17 Sep 2023

In an effort to establish a fund that will assist disadvantaged persons in society, the North West District Council and other stakeholders are set to embark on a 21-kilometre charity walk in November.

The charity walk, dubbed The Chairman’s annual charity walk aims to make Maun a tourism destination and more appealing to a wider range of potential tourist segments.

Briefing the media on Friday, North West District Council chairperson, Mr Itumeleng Kelebetseng said the council saw it fit to explore other tourism opportunities to diversify the district tourism package as well as to establish a fund to augment the council’s coffers.

The initiative, he said, had the potential to diversify the existing products and eventually impact on the lives of the community they served.

“We believe this initiative will attract a lot of attention of both locals and travellers, as walking is not only for fun, but a great way to improve or maintain overall health and fitness,” he added.

Physical exercise, he said, was also important and effective in helping one to activate their immune system.

Mr Kelebetseng revealed that the initiative was also part of the council’s efforts to explore other sources of generating revenue to assist those in need, saying that their aim was to establish a fund in which the proceedings from the walk could be channeled towards assisting members of the community who had been affected by natural disasters.

He pointed out that the rainy season was approaching and at times it triggered some natural disasters, adding that some parts of district were prone to floods.

Mr Kelebetseng further noted that they had approached various sponsors and believed that the initiative would become a success. 

Events like charity walks, he said, served multiple purposes for an organisation beyond raising money and helped charities raise awareness for a cause as well as engage donors in meaningful actions.

For his part, deputy council secretary, Mr Mpaphi Kgomotso said the envisaged charity walk would surely be a life-changing initiative, as it came in dire times when government was faced with budgetary constraints, which called upon organisations to come up with initiatives to assist.

“This brilliant initiative will greatly assist the council to help those who are less fortunate or facing emergency situations while waiting to be assisted under other programmes,” he added.

Mr Kgomotso appealed to the business community, the media and the public at large to support and embrace the initiative, noting that every donation they receive would go towards supporting those in need of help.

Mr Kgomotso was also of the view that the event would attract a large number of people to embrace and enjoy the tourism hub. Ends