Botswana: The Year That Was in the Arts

Botswana: The Year That Was in the Arts
Ephraim Keoreng and Maureen Odubeng
19 December 2008
The arts industry in Botswana has been growing by leaps and bounds. The Botswana Musicians Union (BOMU) is an organisation founded to protect the rights of musicians.

In the past it was known for its annual awards ceremonies, but it has proved to be more than that. It has become a strong organisation that speaks for artists, especially on issues like piracy and recognition of artists as contributors to the country's economy.

It is recognised by government and has worked with organisations like Mascom Wireless and others on a partnership basis to advance the lot of artists.

Despite its milestones, BOMU had its shortfalls this year. It has been unable to run the office efficiently due to maladministration and lack of resources, among others. This situation even affected the awards ceremony slated for the end of the year, something, which has upset many artists. For them the awards are very important. They use the awards as a grading system to measure the quality of their work.

BOMU executive member, Seabelo Modibe, believes the music industry is one key area in which government should invest. There is a lot that government should do. "If you look at the amount of billions invested in agriculture year in year out and the returns on that investment, looking at how prone Botswana is to lack of rainfall then maybe we need to focus elsewhere while developing new agricultural means through introducing technology in farming among small farmers. Botswana is the only country in Southern Africa without a national arts council," he says.

There are no facilities in this country, no public entertainment centres, no public swimming pool, no cultural village - nothing. "I feel as a union we should work hard and change the mindset of our leaders because diamonds are not forever. Arts, culture and sport should take the centre stage, as one key economic area of investment looking at 2009 Confederations Cup, 2010 World Cup, 2011 Rugby World Cup in South Africa and other international events in that country," he said.

Artists
Art is very important in that it does not only help in entertaining people, but most importantly it helps document the heritage of a people for future generations to look back and say "this is the arts of our forbearers". Botswana music, especially traditional has proven to be one of the best and most liked by tourists and even people outside Botswana.

We have seen groups like Culture Spears being invited to play for former South African president Thabo Mbeki. It is a fact that Botswana artists have been busy, both in the national and international arena. They were not just hogging the limelight but also most importantly making money for themselves. Artists like Culture Spears, Dikakapa, Socca Moruakgomo, Ndingo Johwa, Lister Boleseng, Franco, and Vee, to name but just a few, have been grabbing headlines with their amazing shows. Most of Botswana artists' works have even penetrated the southern African market in countries like Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Dikakapa even had itself nominated for the Kora awards this year.

Piracy in Botswana
Piracy in Botswana is very high. Government has been on the forefront to fight this war.
Experts were invited from the United States and South Africa and lately a Kenyan Microsoft manager was also invited to Botswana to address stakeholders like the police, artists and journalists on the issue of piracy.

The war against piracy has not been subtle, especially on the part of artists. At the beginning if the year, some went on the rampage, picking on shop owners who sell pirated goods and confiscating their merchandise (the pirated CDs and DVDs). There was one instant where an artist was involved in a fist-fight with a Chinese shop owner and ended up in jail over his pirated CD. Some of the cases went to court where it was also realised that the offending shop owners got away easily as they were fined negligible amounts.

"There has not been any significant progress in the fight against piracy and intellectual property infringement due to the fact that we don't have an independent copyright office. There are about five copyright officers manning the whole country all based in Gaborone. If you can make an assessment of what has happened since the Act was passed in 2005 you will be shocked at the slow pace of its implementation," observes Modibe.

President's Day - Celebration of Culture
Promotion of arts and culture is slowly improving in the country with government playing an active role in establishing support systems for the arts industry to start enjoying growth experienced in other sectors of the economy.

In previous years artists used to complain that government was indifferent, as it did not give any support to the arts. But it is slowly changing as it has been evidenced by not only the growth of the industry but also the increase in number of artists more particularly musicians, comedians and visual artists who are now able to support themselves through their trade.

This year's President's Day celebrations marked yet another milestone in government efforts to assist local artists to promote their works.

The President's Day holidays celebrated under the theme Towards Artistic Excellence by 2016 were dedicated to arts and July was set aside as the National Heritage Month, with the Minister of Youth, Sport and Culture, Gladys Kokorwe, explaining that the aim of dedicating July as National Heritage Month was to encourage Batswana to celebrate their heritage and culture, as well to appreciate the things that make them a nation. The holidays saw a number of competitions in different forms of art, including among others traditional music and dance, contemporary music, drama and comedy.

The finalists were selected from 12 mini festivals that were staged throughout the country and it is a step in the right direction in encouraging excellence in the arts. The long holiday also included the National Basket and Craft Exhibition.

There were many different winners who not only got cash prizes but also won recognition for their work. Drama, comedy and poetry competitions were held at Maitisong, while contemporary music competitions were staged at Tsholofelo Park. The traditional song and dance competitions were held at Sir Seretse Khama Barracks in Mogoditshane.

The government should, of course, be commended for this, and urged to continue doing more. The Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture is also doing its part, having set up a number of structures that work with artists to give them support in marketing and promoting their products. The ministry, through its Department of Culture and Youth, has a fund set aside for sponsoring art related activities, which include exhibitions, and cultural festivals.

Miss Botswana
While other forms of arts and entertainment seem to be on the right track, one of the most prestigious pageants in the country, the Miss Botswana pageant, seems to be sinking with each passing year. The pageant has continuously failed to live up to expectations. Last year, the then Miss Botswana Malebogo Marumoagae went for the Miss World show held in Sanya, China, without a chaperone and did not have money to pay for accommodation and ended up seeking shelter away from the hotel where other beauties were housed.

This year was not any different as the reigning queen, Itseng Kgomotso, left for Johannesburg, South Africa, without a chaperone, and one would have thought since South Africa is closer, money would not be too much of an issue.

Botswana Council of Women (BCW), who are the Miss Botswana licence holders, should up their game if Botswana is to continue to send contestants to pageants like the Miss World pageant.


Countries serious about sending their queens to the Miss World contest mean real business in that they groom their queens and offer them support all the way.
The Miss Botswana organisers always complain that some of their plans are hindered by lack of sponsorships, but with enough hard work, Miss Botswana should be one of the easiest events to source sponsorship for. BCW would do well to mobilise resources to revamp Miss Botswana and take it where it is should be - among the best.