10 Mar 2016

Poet, Batshidi Moeti, has praised the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture (MYSC) for making her dream come true by showing interest in sponsoring her up-coming trip to  the Caribbean Island.

The President’s Day Competitions winner, who made great strides in poetry, was invited by the Umoja Communication Company to take part in 2016 Piton International Film Festival (PIFF) in the Caribbean Island of St. Lucia from August 15 -26.

This trip, according to 23-year-old Moeti, would make her realise her dream of penetrating the international market through her talent.

She would be part of a showcase concert and poetry dubbed: Praising Positive Energy (PPE) aimed  at promoting artists who use their talents to earn a living and make the global community a better place.

After receiving the invitation, Moeti appealed to the business community, government departments and private companies for sponsorship.

She needed a sponsorship to the tune of P76 500 to honour the invitation.

Moeti said the ministry, through department of youth in Maun, agreed to assist her with funding amounting to P32 000 adding that the funds would cover costs for flight to and from St Lucia.

She also approached several companies of which she was still looking forward for their responses. The Umoja Communication Company indicated that it was ready to work with any company which sponsored her trip.

The company indicated that all the companies that had assisted her should forward their companies’ names and logos to be placed on flyers and also to be displayed during the taping of shows during the PIFF 2016.

The companies would also had the opportunity to penetrate the international industry as each would be given a 30 minutes radio interview to market itself and services before and after the festival.

However, Moeti was invited to take part in the festival because of her sterling poetry work. 

The festival would focus on education, collaboration and celebration instead of competition. It would also bring together artists to inspire and influence the global community in a positive and uplifting manner.

Umoja Communication Company also wanted Moeti to be the official voice for Piton International Film Festival (PIFF) in Botswana. PIFF is an organization that prides itself in connecting with people using their God given talent to make the world a better place.

Moeti explained that the festival would give her a platform to sell the beauty of her country hence opening doors for future endeavours between the two countries.

She dide several interviews with the company every Tuesday and she explained that March was a month of women who had made history in their countries through their significant contribution.

“I have identified Mpule Kwelagobe and Amantle Montsho as they had put our country on the map through their sterling performances. I consider them as my role models hence I decide to talk about them,” she added.

As part of her preparations, Moeti would perform at this year’s South African Theatre Festival schedule for Pretoria in March 19-20.

She would be part of a showcase concert dubbed: Poet Explosion.

Shealso noted that she was writing her poems that she would use at the international festival adding that she managed to record some of the poems.

She is also eyeing the President’s Day Competitions billed for July this year. 

The vibrant poet together with other artists intended to organise a mini festival where they could discuss issues of networking to take the industry to high levels.

One of the festival organizers from Umoja Communication Company, Ed Umoja revealed that they expected Moeti to open a branch in Botswana as the Caribbean Island of St. Lucia was looking forward to working with people of Botswana on many poetry and film projects as a way of networking globally with artists and film makers in over 200 different countries. Ends