Bana Ba Letsatsi Trust was established in 2002 to respond to the growing number of children at risk in Maun and officially registered as a trust in April 2004. The organisation endeavours to keep orphaned and vulnerable children off the streets and away from negative influences such as glue sniffing and petty crime. Bana Ba Letsatsi Trust is a rehabilitation centre where discipline, education, counselling, sports, hygiene, and meals are provided to a selected number of orphans vulnerable children and youth.

All activities designed and executed at Bana Ba Letsatsi Trust have the ultimate goal to support, encourage, rehabilitate, and empower all children and youth to remain in school or return to mainstream schools, establish a drug and crime free life, and become productive members of society. The Trust encourages positive action from the caregivers of all children and the establishment of community support for those children at risk in their society.

BBL attends to these critical cases: school dropouts, child/early marriages, sexual abuse and exploitation, child neglect, violation of children’s rights, juvenile delinquency, alcohol and drug abuse, teenage pregnancy, and cases of child labour.

1.6.2 Psychosocial Support

Empowering vulnerable children and youth, through facilitating psychosocial support and education, is a means of allowing these individuals to create sustainable lives for themselves. Children who develop a sense of identity and self-esteem, along with strong core values, will develop attitudes in line with meeting this objective 1.

In the case of orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) it is the role of child welfare and civil society organizations to facilitate this development. The importance of behavioural interventions, child welfare monitoring and psychosocial support for OVCs has not been fully recognized until recently 2 . This is documented in Botswana’s Second National Strategic Framework for HIV and AIDS 2010-2016, which is calling for more sustained activities in this area.

Through a series of programs Bana Ba Letsatsi is addressing this gap by using a variety of on-going counselling and therapeutic techniques, peer counselling, and life skills sessions to sustain behaviour 3 . By creating opportunities for children and youth from vulnerable backgrounds to attend mainstream education, we will reduce their susceptibility towards negative behavioural habits 4 and increase their capacity to become productive members of society.

Back to School Program

This program is meant to prepare children who have previously dropped out of school to go back to mainstream schools after completing their one year OSEC program at BBL. The program also introduces/prepares children who have never been to mainstream schools due to child neglect by either parents or guardians. Depending on the home environment, some children are enrolled at boarding schools to avoid students are provided with this, as well as transport to and from school, toiletries, and bedding.

School Holiday Program

The school holidays are the most worrisome periods of the year for Bana Ba Letsatsi Trust, as it is when the children who attend school feel the pull of the streets once again. Therefore, at Bana Ba Letsatsi Trust we offer well-planned days with workshops, projects, and fun activities. Additionally, we organize camping trips and visits to camps in the Okavango Delta.

Youth Technical Skills Training

This program is designed to empower youth who graduated from BBL: Youth that started with Bana Ba Letsatsi Trust as children and due to a variety of reasons have not succeeded in the formal education system after participating in the “Back to School Program”. According to each profile, Bana Ba Letsatsi Trust encourages further education through the formal system and/or through learning practical skills such as brick laying, plumbing, and hospitality management

Maun is situated in the far north of Botswana and is the country’s fifth largest town. Home to more than 50,000 people, it is the tourism hub of Botswana and the gateway to the world-famous and wildlife rich Okavango Delta. Maun is growing exponentially as people leave their rural cattle posts in favour of ‘better’ opportunities in town. As a result of this influx, unemployment is growing – as are the many social issues that it brings.