2. Molaya Kgosi HerStory Documentary ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
W
FOREWORD
e would like to immensely show our gratitude to Dr Chiepe, Prof
W
Selelo Mogwe, Dr Nasha and Ms Sefhako for opening up their
elcome to the first edition of Molaya Kgosi Herstory, The making
offices and homes to us to share their lives with everyone. It’s safe to
of. It has been an amazing journey from the day we decided to go
say without them, the first series of Molaya Kgosi HerStory would not exist.
ahead with this project and every day since has been an adventure.
Our Sponsors; The United States of America Embassy in Botswana, The Department
Molaya Kgosi Leadership and Mentorship Program filters from the Young African
of Women Affairs, Sauti Arts and Performance Managing company, Gaborone Sun
Women Leaders Forum initiated by the First Lady of the United States of America
and Cresta President Hotel without their financial, technical and moral support our
Mrs Michelle Obama and is led by young Batswana women who are alumni of the
ideas wouldn’t be a reality. We thank the Ministry of Education, Secondary Education
forum. The purpose of this programme is to re-define women leadership; to empower
Department Guidance and Counselling for finding great interest in the project,
young women through exposing them to seasoned women leaders (mentorships and
enough to distribute to Secondary schools. A special thank you to all individuals who
networking) and celebrating successes of women in Botswana and the world over.
believed in this project and who provided advice pre, post and during production.
When we started the program, we wanted to reach young women across the country;
however, the breadth of Botswana tends to make it very difficult for us to penetrate to
rural areas. One of the main issues with most youth empowerment programs is their
inaccessibility to the youth in places like Xere, Motopi and Nzwenshambe; the rural
areas. We did not want to continue with this geographical discrimination and we
were looking for ways we can reach out to the prime youth of Botswana, recognizing
that young women in rural areas are more vulnerable and need more exposure and
motivation. The Molaya Kgosi HerStory series seemed like just the best mode for
achieving our goal. The goal was to inspire and empower the younger generation
through the works of the older, pioneering women who have been influential in
the development of their sectors. Also equally important was to celebrate women
leaders of Botswana; we are fortunate to be living in a time when we can still
converse with the ground breakers of the development of Botswana while in other
countries, they have to read history books to understand the work that went into
developing their countries. Given such an opportunity, it would have been such a
shame for us not to use it and our grandchildren would shame us for such a failure.
So much history has been made and the baton is being passed to us as the youth.
We won’t be the generation that will fight for independence, that will sign some
iconic mineral deals with Debeers, we won’t be the ones to establish a whole nursing
system but we are that generation that will improve on what has been made, the
generation that will build industries, the one that will find a cure for HIV/AIDS, the
generation that will end extreme poverty. There is still so much more for us and
generations to come to achieve, many innovations that are awaiting that first step.
We hope this documentary film meets expectations, is thought provoking and will
give someone, somewhere a push they need to lead their community to greatness.
All the best,
Bogolo Kenewendo
Executive producer, Molaya Kgosi HerStory
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3. Dr Gaositwe Chiepe Dr Magaret Nasha
I N
n the quest to adequately describe and capture the true description of asha; affectionately known as Nananyana was born in Kanye, South east
Ms. Gaositwe Keagakwa Tibe Chiepe we looked to various sources, Botswana. She is the first female Speaker of Parliament in Botswana.
see below for what some of them had to say. We hope this is a
fitting introduction to a woman who is all of the mentioned and more.
