The Botswana National Museum (BNM) is organising a seminar aimed at increasing public awareness on its relevance, achievements, challenges and inspirations in our changing society. This seminar shall be held on May 30 at 0900 hrs in the Botswana National Museum Little Theatre to commemorate the International Museums' Day. The theme of this year's celebrations is: "Museums in a Changing World. New Challenges. New Inspirations." The theme provides an excellent opportunity for researchers and curators at the Botswana National Museum to engage the public and articulate pertinent issues affecting museum and heritage services. This seminar is anticipated to reflect how the Botswana National Museum has thrived to remain relevant to societal demands by addressing important issues in our daily lives. Elsewhere around the world, museums are mandated to address issues like climatic change, poverty alleviation, HIV/AIDS and sustainable development among others. These challenges require museums to reflect modern day issues in their daily operations. These are not the only challenges, of course. As an example, while the majority of elderly Batswana perceive the Botswana National Museum as a place where old and peculiar objects are stored, the younger generation remembers the institution through the famous Pitse ya Naga Education Programme.
The disparity between these two generations suggests the dynamism of the institution with regard to addressing its mandate to the society over time. As we celebrate this year's International Museums' Day, we need to critically look at how technological changes have affected the museum and heritage services in Botswana. We need to accept the fact that the world has changed significantly since inception of the institution in 1968. Segametsi Radise, Chief Curator of Museum Education, will address the issue of the institution's plan to revamp its galleries and reception area. The refurbishment is intended to offer the Botswana National Museum a modern architectural faade. The refurbishment of these galleries necessitates review and redesign of the permanent exhibition, which has been open to the public for the last 30 years or so. With regard to this year's theme, this change is long overdue. When the Botswana National Museum was established in 1967 through an Act of Parliament, the major focus of the institution reflected on nation-building. The six galleries displaying various aspects of Botswana's diverse cultures offer an evolutionary perspective detailing where Batswana come from. This nation-building theme offered by the permanent exhibition (which used to be a major exercise and concern of all Batswana) has been surpassed by development in the last 20 years. We anticipate that the public engage museum professionals on issues of the relevance of displays of stuffed lions, as an example, in a society that is now challenged with issues such as global warming, HIV/AIDS, poverty and droughts. As technologies change, new societal needs arise. New ideas replace the old order. This obviously means that as an institution that exists to mirror society, the Botswana National Museum is required to be an ever-dynamic institution. I have opined with my colleagues on various occasions on the relevance of the Pitse ya Naga Education Programme in the modern day. I have strongly argued that this programme played an important role in selling the mandate of the department to schools in general. And I have also pointed out that the dawn of Botswana Television (Btv) and advanced telecommunication services like the Internet have rendered this excellent programme obsolete. The paradigm shift does not mean that the programme did not serve its mandate but simply tells us that the method that was used to relay the message is now more expensive, unpopular and therefore unsustainable. The questions of what needs to be done to resuscitate or revamp educational programmes such as Motswedi wa Ditso, Pitse ya Naga and others require our active involvement in the upcoming seminar. The services offered by the museum are meant to benefit the society at large.
