Makgadikgadi Salt Pans Challenge to deliver immense entertainment
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Tuesday May 20, 2025 13:35
It will be held in Nata/Gweta within the Nata Bird Sanctuary under the theme 'Horses, Friends, and Stuff in the Pans.' At a press conference held at Avani, in Gaborone on Friday, the event organisers said the occasion will not only bring the entertainment and horse riding thrill but will also boost the economy for the residents.
They explained that they chose to host the two-day event after realising that their village lacked economic activities. Even though Nata/Gweta seems like a small village, the organisers said it had a very large population that needed more economic activities such as that one.
'We came together as the youth and brainstormed on how we could bring money to the village then realised that apart from the Makgadikgadi Epic there were no other events that could bring forth capital to us. That is when we decided to host the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans Challenge as a way of not only attracting tourists but also making money for our village since a lot of our people live in poverty. We have a lot of horses in our village hence the decision to host a horse riding challenge. We grew up riding horses,' they said.
Additionally, they said even though the Makgadikgadi pans has a picturesque view, it experiences minimus tourism activities. They organiers also said the event will be divided into two categories, the horse racing that will be held in the morning and the music festival, that will start in the evening. The horse racing is said to be a regional activity where horse riders from neighbouring countries such as Namibia and South Africa will be participating.
They said a total of P350,000 will be distributed among the winners. The horse riding category will feature three competitive categories: thoroughbred, crossbreed and Tswana breed, where the winner will walk away with a whooping P30,000.
Tsholofelo Makgoeng, Country Manager for Botswana SunBet, stated that their company will be offering betting services. She announced that online horse race betting service has been introduced and is performing well, with expectations to further grow horse racing events in Botswana. She said during the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans Challenge, individuals will have the opportunity to place bets on participating horses, enhancing excitement and public engagement. . The music festival has a rich line up consisting of both local and international artists such as Lizibo, the award winning Juu Matere, Charma Gal, Chokoma and Lioness Ratang. The international acts includes the likes of Karishma famed with Lekompo genre and Sandesh. The masters of ceremonies include Leungo Pitse, Modidima and others. Other activities include boat cruising, quad bikes, game drive, helicopter rides and many more.