Botswana not ready for poetry festival

Mpho Tlale | Tuesday January 21, 2014 17:30

She said that the main problem is lack of funding and there is no way that they can work around that yet.  Dema said that if such an event is to be pulled off they have to consider venues and other logics, which is quite a costly exercise.

She pointed out that Botswana needs an Arts Council that will support and put the Arts’ interests ahead of others.

Dema said: “It all really starts and ends with funding. If corporations could show interest and fund the arts then there could be some growth.”

The spoken wordsmith said that it would not be such a bad idea if corporations tried and saw what their efforts can do. 

Dema added that if it fails at least the corporations would have tried and would have something to look back to.

The arts administrator went on to say that poetry is alive and well.  She said that although the poetry scene is not much of a united front as it used to be, it is still pretty much alive and kicking.

Dema pointed out that despite the closure of Café Khwest in the Main Mall, which used to host poetry sessions, poets have found ways to continue with the craft.

She said the difference is that the poetry sessions are quite small since there is no united front like the days when Exodus Live Poetry used to be in place.

Furthermore, Dema said that people who are really interested in spoken word are aware of poetry events that take place around town.

Dema added: “I have observed that there are more poets now than they have been before.”

She said that all they have to do is take advantage of existing platforms and use them to their advantage.  She also urged them to use social media such as Facebook and Twitter to connect with other poets to get updates on what could be going on.

“Theatre, poetry and music can also merge to produce material that can be consumed on a larger scale,“ said Dema.

She gave credit to platforms that include Maitisong Arts Festival and Poetavango, which takes place in Maun. The poet highlighted that despite the fact that Maun is far, if people have interest, they still go to not only perform but to appreciate the art.