Olopeng urges youth to learn international languages
Bonte Seepi | Wednesday February 24, 2016 14:23
Speaking during the National Languages Day recently at Lecheng village, Olopeng urged parents to support their children to study other languages instead of discouraging them to do so. “As we promote and preserve our local languages, we should be mindful of the importance of appreciating the languages of other nations and communities. We live in a global world, and being able to speak other languages other than your own will improve our chances of making socio-economic gains and be competitive in the global arena,” said Olopeng.
Olopeng, who is also a Member of Parliament (MP) for Tonota, also encouraged Batswana to further consider that a large number of young people are unemployed in the country. He therefore encouraged them not only to know their mother languages, but also to learn and master other international languages such as Chinese, French and others.
“Though there is a high rate of unemployment in our country, the market is open for our children in other countries, so studying other languages will give them a competitive advantage in the international job market,” he emphasised.
However, Olopeng complained about the decline in the use of local languages especially among the youth. He said English Medium schools contribute much to the rejection of the use of local languages because in such schools children are only taught in English.
He said that poses a real danger to the transmission of Botswana values, beliefs, tradition and culture in general.
He also said that the modernisation and development of these languages presents an opportunity for the building of a strong moral fabric of the society of Botswana. He added that other nations will swallow Botswana into extinction through their languages and cultures.
Olopeng therefore urged the elderly members of the community to closely interact with the youth through presentations such as fairy tales, poems and other Setswana games presented in local languages. He said that will not only preserve local language for prosperity but build pride and appreciation among the youth.
Meanwhile, the MP for Lerala/Mauntlala constituency, Prince Maele shared the same sentiments as Olopeng. Maele said the youth should learn international languages because nowadays we are living in a global world.
He said it is not only about being employed in other countries but also the fact that Batswana can get married in other countries.
“It is important to be interested in other people’s languages because in future one will go to their places seeking for help and one might not get help just because of a language barrier. Language is vital, we can be of the same colour but language is the aspect, which can differentiate us. “There are about 42 languages spoken in Botswana, ask yourself how many of those do you know. If you only know yours, you must introspect because it is important to learn others,” said Maele.
Maele who is also the Minister of Lands and Housing added that government also believes that languages are important. He said that is why the government came up with the teaching aids initiative in order to help children who only speak their languages at school.
“Government has taken responsibility in trying to encourage our languages,” he added.