29 Jul 2014

The director of Ebat Lodge, Ogomoditse Maruapula, has said the annual Meet Africa event is aimed at bringing together all Africans residing in the greater Francistown area.

Speaking in an interview during the event on July 26, Maruapula said his lodge decided on bringing the Africans together once a year after the realisation that there were people from all over the continent in the greater Francistown area.

He said the interactions gave people from different countries an opportunity to showcase their attire, traditional cuisines, dance and songs. Maruapula said before the annual event came into existence in 2012, there was nothing in the greater Francistown that brought the different nations together.

“We came with the idea of Meet Africa at Ebat so that all Africans could have something to look forward to every year,” he said. He said for a long time, the African culture was told by non-Africans and they felt there was need for Africans themselves to conceptualize the uniqueness of their culture.

In addition, he said the event also helped the youth to learn different cultures and also promoted partnerships from different stakeholders. One of the sponsors of the event, First National Bank of Botswana (FNBB) Branch Manager, Delvin Jannie said his bank sponsored the event as part of its corporate social responsibility.

Jannie said as an African bank, they support the promotion of African culture and they want to see the event growing to become Meet the World at Ebat.

A Textile, Design and Technology Lecturer at Francistown College of Technical and Vocational Education (FCTVE), Seithati Philime said Meet Africa at Ebat accorded the students an opportunity to also showcase their creativity.

Philime said the poverty eradication group exhibited their products and were in the process getting exposure and potential customers. ENDS