07 Nov 2017

President Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama says government continues to promote the diverse cultural heritage of the country through various programmes to develop the arts and crafts to a level where the producers are able to earn income from their work.

Delivering the State of the Nation Address on November 6, President Khama said the President’s Day Competitions remained a key programme in pursuit of this goal, adding that participation levels in the competitions had grown from 3 274 in 2008 to 18 971 this year.

He said the number of categories in which artists competed had at the same time increased from 25 to 58.

That growth has resulted in the prize money awarded to artists also rising from P1 million to P4.6 million over the same period.

To further promote arts and crafts, President Khama said government had taken the lead in allocating P10 million to procure art and crafts as well as performance services from local artists.

He said on September 30, Botswana celebrated 51 years of Independence under the theme: 'United and Proud.'

In this respect, President Khama urged Batswana to continue to use their national symbols and colours as an expression of their patriotism. ENDS