Young, Rich, Black... And Driving An African Boom

South Africa's upwardly mobile professionals are flaunting their new wealth. But while they thrive in a resurgent country, impoverished millions are still struggling to survive in the townships

TACH Auto Central – February 7, 2006 : Writing for The Observer newspaper, Rory Carroll in Johannesburg, South Africa has written an important article about the state of black life in South Africa. Please take a few minutes to read this abstract and then Mr. Carroll’s complete story via the link below.

“They drive sleek cars, dress to kill and spend like there's no tomorrow. Twelve years after the demise of apartheid, the children of South Africa's revolution have found a way to celebrate freedom: shopping. In ways unimaginable to their grandparents, a generation of black upwardly mobile professionals, dubbed 'buppies', is splashing out in a display of power and wealth that is driving a consumer boom.

From Cape Town to Johannesburg, retailers report record sales in property, fashion, jewellery and luxury vehicles, a giddy exuberance amid the economy's sixth successive year of growth. Business confidence is at its highest in more than two decades, the rand has surged, consumers are borrowing at historically low interest rates and growth this year may exceed 6 per cent. It is a world away from the images of starving Africans that routinely fill western television screens. If South Africa's new middle class is hungry it is for more success, more money, more everything. Beneficiaries of improved education, they are forming their own businesses and snapping up jobs in state and private sectors that are encouraged to hire from 'previously disadvantaged' groups.”

See complete article at
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,1702509,00.html