18 Jan 2022

In Setswana, names are not merely given. There is always a meaning attached to any given name; whether it is a name of a person, a place or an animal.

Similarly, Tsokatshaa, formerly a lush grazing land now turned recognised settlement has a story behind it. The settlement like many others across Botswana was established to integrate marginalised communities into the mainstream society.

Originally spelt Chwakgaatshaa, the settlement situated 85 kilometers west of Nata is now the principal home to three tribes namely; Basarwa, Bakalaka and Bahurutshe although other groups have also settled in the area over the years.

Botswana Press Agency (BOPA) team recently caught up with Mr Gabalekane Nashadu, 92, headman of Arbitration for Mazana ward who gave a recollection of how this place of abode with 640 people as per the 2011 population census got its name.

The entire narration as is often- times the case was not without intrigue. The settlement, he relayed derived its name on the backdrop of a harrowing incident that culminated in the death of the wife of one Tsebanana a long time ago.

Tsebanana, according to Mr Nashadu, was among the first settlers in the area, way before the official recognition of the settlement in 1980. “Oral history has it that the woman met her fate after drinking water from a pound as was common at the time,” he relayed.

The irony here is that elephants had no qualm drinking the same to quench sweltering heat prevalent in the area. The long and short story is that the incident set tongues wagging and left a lot of questions without answers.

All and sundry then came to a conclusion that the drinking spot was only a preserve for the jumbos hence the place was christened; ‘Chwakgaatshaa’ loosely translated ‘only elephants can drink this water’.

Mr Nashadu affirmed the original spelling of the name had been twisted over the years for reasons he and other residents were not privy to. Since its elevation to a recognized settlement status, several developments had sprung up all over the place, including portable drinking water. A primary school, clinic and kgotla offices are among government’s facilities that beautify the settlement.

Agriculture remains the mainstay of the residents of the settlement; thanks to numerous government interventions geared towards the improvement of the socio-economy of the people.

Area Social and Community Development Officer, Mr Tsotlhe Motlogelwa shared with BOPA that plans were at an advanced stage to construct a multi-cooperative as an economic empowerment initiative for the people of Tsokatshaa.

“The construction of the actual building has finished. The next phase will be the fencing and ultimately stocking. Other than providing goods and services, the project is expected to create employment for a number of settlement dwellers especially the youth. ENDS