It is easy to be negative about 2016‚ but there were a lot of good things about this year.
For our continent‚ the year saw life expectancies rise by 9.4 years‚ with Malawi achieving a 67% reduction in children acquiring HIV and Liberia eradicating Ebola within its borders.
Worldwide, it was the year that saw the amount of money needed to beat world poverty dip below the amount of money being spent on foreign aid‚ no increase at all in carbon emissions‚ and with the end of conflict in Colombia, less than a sixth of the world in a war zone.
Today we look back at some of the good news for SA in 2016.
SA says "no" to anti-gay hate pastor
Pastor Steven Anderson‚ known for celebrating the murder of gay people in the US‚ was denied entry to SA.
Botswana let him in‚ only to promptly deport him.
"This is to confirm the Pastor Steven Anderson‚ a citizen of the United States of America‚ has been declared a Prohibited Immigrant and as such is being deported from Botswana‚" its government said in a brief statement.
HIV/AIDS vaccine trial launched
A total of 5,400 South African men and women signed up for a trial of what may be the world’s first HIV/AIDS vaccine.
"HIV has taken a devastating toll in SA, but we now begin a scientific exploration that holds great promise for our country‚" said Glenda Gray‚ head of the vaccine trial in SA.
Taxis protect fallen biker‚ chase hit-and-run driver
Elrich Engelbrecht‚ the son of DA MP Bronwynn Engelbrecht‚ was knocked off his motorbike in a hit-and-run on his way to the University of Pretoria (Tuks) Mamelodi campus.
Taxi drivers used their vehicles to form a cordon to protect the downed biker‚ one of them offloaded a paramedic to help him‚ and another tried to corner the red Citi Golf that had hit him.
"My deepest gratitude to all the amazing people: Francois the student‚ the amazing taxi drivers‚ the Tshwane paramedics and the Tshwane Metro that crossed my son’s path and demonstrated that we are a GREAT nation of CARING PEOPLE!" Bronwynn Engelbrecht said on Facebook.
Bigotry ends in a big tip
SA has seen a lot of racism this year‚ and it is easy to give in to hatred.
When Ntokozo Qwabe boasted about his friend Wandile Dlamini telling a white waitress "WE WILL GIVE TIP WHEN YOU RETURN THE LAND", Sihle Ngobese disagreed.
He tracked down the waitress and gave her a R50 tip‚ starting a pair of internet campaigns that ended up with her receiving over R130‚000.
President Zuma #paidbackthemoney
After years of fighting over the upgrades to his private residence in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal, 2016 was the year that President Jacob Zuma finally agreed to pay back at least some of the money.
Okay‚ the bank that loaned Zuma the money to #paybackthemoney ended up facing a cash crunch at its Thohoyandou branch‚ but it still counts.
TMG Digital
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