17 Sep 2018

A community service volunteer, Ms Direpang Segosebe, has won the prominent loyal community service award at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia.

Ms Segosebe is a role model in Botswana where she resides as a nursing officer within the greater Gaborone District Health Management Team (DHMT).

She dedicated her life to volunteering her services to the less privileged population of Botswana.

In an interview, Ms Segosebe said the award was a big achievement and did not come as a surprise because the government of Botswana once honoured her for upholding the vision 2016 pillars of a compassionate, just and caring nation as well as an educated and informed nation respectively.

She also said in 2017, she was awarded a service star by Consumer Watchdog Botswana for exceptional consumer service, and regularly appeared in newspapers where she was referred to as Florence Nightingale figure, as a result of her exceptional contribution to her community.

Ms Segosebe took it upon herself to focus on the less privileged population of Botswana including the elderly, disadvantaged children and street youth thus her achievements improved the health and wellbeing of the community around the country.

In response to Ms Segosebe’s health awareness programmes, underprivileged community members were also provided with free access to health care services including screening TB, diabetes, blood pressure, HIV testing and eye tests.

“I wish to close the stigmatisation in the public because people normally look down on street kids. I get maximum satisfaction by giving back and volunteering my services to Botswana to help those in need, ‘’she said.

Ms Segosebe expressed gratitude to the University of Southern Queensland for the momentous award. ENDS