Nation building and its challenges

1.  A nation is a group of people or a community of people living in
the same territory.
 One can say that a nation is made up of citizens of a specified
country who usually have certain features in common such as
history or language.
 However, in some instances a nation may comprise people of
different Merafe whose origins may be different.
 For instance, we have Botswana nation commonly known as
Batswana which comprises many groups among others
Batawana, Bakgatla, Bakalaka, Basarwa and many others.
 All these ethnic groups differ in origin and in some cases in
language.
Nation Building

2.  However, it is important to note that all people are encouraged to
speak Setswana which is our unifying language and one of the
official languages in the country.
 People are also encouraged to socialise in their own languages to
hand their culture down to their next generations.
 All people from their different Merafe are seen as Batswana who
make up the Botswana nation.
 We can rightly refer to them as Batswana despite their different
ethnic groups.
 South Africa is today referred to as the "rainbow nation" because it
is composed of people from a wide spectrum of origins such as the
Indian, Dutch, Xhosa, Tswana, Zulu and many others.
Nation Building cont.

3.  If you are somebody who likes History you should have come
across a famous Zulu leader by the name of Shaka Zulu.
 Shaka became famous for his war tactics or methods that led to
the rise of the mighty Zulu Nation.
 One can say that Shaka was a great nation builder.
 There are many people who have built mighty Kingdoms and
nations through wars and conquests.e.g Mzilikazi of Ndebele
and Sebetwane of Kololo.
 However, other nations have been built through peace and use
of diplomacy such as the Basotho nation by King Moshoeshoe 1.
Nation Building cont.

4.  The nation of Botswana came into being through the
efforts of different Dikgosi who led their Merafe during
wars.
 The different Merafe settled at different locations for
different reasons.
 However, it is important to note that all the different
Merafe in Botswana constitute one nation, the Nation of
Botswana.
 The different Dikgosi and Merafe then worked together to
bring peace amongst their people or ethnic groups who
are now one nation.
Nation Building cont.

5.  A consensus or agreement has to be met at all times to pave for
a peaceful way forward.
 Many people experience different challenges that they have to
face and resolve.
 This conflict resolution start from a small set up such as a ward
or Kgotlana to larger establishments such as a country.
 In Botswana and other countries in Africa there are "tribal"
leaders whose main duty is to mediate between two people or
ethnic groups if there is any conflict or misunderstanding.
 A "tribal" leader in Botswana calls the Morafe especially the
elderly people who help in resolving any conflict.

6.  Nation building has never been an easy task.
 It is characterised by many challenges including tension,
conflicts resolution and consensus.
 Within a nation people may differ in the way they view or
look at certain issues.
 Remember that a nation is made up of people of different
background.
 Some people within the nation or ethnic group within the
nation may feel badly treated by others.
 Feelings like this one may be justified or unfounded.
Challenges of Nation Building

7.  One thing common within the nation is that conflicts that are
not resolved or handled properly may lead to wars and loss of
people's lives.
 In countries like Rwanda a conflict erupted between two ethnic
groups, the Tutsi and the Hutu.
 These over two ethnic groups are part of the Rwandan nation.
The conflict between the ethnic groups led to the death of 500
000 (half a million) people in 1994.
 it also affected even those who did not belong to such groups.
 To avoid these unnecessary killings conflicts among people need
to be solved peacefully.
Challenges of Nation Building

8.  These people usually gather in the central place of a village called a
Kgotla which at times acts like a court of law.
 It is in the Kgotla where different people's views are taken and the
views of the majority are adopted by reaching a consensus or an
agreement.
 If one party is wrong he or she is told openly and advised on how
best to handle such issues in future.
 One thing important and unique to the nation of Botswana is the
belief in solving any conflict peacefully.
 There is a saying in Setswana that goes thus; "Ntwa kgolo ke ya
molomo", meaning "it is better to jaw-jaw than to war-war".
 This simply means that it is better for people to settle their
differences by negotiating rather than engaging in a physical fight.
Challenges of Nation Building