03 Sep 2026

The Dithubaruba Cultural Festival has promised to empower and grow local businesses. 

  Event coordinator and Curator of the Kgosi Sechele I Museum, Mr. Power Kawina, said the cultural festival has an obligation to improve the livelihoods of the people in Kweneng. 

This aligns with the festival’s theme:Unlocking Our Heritage, Transforming Our Dignity.

Speaking in an interview on Tuesday, Mr Kawina noted that the carnival continued to cater to an increasing number of small business stalls.

 He emphasised that it is vital for the cultural fiesta to create wealth for the local community, especially for small entrepreneurs, promoting the region’s rich cultural heritage. 

“We are hoping that they will take advantage of the event and make profits, as Dithubaruba is the place where Bakwena meet for recreation,” he said. 

Mr Kawina also expressed hope that businesses in the hospitality and tourism sectors would benefit from the event. 

“I have observed that during Dithubaruba, all the lodging facilities in Molepolole are fully booked,” he said. 

He noted that the event is not only meant for entertainment and cultural promotion, but also for empowering livelihoods. 

“We want to see Dithubaruba beyond song and dance; it must have an economic impact on the community,” he added. 

Mr Kawina stated that small catering businesses will be allowed to set up stalls at the event.   

Furthermore, efforts have been made to provide basic amenities at the venue because the site is tucked far away from the village centre to ensure that attendees can access services easily without needing to leave the venue, thereby avoiding traffic delays. 

In addition, the event organisers have partnered with Absa Bank to provide point-of-sale (POS) machines to businesses to facilitate smooth trade and deter criminal activity, as large cash transactions could attract criminals. 

Mr Kawina added that the use of technologically supported transactions by small entrepreneurs encourages financial inclusivity. 

“Through our partnership with Absa, we are encouraging businesses to use MobiTap to ease transactions so they can trade without hard cash and reduce possible crime,” he said. 

However, the event face infrastructure challenges.

 “One of the challenges is accessing and exiting the venue since we use a single road. Due to high attendance, revellers wait in long queues either entering or leaving the venue,” Mr Kawina admitted.  To this end, organisers have identified an alternative route to ease congestion and the ticket sales point would be moved further away from the entrance, as crowds at the ticket booths previously slowed down traffic. 

Organisers are collaborating with network providers to boost reception, ensuring a seamless experience for attendees. 

Parking also remains limited because the Kwa-ga-Mmakgosi venue is a heritage site whereby the preservation of natural resources is strictly enforced, meaning trees cannot be cut down to create more parking space. Instead, the local campsite will be used as additional parking. 

Mr Kawina remained optimistic that Dithubaruba will continue to grow and empower local enterprises, noting that last year, organisers decided to allocate a portion of the profits to the reconstruction of the Kgotla shelter. 

“We are hoping to annually take a certain percentage from our profits and contribute toward uplifting the livelihoods of the community,” he concluded. ENDS