23 Apr 2019

From childhood, former Swiss American Security banker and CNBC television producer, Ms Abigail Stevenson has always fancied living in Africa, particularly Botswana.

BOPA caught up with the 36-year-old in Tsabong where she landed in October 2018 after leaving the glitz and glamour of New York City determined to explore and endure the rural and dusty pathways of Kgalagadi.

Ms Stevenson dropped her plum paycheck, suburban house, social circle and a comfortable life for the rough path of a Peace Corp volunteer in Botswana.

Driven by passion and the desire to make a meaningful difference in the lives of the people, Ms Stevenson says she wants to play a handson role in the bigger picture of global transformation.

She says she always thought, “there has to be something more to life, there has to be something more that I can be a part of and not just worrying about going to the next party or what outfit to put on the next day. There is absolutely nothing wrong if that is the priority of someone, but me personally, I wanted to think bigger and live a bigger life.  I wanted to take on something bigger for my life. I wanted to think global”.

Coming to the conclusion that quenching her thirst for being a global player was not going to happen with her “sitting in a cubicle, under neon lights, in an air conditioned room in New Jersey”, Ms Stevenson says she realised she had to take action.

For her, in the whole African continent, Botswana was the most attractive.

Stationed in Tsabong, where she undertakes HIV/AIDS capacity building under Kgalagadi South District Health Management Team, Ms Stevenson  says connecting with the people gives her utmost contentment.

“I have always been attracted to Africa and it’s something that I have always pushed to the back of my mind. I have always wanted to live in Botswana since I was a little girl. I didn’t understand why I was always attracted to Africa, I was thinking, have a good career, I have a good home so when the Peace Corp invited me they told me that I had three days to decide.”

She pondered on the Peace Corp invitation while sitting under a tree and did a thorough retrospection of her life. In one of the critical decision-making days, she was on a train and was still thinking about the invitation.   

Recalling the day she finally took the decision to come to Botswana Ms Stevenson says;

“I was thinking back to my childhood. I traced it back from when I was a little girl when I read a book ‘The Lady’s No. 1 Detective Agency’ that takes place in Botswana. I fell in love with Botswana when I was a kid and after having that thought, when I looked down, the woman in the train was reading that book at the exact moment when I was having that thought, and I was like this is a sign of the universe that I am on the right path. These are little synchronisms, signs that you are on the right path to your destiny.

I was like this book was written in the 1960s, what is the chance someone would read it at that exact moment?  My sister was like you should go to Botswana, it’s a peaceful country and safe.  It has an economic boom and it is safe and the people are friendly.”

For Ms Stevenson, who has led secure life with a good job a good network of friends, a vacuum nevertheless existed in her life.

“I felt like I did not belong, I felt lonely. I felt like I was doing what I was supposed to be doing, what people expected of me and not what made me happy. I felt like I was playing an act. I feel more at home in Botswana than I did in New York City and yes I know this is a very different environment but this is my home now,” she says.

She says her loneliness was worsened by the fact that she would sit in a room full of people in New York City and still feel completely alone.

“I felt like I didn’t identify with everyone all the time. I felt like I was faking it. Now I’m here and connecting with the people. I am a citizen of the globe. I don’t have a particular place that I can call home, but right now it is Botswana. It’s like I went through a shift where I started to become aware of myself and what I want out of life and now I am never lonely. I can sit by myself for hours and I am never lonely. I needed to be my own best friend,” she says with a smile.

“I have shifted everything to be a reflection of who I truly am not sitting in an executive boardroom with CEOs of companies and make PowerPoint presentations. I wanted to make a difference with my boots on the ground with the people and not reading a PowerPoint presentation. I wanted to be here and actually see the change myself and be a part of it,” she says.

Coming to Botswana was also to actualise her intention of exploring a whole new culture.

Ms Stevenson says she had lived in New York City for 18 years and had travelled to most parts of the United States and nothing there really excited her anymore.

“I thought it is time to think global, just because I was born on American soil doesn’t mean I will be there my entire life,” she says.

Ms Stevenson changed her career from the banking sector to become a television producer.

“When I switched careers, it wasn’t so much about my career, it was listening to myself becoming my own best friend and curing that loneliness. As soon as I started listening to my own instincts, I became alive, my whole life changed.

In Tsabong, the locals have given her the Setswana name Mpho and she sees herself as a gift to the people with whom she shares her financial literacy skills.

Her duties include organising Month of Youth Against HIV/AIDS activities under guidance of the district AIDS coordinator. 

“Botswana is special to me because the people are special, they are welcoming and friendly and generally just curious,” she says.

She is especially thankful to the community for supporting her every step of the way.

Upon her return to America someday, Ms Stevenson would like to go back into the media space.

 “The media is a very powerful tool; I want to make sure I am contributing to people’s lives. I want people to get inspired when they watch television. Right now there is a lot of TV reality shows where women are competing against each other- pulling their hair out, tearing their hair out, competing for a man type of thing, but I want to make a media that shapes lives,” she says. ENDS