“The thing that overwhelms most is the level of professionalism of native Africans in knowing how to serve a bottle of wine properly,” said Philip Crawford, a designer of luxury homes from Noosa, Australia.

From a story by The New York Times correspondent in Johannesburg on how the World Cup had changed the way “… they [South Africans] see themselves.”

Further Reading

Sovereignty beyond the nation

A new history of the interwar Latin American left recovers the rich debates over race and self-determination that shaped the region’s anti-imperial politics—and still resonate today.

Fields of dependency

As the US-Israel war on Iran disrupts fertilizer supply, Africa’s reliance on imported inputs exposes the deeper political economy driving food insecurity.

Whose progress?

A new documentary reveals how Ethiopia’s manufacturing push redistributes land, labor, and opportunity—delivering gains for some while displacing others.