- “If things fall back into place in three or five years we will do this again”-Orange
- Botswanacraft looking for a new partner for the event
GOSEGO MOTSUMI
Every year, the month of May ushered in the highly anticipated Orange Letlhafula Cultural Festival but this year’s thanksgiving celebrations will not be staged according to its organizers and cultural home, BotswanaCraft. The event was one of the country’s cherished calendar events that had grown in popularity over the years, hosting sold out shows with patrons traveling from across the country to immerse themselves in Setswana food and culture.
“Orange Letlhafula, held annually at BotswanaCraft, will unfortunately not be hosted this year. Having enjoyed a strong relationship with Orange Botswana, lead sponsors of the cultural event for over 10 years. Orange Botswana have unfortunately not renewed their sponsorship agreement for the Letlhafula Festival,” Oliver Groth from BotswanaCraft said.
For their part, Orange Botswana’s sponsorship coordinator and spokesperson, Mosarwa Molema said they will be discontinuing with the event because their sponsorship contract had ended and both parties have agreed amicably that they will not be a part of this year’s event.
“We have been renewing the sponsorship contract every three years and it has been a good ten years but it is time to move on and look for other opportunities. If things fall back into place in three or five years time we might decide to do this again,” Molema briefly explained.
Letlhafula was first celebrated in 2000 when Botswanacraft moved to its premises on the Western Bypass and this year would have marked the cultural event’s 19th year running. Groth said they were grateful to Orange for investing in their passion and supporting the event over the many years. Moreover, the declining event sponsorship opportunities has seen the death of many events locally but Botswanacraft revealed that they have begun looking for a new partner for the Letlhafula Festival going forward.
“As Botswanacraft, we appreciate the popularity of the event and the support from the community in making this event possible over many years. Orange came on board as the headline sponsor from 2008 until 2018. Over the years other sponsors and partners included the Voice Newspaper, the Botswana Gazette, Mmegi, eBotswana, Duma FM, Department of Youth & Culture, BTV, and MYSC. We would like to thank all the participants, partners and sponsors of Letlhafula Festival for your support of the arts and culture in Botswana,” Groth concluded.