Nasha is a shrewd politician who has advantage of exposure for having served
“an intellectual, educator, diplomat, politician and cabinet minister of external the country as a civil servant in her heyday. This gives her extensive knowledge
affairs” – Whos Who SA of the government systems and procedures. She has worked at the department of
“...luminous career, spanning decades of dedicated civil service... pan- African Broadcasting and has served as a diplomat and the Permanent Secretary of the
peace mediator and anti-apartheid campaigner” – Proudly African Ministry of Foreign affairs and International Cooperation. She later joined politics
and has served first entered Cabinet in 1994, serving at some of the powerful
Ms. Gaositwe Keagakwa Tibe Chiepe was born in Serowe in 1925. She attended ministries of local government; where her relationship and appreciation of the
primary school in Serowe then pursued her secondary education at Tigerkloof traditional courts and Chiefs was marvelled. She has also served as the Minister
(South Africa). Following which she completed a Bachelor of Science Degree and of presidential affairs and public administration. She is very outspoken and she
Post Graduate Diploma in Education at Fort Hare, and later on attained a Masters has attracted sobriquets like “The Iron Lady of the BDP” mainly because of her
of Arts at the University of Bristol (England). She holds a number of honorary firmness. At political rallies and parliamentary debates, Nasha never ceased to
Doctrate degrees from various intitutions including Fort Hare and the University amaze. She has chaired the powerful BDP Women’s Wing with aplomb as well as
of Chicago and has received several awards such as the Commander of Royal chairing the party’s sub-committee of Political Education and Election Committee
Order of Polar Star, King of Sweden and President’s Order of Honour, Botswana. (PEEC).She has received several awards including President’s Order of Honour,
Botswana. . Nasha is a Children’s rights activist; fought for the Children’s rights
charter and established the Masiela trust fund which takes care of orphans.
Amoung the firsts accomplished by Ms. Chiepe, she was the first woman education
officer of Botswana from 1948 to 1953, as well as the first woman to be appointed a
cabinet minister. Ms. Chiepe was instrumental in developing Botswana’s education
system and is known to many as the woman who fought for free education in Botswana.
She was the Minister of Mineral Resources and Water Affairs in 1977 – 1984 during the
crucial Debswana negotiations which saw the Botswana Government become a great
player in the diamond industry and benefit immensely from diamond revenues; 35
years later, the Debswana deal contributes about 30percent to government revenues.
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4. SERARA SELELO-MOGWE JUDITH SEFAKO
M S
efhako born in Molepolole, a passionate poet is a foirmidable force in the
ogwe born in Bobonong, Central Botswana is arguably the most respected cultural sector. The term “cultural activist” appears to fall far short of adequately
name in the nursing profession of Botswana, but it was not an easy describing what Sefhako has achieved in terms of developing, lifting and
journey. Her name is a proud statement on the board of excellence at promoting the various Batswana cultural, audio and visual arts over several decades.
the Durban-based McCord Zulu Hospital where she became the institution’s
first black nursing teacher. She would go on to become the first Motswana Best known for establishing Ditholwana Cultural Ensemble which is associated
woman to earn a PhD and later become a full professor. Selelo-Mogwe. with the dizzy heights of cultural artistic performance locally and internationally
- through their numerous global tours, awards and successes. She started
Selelo-Mogwe’s performance at McCord’s training institution was so exceptional off as a Primary school teacher who had great interest in 4B, the traditional
that immediately after she earned her diploma in nursing and midwifery, the arts performance extracurricular activity in schools; her schools excelled and
hospital took her on as a teacher, even though she did not have the qualifications. she eventually decided to focus on what she loves best, promoting culture.
After completing her first degree in Canada, she tried to return home but found
that there was no planning position available for a black woman. So she applied Ditholwana took Botswana by storm in the mid-1990s with their repertoire of
to Zambia and started that country’s first school for registered nurses in Kitwe. colourful performances encompassing the music and dance from many local tribes.
The “starburst” nature of their arrival on the local scene was proved by
In 1969, Selelo-Mogwe became the country’s first Motswana Chief Nursing Officer their international tours including countries like Zimbabwe, the United
and the situation she found in the nursing profession was bleak. In order for one to Kingdom, USA and South Africa - during which they picked up several
be accepted to study nursing, they had to have failed their Junior Certificate Exam; awards and also conducted workshops for fellow traditional musos.
as Selelo-Mogwe puts it: “In order to be accepted to become a nurse, you first had
to prove you were a failure!” Selelo-Mogwe would make momentous changes in the Led by Sefhako, the group continued to climb the scales internationally,
nursing education system of Botswana during her 10-year-tenure as Chief Nursing receiving one of their biggest honours with an invitation to perform at 2010’s
Officer. First, she restructured the nursing course so that the material could be taught FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Dance groups mushroomed all over the
in three years rather than four, facing strong opposition from her counterparts in the country in varying degrees, eager to emulate the Ditholwana success.
