30 Oct 2022

Learners and teachers need a conducive learning and teaching environment to excel, South African High Commissioner to Botswana, Ms Thaninga Shope-Soumah has said.

The high commissioner commended Dikgatlho  JSS head, Mr Emmanuel Kwape for reaching out to her office to help contribute in addressing some of the school’s needs.

She said this during a visit to Dikgatlho Junior Secondary School in Kudumatse.

Her entourage that included South African Deputy High Commissioner, Mr Rondee Sherman, Office of the South African Business Forum representative, Mr Ofentse Ruele and some business community representatives.

“Mr Kwape, I would like to applaud you for taking the initiative to invite us, because at the end of the day it is under your leadership that this whole process is taking place, again. It shows the love you have for the students, teachers and school,” she said.

Teachers and pupils, she said could not have the enthusiasm to teach and learn under unfavorable conditions.

Therefore, to motivate both learners and teachers to deliver and excel, Ms Shope-Soumah assured the school leadership that her high commission would partner with some South African and Botswana companies that it had relations with, to address some of the needs the school had in order to make a difference.

“As a South African High Commission, we are not doing you a favour.

 It is our responsibility, because when we were fighting for our liberation, Botswana was there, Batswana were there.

So, we are merely doing our responsibility and, really, we are not doing anyone a favour,” said the high commissioner.

“We really need to do something. So, we are going to meet with our partners, in the private sector, discuss with them and invite them to come and see what it is that we can be able to do to make a difference.

Any small little change, that can be done, will make a difference and elevate the enthusiasm of both the students and teachers,” she added.

In his welcome remarks, the school head, Mr Kwape explained that the school was officially opened in 1998 by the then South African High Commissioner to Botswana.

For that reason, Mr Kwape said he decided to resuscitate the relationship between the school and the South African High Commission by inviting Ms Shope-Soumah to the school’s prize giving ceremony on September 28 .

The high commissioner’s second visit, Mr Kwape said, followed the promise she made during the prize giving ceremony that she would re-visit to assess how best the high commission could help improve Dikgatlho JSS condition, through partnership with the business community.

Therefore, he expressed gratitude that Ms Shope-Soumah kept her promise by visiting the school to appreciate its urgent needs, saying that showed her commitment to help improve the school’s condition.

He said the school’s infrastructure was delapidated and required renovation and also had a dire shortage of classrooms, chairs as well as staff accommodation.

The Deputy Director (Regional Operations), Mr Otukile Kedikilwe thanked the South African High Commission for playing a meaningful role in improving the school’s learning environment, as government could not do it alone.

Mr Kedikilwe also applauded Mr Kwape for taking the lead in ensuring that the school’s condition was improved.  ENDS