Dumelang, my name is Kelly Keakantse. I’m a 29-year old Motswana and here’s my profile.
My full name is Kelebogile Keakantse – Kelebogile means gratitude. Setswana names have meanings and there’s usually a reason behind them. In my case, my mother was grateful for the gift of having yet another baby girl. There’s only two of us, my sister and I and I’m the baby of the family. On a side note, my friends and loved ones call me Kelly for short.
I am a supervisor at a local health store called Health Alternatives and have been in the job for 2 years. I like working with different people and the job is just right, as every day I meet new and exciting people. Moreover, I learn new things from various people with each day.
I would describe myself as an outgoing person. I like trying new things and am always ready for a challenge. Some people have said I look intimidating while others see a quiet and shy person, which is quite at odds with how I see myself – haha.
As far as hobbies go… I like swimming although I have always been scared of water because I have a fear of drowning. However, I’m learning and slowly getting there. I would also like to travel to other gorgeous parts of Botswana like Kasane and Maun, which are the tourist hotspots of Botswana. I have never been to either. I’d love to create memories and commit them to pictures and one day I certainly will!
People will be surprised to know I’m a terrible dancer, I have two left feet – hehehe. There’s this idea that all black people have rhythm, but I’m certainly not one of them – hahaha. But I’m working on that. Strangely, for some reason, everyone tends to believe that I’m a good dancer.
My greatest achievement in life was being the first person in my family to graduate at tertiary level. This not only made my family incredibly proud, but was also a great confidence booster for me. Having done that, I now believe I can do anything I set my mind to.
With regards to future aspirations – I’m very interested in travelling the world and meeting new people as I go. I’d also love to learn to speak French some day. While those are important to me, I also dream of one day owning my own company and being my own boss.
I did a degree in Packaging & Design at Limkokwing University but sadly, there’s a slow uptake of the training in the market. So my best friend and my former boss – a Graphic Design – decided it would be best to start up a company that designs packages for different products. We’ve set the wheels in motion and the name of the company has been approved. It’s early days yet, but we’re slowly working towards that goal. We’re in the process of of trying to sort out the capital that will enable us to get the company off the ground.
For now though, I’m doing something with my sister – we sell hand bags that we source from Durban. It can be a challenge getting paid for the products, delaying the restocking exercise.
My Background…
I’m from Serowe, where former Presidents Festus Mogae and Seretse Khama Ian Khama come from. Serowe – population 47,000 – is in the Central District just over 300 km away from the capital, Gaborone. It’s famous for the Khama Rhino Sanctuary and Khama III Memorial Museum, which are both packed full of the rich history of the village.
Serowe is the biggest village in Botswana but its rather scattered. There are hardly any developments there, so the rate at which it’s developing is very slow. By contrast, Gaborone is where everything happens and where there are a lot more job opportunities. I live in Mogoditshane, just outside Gaborone and commute into work. I love living there, but Botswana public transport being what it is, it’s not always convenient. Living in Mogoditshane makes it more readily accessible.
I have very fond memories of growing up in Botswana! Back in my childhood, we played various outdoor games, games such as skipping rope were very popular. We also loved playing house and would steal food from the house to cook deep in the bush – LOL. It was good fun and the food always tasted delicious.
How Botswana’s changed over the years – our technology is a lot more advanced now and in line with global trends. We have access to mobile phones and various social media platforms, enabling us to meet people in different ways. We now use computers in schools, which comes in handy when you start working. Change is good because you learn a lot of interesting things and I like a challenge.
The person who inspires me? It’s not just one person but a lot of successful female entrepreneurs in Botswana. Their success encourages and spurs me on to want to pursue the dream of one day starting my own business and being my own boss.
About Botswana…
What makes Botswana such a wonderful country, in my opinion, are the various tourist hotspots such as Maun and Kasane, which have a lot of gorgeous sites that tourists from all over the world visit every year. Botswana is also famous for its diamonds and good quality beef.
In terms of travel within Botswana, I have not really been anywhere and have always stayed in one place which is such a shame because there’s just so much to explore. One of my life’s missions is to one day travel to Maun and Kasane and soak in the beautiful sites.
Beyond Botswana, I would love to visit France. I love French culture and food. I love it all so much, I’d really like to learn the language and maybe a few others. I would like to see the world but if I could just pick one country, it would have to be France.
What I think needs to change/improve in Botswana – the level of unemployment is shocking, so we desperately need that to change, people need a lot more job opportunities to survive. I feel we need more companies that deal with design because I’ve observed there are many courses like Packaging Design and Technology but the Botswana market is very slow on the uptake, like I said. We’re a developing country but I’m confident we’ll eventually get there.
YourBotswana…
How I discovered YourBotswana – I saw an article about the site on Facebook that piqued my interest. I then searched for it and found it very interesting. It made me realise that I hardly know my own country and I’d like to learn more from different people who have experienced what I haven’t discovered yet.
I was motivated to submit my Friend of YourBotswana profile because just as I’ve learnt from others on the site, I hope others can learn something through my profile. YourBotswana is a blog well worth a visit, I can’t wait to tell my friends about it.
Based on what I’ve seen so far of YourBotswana, I haven’t picked on the need for anything else on the website. I’m still just enjoying it as I’ve only recently discovered it and I like what I’ve seen of it so far! It’s a very informative site that I can see both the locals and others interested in Botswana making full use of.
I feel like, for YourBotswana, this is just the beginning, I can’t wait to see how it grows every day going forward. I think the people behind it are doing a good job of making Botswana more visible to the world.
Thanks for reading my profile.
