Mpule Kwelagobe Children’s Centre is a 100% government-owned centre that is mandated with the provision of temporary residential care, psycho-social support, care and protection to orphans and vulnerable children in Botswana. The centre was donated by Debswana Mining Company and accommodates children from all over Botswana.
Outlining the objectives of the cultural day, the Centre’s Coordinator, Ms Kebabonye Nthobatsang said that culture is very crucial, in a child’s upbringing as it moulds them into future responsible citizens hence today’s event. These children are only here temporarily, so it is very important that they are taught their culture so that when they eventually rejoin with their communities, they are not left behind in terms of cultural activities, said Nthobatsang.
Furthermore, Ms. Nthobatsang disclosed that these children spend a lot of time in the centre and end up missing out on a lot of things outside. They should be accorded time to learn and know about what is happening outside the centre, because ultimately they would be going back to their communities.
Amongst the cultural activities, the children were taken to masimo, and dikgotla to learn how things like dikgafela are done; traditional food recipes which were on the menu for the day included logala, kabu, mosotlhwane etc.
According to Ms. Nthobatsang “children need to know the different types of traditional food in the society and everything that has to do with their culture like traditional games and attire such as makgabe and tshega for girls and boys respectively.” The day was characterized by traditional music, drama and traditional cuisine and games such as morabaraba for the kids.
In closing, Kgosi Segale Letshele reiterated the importance of culture in a society and even quoted the words of former President’s words which coincidentally was also the theme of the event; “A nation without culture is a lost one”.