Zakumi | |
Genre | Sports, Comedy |
---|---|
Anime television series | |
Directed by | Alexander Wong |
Produced by | Patrick Keller |
Written by | Andries Odendaal |
Original network | |
Original run | 2010 |
Episodes | 22 |
Zakumi the Leopard was the official mascot of the 2010 FIFA World Cup [1] held in South Africa. He is an anthropomorphized leopard with green hair who was announced on September 22,2008. [2]
His name comes from "ZA",the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code for South Africa,and Kumi,a word that means "ten" in several African languages,signifying "South Africa 2010". [3]
"He wants to create a good mood for the fans and raise the excitement for the 2010 FIFA World Cup,the first on African soil. He is a proud South African and wants to ensure that the world will come together in South Africa," explained Lucas Radebe,South Africa's football icon and close friend of Zakumi. [3] |
Andries Odendaal,from Cape Town,created the original character design [2] and the promotional costume was produced by Cora Simpson[ citation needed ]. The leopard's birth date[ citation needed ] coincides with a day known and celebrated as Youth Day in South Africa.
The green and yellow (gold) colours of the character match the colours used in South African sport uniforms [4] and can also be seen on the South Africa national football team's kit.
The official motto of Zakumi is "Zakumi's game is Fair Play",first seen in the digital advertisement boards during the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup,before appearing again in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. [5]
Following the World Cup,a 20-episode animated series aired called "Zakumi". [6] The series was created by Korean group Jidou Studios,whose YouTube page contains 8 of the first 10 episodes. [7] Limited information remains about the series,and it is considered partially lost. [8]
A contract for the manufacture of Zakumi figurines was awarded to a company owned by Dr. Shiaan-Bin Huang,who is an ANC representative member in the South African Parliament. [9] [10] The manufacture of the figurines was outsourced to Shanghai Fashion Plastic Products in China. [9] The value of the contract was in excess of US$112 million[ citation needed ].
Due to concerns over the loss of jobs in the South African manufacturing sector,the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) suggested that more merchandise be sourced locally. [11]
The allegation of sweatshop conditions at the Shanghai Fashion Plastic Products factory led to an audit by Global Brands Group (master licensee of the brand FIFA World Cup 2010),which revealed a number of non-compliance issues with policies of GBC. [9] The manufacturer denied the allegations of sweatshop conditions and claimed that the working conditions at the Shanghai Fashion Plastic Products factory were "very good". [12]
Polokwane,also known as Pietersburg,is the capital city of the Limpopo Province in South Africa. It is the country's largest urban centre north of Gauteng. It was one of the nine host cities of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Johannesburg is the most populous city in South Africa with 4,803,262 people,and is classified as a megacity;it is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. It is the provincial capital of Gauteng,the wealthiest province in South Africa. Johannesburg is the seat of the Constitutional Court,the highest court in South Africa. Most of the major South African companies and banks have their head offices in Johannesburg. The city is located within the mineral-rich Witwatersrand hills,the epicentre of the international-scale mineral,gold and (specifically) diamond trade.
A sweatshop or sweat factory is a crowded workplace with very poor or illegal working conditions,including little to no breaks,inadequate work space,insufficient lighting and ventilation,or uncomfortably or dangerously high or low temperatures. The work may be difficult,tiresome,dangerous,climatically challenging,or underpaid. Employees in sweatshops may work long hours with unfair wages,regardless of laws mandating overtime pay or a minimum wage;child labor laws may also be violated. Women make up 85 to 90% of sweatshop workers and may be forced by employers to take birth control and routine pregnancy tests to avoid supporting maternity leave or providing health benefits.
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup,the world championship for men's national football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. The bidding process for hosting the tournament finals was open only to African nations. In 2004,the international football federation,FIFA,selected South Africa over Egypt and Morocco to become the first African nation to host the finals.
Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa.
Eskom Hld SOC Ltd or Eskom is a South African electricity public utility. Eskom was established in 1923 as the Electricity Supply Commission (ESCOM) (Afrikaans:Elektrisiteitsvoorsieningskommissie (EVKOM)). Eskom represents South Africa in the Southern African Power Pool. The utility is the largest producer of electricity in Africa,and was among the top utilities in the world in terms of generation capacity and sales. It is the largest of South Africa's state owned enterprises. Eskom operates a number of notable power stations,including Matimba Power Station and Medupi Power Station in Lephalale,Kusile Power Station in Witbank,Kendal Power Station,and Koeberg Nuclear Power Station in the Western Cape Province,the only nuclear power plant in Africa.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions is a trade union federation in South Africa. It was founded in 1985 and is the largest of the country's three main trade union federations,with 21 affiliated trade unions.
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Bob Shop,formerly Bidorbuy or bidorbuy.co.za,is a South African e-commerce website based on an internet auction and online marketplace. Transactions on Bidorbuy are in South African Rand.
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Pravin Jamnadas Gordhan was a South African politician and anti-apartheid activist who held various ministerial posts in the Cabinet of South Africa. He served as Minister of Finance from 2009 until 2014,and again from 2015 until 2017,as Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs from 2014 until 2015,and as Minister of Public Enterprises from February 2018 until June 2024,when the entire Department of Public Enterprises and its ministry were abolished following the 2024 general elections.
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