13 Nov 2024

Ben Thema Primary School has been awarded the Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation for 2024, in recognition of the school’s contribution toward the promotion of mutual understanding between Japan and Botswana.

 Speaking at the opening of the 11th Exhibition of Tsuzuki-Botswana Children’s Exchange in Gaborone on Tuesday,  Japan Ambassador to Botswana Mr Setsou Ohmori said the school had shown commitment and dedication to the promotion of cultural exchange between the two nations over the past decade.

 He said the painting exchange programme dated back to 2008 when students of Chigasaki Primary School in Japan started learning about Botswana through the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD IV) in Yokohama.

He also said since the end of TICAD IV, more than 1 000 paintings done by the learners had travelled back and forth between the two countries.

 He further said the project provided opportunities for children in both countries to develop capacity to disseminate their culture and promote human exchange and interactions.

 Ambassador Ohmori said the exhibition was unique in that it displayed paintings of both Botswana and Japanese daily lives through the eyes of primary school pupils.

 He said viewers could enjoy the contrast between the two different cultures.

The Ambassador said he wished that the painting exchange programme would continue in the years to come, making relations between Japan and Botswana closer.

 For her part, Ben Thema Primary School head teacher, Ms Boitshoko Mokgethi said she was grateful for the award.

Ms Mokgethi said initially they took the project light,  just as a way of sharing pictures but later realised there was more to it.  ENDS