30 Jul 2023

Organisers of the Desert Bush Walk have been commended for their contribution towards community development and building an inclusive society through their initiative.

Since inception, the initiative has not only raised funds towards developing the communities in various ramifications but also promoted sport tourism across the borders.

Vice President, Slumber Tsogwane said this during the eighth edition of the annual charity walk in Jwaneng on Saturday.

“Through this walk, the organisers have donated up to P2 million towards various projects. The walk is gaining popularity and currently promotes and brands Jwaneng and its environs as a tourism destination for both local and international tourists under a cultural and sports tourism portfolio,” he said.

He noted that the concept resonated with the government’s initiatives of fighting non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which are currently on the increase in the country.

The VP said physical activity, through such initiatives, would go a long way in reducing the risk of NCDs such as Hypertension, Stroke, Cancer and Diabetes.

“The rising burden of NCDs in the country is of great concern to the government of Botswana and it is also a threat to the achievement of Vision 2036. Therefore, the prevention and control of NCDs has been prioritised and several approaches instituted, such as extending the mandate of the National AIDS and Health Promotion Council in 2018 to also address the health promotion and prevention of NCDs, most importantly to focus on the risk factors of NCDs,” he noted.

Consequently, Mr Tsogwane solicited for support for the Desert Bush Walk from various stakeholders, saying their respective efforts would contribute towards building a legacy that would uplift the communities while at the same time promoting economic diversification and good health for Batswana.

Furthermore, he requested the organisers to consider channeling part of the proceeds towards funding research and innovation at the University of Botswana. He noted that as a country that aspired to be knowledge-based, the importance of research on various fields could not be over-emphasised.

The organiser, Mr Archibald Ngakayagae said even though this year’s event was a success, they could not cater for more people beyond the 3 500 participants due to sponsorship constraints, regretting that some companies did not fulfil their pledges.

He therefore called on organisations to support the initiative for them to register more participants in the coming events.

“Our event is mainly determined by the sponsorships that we receive hence the number of participants depend on such. Apart from organising merchandise, medals and refreshments for participants, we also have to use the same funds for the charity projects that we are mainly about, so it is important that organisations support us so we can cater for more people,” he said.

One of the participants from Matlosane Hiking Club in South Africa, Tumelo Letswalo said the sandy terrain made the event an interesting challenge for hikers.

“Normally we do long walks divided over a couple of days, but this one was the longest I have done in a day, and it was difficult due to the different terrain,” he said. ENDS