Red Cross hails 2023 ‘a good year’

As 2023 winds down, Kutlwano Mukokomani, the secretary-general of the Botswana Red Cross Society (BRCS), reflects on the organisation’s achievements, deeming it one of their best years yet.

In an interview following the donation of two multi-purpose printers valued at P180,000, Mukokomani expressed the growth of BRCS over the past four years, citing this year as a significant success.

“This year was one of the biggest successes we have had in a while,” Mukokomani enthuses, attributing much of the growth to the success of the Saving Lives and Livelihoods (SLL) projects.

The SLL project, implemented in over 10 Southern African countries, including Botswana, stands out as one of their most extensive initiatives.

Mukokomani notes that the organisation’s partnerships have expanded, enabling them to diversify their focus beyond SLL projects.

“Our new partner collaborations have made us to able to focus on other aspects, going from SLL projects to disaster management, not only in Botswana but also in other countries regionally,” he explains.

Discussing the donation of multi-purpose printers to Gathwane and Mosi primary schools, Mukokomani emphasises BRCS’ commitment to covering all parts of the country and distributing resources equally. He identifies unique challenges in these schools related to students’ learning, primarily due to the lack of printers.

“We have identified unique challenges in these schools that have compelled us to partner with them and support them by offering these multi-purpose printers,” he states, expressing hope that this intervention will alleviate the persistent issues. Looking ahead, Mukokomani reveals BRCS’ plans to continue assisting schools with similar projects as they enter the final month of 2023.

Dr Edwin Dikoloti acknowledges BRCS’ commendable efforts, expressing gratitude for their continuous support where the government may have fallen short.

“This is really a commendable effort from the Red Cross; they continue to help us (government) where we have failed to help the citizens, and for this, we are indebted to them. And we will continue to support them,” he appreciates.

This year was one of the biggest successes we have had in a while”