20 Mar 2013

Residents of Okavango have been advised to keep the Okavango Delta clean because the swamps are the treasures, which contribute immensely to the tourism industry of Botswana.

Speaking at the award ceremony of the cleanest village in the Okavango region, the coordinator of the Trust for Okavango and Development Initiative (TOCADI) Mr Galefele Maokeng said that it was the responsibility of the villagers  to raise awareness for a cleaner and safer environment.

He advised residents that they could keep their neighbourhood clean by disposing trash into the rubbish bins, recycling cans, bottles and any paper.

Mr Maokeng underlined the importance of taking waste to the dumping site and encouraged people to make arrangements to pay for waste collection with their local council.

The Okavango senior assistant council secretary, Mr Onthatile Molelu told BOPA that the objective of the awards was to raise awareness among the community members on how to take care of their environment.

He said they were also helping the nation as it commemorated the worldwide environmental campaign.  “The main aspect is to have a clean environment and by giving villages such awards, it is a way of encouraging them to help in the clean-up campaign,” he said.

Mr Molelu thanked all the villages for working together in making sure that they took care of the environment especially the Okavango Delta, which generated money for the nation through tourism.

Under the small villages’ category, Tubu got position one for the cleanest village while the first prize for the medium villages category went to Qangwa village. Nokaneng became the cleanest village under the big villages category.

 All the winning villages walked away with a cheque of P2500 and a certificate.

The Village Development Committees (VDCs) for these villages said that they liaised with public servants, Dikgosi, community and the Green Scorpions and hosted clean up campaigns several times. They said that team work was the secret for a clean environment.

North West District Council (NWDC) chairperson, Mr Latlhang Molonda presented the awards to all the winning villages.

When giving closing remarks, councillor for Shakawe, Mr Kavetu Kangumbe congratulated all the winners and all  who contributed to having a clean environment. ENDS