18 Aug 2014

When somebody mentions the word diamond, there comes to mind certain words associated with class.

Among them would be glamour, glitter, good living, posh life, economy and GDP.  Unlike in most parts of Botswana, in Boteti, diamond is an everyday word. When a child learns to talk, one of the first words to form in its vocabulary is diamond.

And if you have never been to the area, you would visualise Orapa or Letlhakane to be in the league of mining towns as Kimberly and Johannesburg. But contrary to what diamonds are usually associated with, in the first great diamond mining town, those glitters and glamours remain a far -fetched dream.

Though some developments are now booming in Letlhakane commonly known as Zowa, when you enter the village, looking at the dusty appearance and a not so appealing infrastructure one would think the trip to Orapa is a long way to go, alas the brink of the destination.

Arrival in Orapa would greet one with a request for a permit to enter the township, and if it is a first visit, one may be excused to think it is a military barracks, while infact it is a leased protected area for the security of diamonds.

Orapa is a closed town with 12 000 inhabitants, a police station, retail shops game park and airport. The town also has the best hospital with world class facilities which also serve as a referral hospital in Boteti.

If you have an appetite for good exotic food or you love shopping quality clothing with unique labels,   hanging out at classy entertainment or recreational centres, then Orapa is not the place for you, because not even Nandos, Debonairs, clothing shops of your type are there.

But with Orapa today Boteti tomorrow project, hopes are high that it would come with opportunities for development of unique shopping and recreational centres.

The project seeks to turn Orapa into a tourist capital for Makgadikgadi and be in comparison with Maun which is a tourist resort for the Okavango.

Orapa today Boteti Tomorrow vision, aims to leverage the mine to become the commercial hub of Boteti, bringing opportunity to all within the district.

The project which is the brainchild of Dr Adrian Gale, the General Manager of Orapa, Letlhakane and Damtshaa mines involves opening up the town to fulfil its destiny in the region.

According to Dr Gale the idea is to make it a model town, well designed, safe and a show piece of planning and to do it now when there are still many more years of mining so that it achieves its rightful place in the district.

The project also includes a museum to capture the anecdotes, artefacts of this critical period in the history of the nation.

This includes historic mining equipment, processes and structures, a working museum, display of stones, past and present employees, mining activities, jewellery, photographs, other products and fossils

Orapa pilot plant which is already a watermark at the back of the Botswana currency twenty Pula note would be used as a centre-piece.

Damtshaa would be promoted as a model mine with tourist tours, linking mining and conservation as the way ahead.

Benchmarking and collaboration with department of National Museum and Art gallery, National Archives, University of Botswana and others have already started.

The idea is to share Boteti Diamond Story, history of the town, diamonds, prospecting and communities around Orapa linked to today’s realities.

Orapa game park would be promoted as a sanctuary for endangered species, already the park has white rhinos, plans to keep black rhino underway as well as sable and roan.

 In addition the project entails a plan for a business park outside of Orapa alongside Francistown- Maun road.

The services to be offered by the business park include heavy engineering, light engineering, commercial, retail, educational, accommodation and tourism.

Contractors would be encouraged to set-up and service Orapa, Letlhakane, Damtshaa & Karowe among others.

Furthermore on the education sector Dr Gale indicated the mine aims to adopt Letlhakane Senior Secondary School, provide career guidance, and standards performing template.

In the line of education the town is doing exceptionally well with best performing primary schools and junior school.

Other projects include the introduction of an information centre, a cinema, and the development of Orapa Training School in to an institute of technology or university. Ends reba 160814

In move to diversify the economy of Orapa mining town, plans are underway to position the town as a hub or capital of Boteti, says Dr Adrian Gale.

Dr Gale said this recently when addressing members of the media stating that the aim was to open the town to make it a model town. ENDS