote areas who are not attending school," the President added.

More teachers needed to be employed and trained, to improve the quality of learning and teaching, and more investments had to be made in programmes that kept children from dropping out of school, he said.

Other speakers at the summit also emphasised the need for the World Cup to leave behind a legacy that would impact on future generations.

Bafana Bafana captain Aaron Mokena told the heads of state that they had the opportunity to create the greatest legacy in one of the world's biggest sporting event in history by giving children worldwide access to education.

"We have just seen the world's greatest game celebrate its greatest tournament but now we have the chance to score a bigger goal," he said.

Mokena said the world had failed to deliver on its promise to ensure that every child in the world had an education.

He called on world governments to act quickly and decisively in providing children everywhere access to education.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter said some of the biggest names in world football including Pele, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo, as well as teams such as Manchester United and Barcelona had added support to the 1Goal campaign.

The campaign would translate into giving hope to children and youngsters across the world and hope was what the youth of the world needed, he added.

1Goal ambassador, 12-year-old Nthabiseng Tshabalala asked the leaders to give the children of the world the same opportunities they had when they were younger.

"There are millions of children in Africa and around the world who can't go to school. I think that our government and other governments should do everything they can to make sure that all children are allowed to get the education they need for their futures.

"As leaders, you had your opportunity to go to school. Please sure make that 72 million children get theirs," she said.

The African Union and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation also gave the campaign its support at the summit.

Source: BuaNews