Andrew Watson: The 'most influential' black footballer for decades lost to history

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  By Andrew Aloia BBC Sport Last updated on 11 October 2021 11 October 2021 . From the section Football Watson was a trailblazer who helped transform how football was played There are two murals of black footballers facing one another across an alleyway in Glasgow. One helped shape football as we know it, the other is Pele. Andrew Watson captained Scotland to a 6-1 win over England on his debut in 1881. He was a pioneer, the world's first black international, but for more than a century the significance of his achievements went unrecognised. Research conducted over the past three decades has left us with some biographical details: a man descended of slaves and of those who enslaved them, born in Guyana, raised to become an English gentleman and famed as one of Scottish football's first icons. And yet today, 100 years on from his death aged 64, Watson remains something of an enigma, the picture built around him a fractured one. His grainy, faded, sepia image evokes many differen...

Zimbabwe becomes first nation to exempt SADC countries from visa requirements

 


Victoria Falls, located on the Zambezi River, at the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe, is the largest waterfall in the world, measuring 1 708m wide and 108m high. Photo: Armand Hough/ANA Pics
Victoria Falls, located on the Zambezi River, at the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe, is the largest waterfall in the world, measuring 1 708m wide and 108m high. Photo: Armand Hough/ANA Pics


By IANS, Travel Reporter Time of article published Jul 9, 2021

Harare - Zimbabwe has become the first country to exempt all member states of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) from visa requirements.

SADC is a regional economic community whose goal is to further regional socio-economic cooperation and integration as well as political and security cooperation among 16 countries in southern Africa, Xinhua news agency reported.

Zimbabwe's Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Frederick Shava made the remarks in an official statement, saying: "Regarding the implementation of the visa exemption among SADC Member States and the facilitation of free movement of SADC citizens within the region, I wish to highlight that Zimbabwe is the first and only country that has exempted all SADC Member States from visa requirements, other SADC Member States are undertaking internal processes to ensure that SADC citizens can travel freely in the region."

African countries are relaxing visa rules for each other to boost trade and tourism facilitated by the historic free trade agreement, AfCFTA, ratified by African Union (AU) member states.

AfCFTA is an African free trade area established in 2018 to create a single continent-wide market for goods and services and to promote the movement of capital and people.

Natural beauty and value for money

For those who are planning on visiting the country, you’ll be pleased to know that travelling to Victoria Falls has never been cheaper, with return flights starting from R2 990, according to Kulula.com.

Victoria Falls, located on the Zambezi River, at the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe, is the largest waterfall in the world, measuring 1 708m wide and 108m high.

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