Nurses Examination Board for Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland (NABLES). Once
again, Mogwe defied all expectations when students of the newly restructured course Beyond Ditholwana, Sefhako has successfully developed and launched
in Botswana consistently outperformed students from Lesotho and Swaziland. the Molaletsa cultural village, which offers visitors a variety of cultural
activities and traditional foods for a more holistic Botswana experience.
She then went on to pull Botswana out of NABLES altogether so that she could With Sefhako and her group having created demand for traditional music, the
establish Botswana’s own National Health Institute, and go on to restructure the international community began eagerly keeping an ear to the ground for the latest
course further so that it suited the needs of people in Botswana. The institute now from Botswana. Today, shrewd entrepreneurs are pioneering cultural tourism as
has five campuses and has educated more than 3,000 nurses. Professor Mogwe a more sustainable alternative to safari and Okavango delta-based activities,
has also been inducted into the Nursing Hall of Fame at Columbia University, USA. leveraging off the international goodwill generated by Sefhako and Ditholwana.
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5. The making of Molaya Kgosi Herstory
T
his project took us between 6-8 months; conception, garnering
support, fund raising, shoots, sleepless nights editing and finalizing.
Our first interview was with Dr Nasha, held at her office in Parliament. What a
woman! It was clear from the onset that she means business. She gave us
a full story of her life, a very open woman and we got carried away listening to
her story, if it were not for the jealousy of time we’d have loved to share all of it.
The second was Dr Chiepe, we shot her interview at her home in Gaborone. Dr
Chiepe is a natural diplomat. She is very punctual; we would find her waiting by
the gate to let us in at the exact time agreed. It was very difficult for her to own her
successes without mentioning her team throughout; a true leader who believes a
leader is only as good as her team. She is very charming and it was really tough for
us to leave her house especially with all the scones and tea, we felt right at home.
When we met with Prof Mogwe for the first time she was recovering from an illness but
she still had an incredible energy and aura. Selelo -Mogwe speaks her mind which made
her interview very interesting. She welcomed us into her home just outside Lobatse
where apart from being educated we got fed some delicious home-made goodies. She
is very hospitable, engaging and really, just a fantastic woman to spend a day with.
Lastly we interviewed Ms Sefhako who insisted on speaking Setswana,
naturally, as a cultural activist. She was very accommodative, open and
we had a feeling that at any point she’d break out into song and start
dancing; that’s the amount of energy and positivity that was present during
her interview. Her self-titled poem caught us off guard and blew us away!
Favorite Quotes and Moments
‘You think just because you are wearing pants you are better than me…?’ Nasha
‘I won 5pounds, it was a lot of money at the time…I bought a shoes, a jacket for my
uncle and a tukwi (head scarf)’ Chiepe
‘..Not someone giving it to me but earning my own (PhD)!’ Mogwe
‘I love going on tour with my group, it opens them to many opportunities..’ Sefhako
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6. Behind The Scenes Credits - Get To Know Them
Honorary:
Dr Margaret Nasha
Ms Gaositwe Chiepe
Professor Serara Selelo-Mogwe
Ms Judith Sefhako
Molaya Kgosi / BOYUNA Team:
Bogolo Kenewendo
Kabelo Ngwenya
Temwanani Karen Phiri
Koketso Majuta
Priscilla Rabasimane
Rapula Kegopilwe
Tebogo Oletile
Nomakhosi Mookodi
Bonolo Monthe
Abigail Monthe
Lesedi Moamogwe
Masedi Letsididi
Sefalana Lobelo
Poems by:
Tjawangwa Dema
Production Companies
267 Media House Kawa Entertainment
Sponsors:
US Embassy Cresta President Dept of Womens Sauti Arts and Gaborone Sun
Botswana Hotel Affairs, BW Performance
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7. Molaya Kgosi Herstory brought to you by Molaya Kgosi Women Leadership
and Mentorship program, an educational and inspirational documentary
that takes you through the lives of some of the women who were and still are
instrumental and influential in the development of various sectors of Botswana.
It gives you a first look into the lives of the following award winning women:
Dr Chiepe: Educationalist: The 1st woman MP and Minister
Prof Khupe-Mogwe: Pioneering Health Professional
Dr Nasha: 1st Women Parliament Speaker
Ms Sefhako: Cultural activist, Ditholwana
Booklet Designed By: 267 Media
House