healing

Father Michael Lapsley came to South Africa from New Zealand as a young man. In his adopted home, he could not ignore the horrors of apartheid. For his contribution to peace and reconciliation, he was recently named the recipient of the Public Peace Prize 2016 in the category "Global Peace and Reconciliation – Internationally Reputed Peacemaker".

People from more than 100 countries have already signed up for the online "global forgiveness challenge", conceived by Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu and his daughter Mpho. "Forgiveness is not something we do for others, we do it for ourselves and this then impacts all those around us," says the former archbishop.

South Africa has set up a medical research unit to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of traditional African medicines, to develop new remedies for chronic conditions, to safeguard indigenous knowledge, and to provide consumer information and protection.

Tired of the traditional drug approach? Try the Mai Mai Market in downtown Johannesburg. There's over 170 stalls dedicated to traditional African medicine or "muti", with herbalists and healers of every description - as well as a range of traditional clothing and artefacts.