SmartSwitch Botswana in collaboration with Mahalapye Social and Community Development Department under Mahalapye District Council selected 177 social grants beneficiaries in Shoshong Villages to donate to as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility on the 26 April 2023. This paradigm advocates for the company to be proactive in community involvement by empowerment and sustaining communities through strong partnerships with communities and the Botswana government.
SmartSwitch’s overall mandate is to improve people’s lives by bringing FINANCIAL INCLUSION to Botswana’s underserved consumers and merchants. It has been working with Ministry of Local Government and all councils’ offices in Botswana as
well as local merchants to allocate funds effectively around the country and to make access to funds for social grants beneficiaries easier.
Through this project, Smartswitch engaged 3 Batswana youth owned and ran companies that does canvas products to make 177 Canvas school bags namely Lebatumi Canvas in Lobatse, Nkaokera Canvas in Kanye and Sethunya’s Canvas in Gaborone. It also donated winter blankets, travel bags and Smartswitch Branded T-Shirts for all boarding students within the system in Mahalapye S&CD. The collaboration went beyond just Shoshong village and Mahalapye District Council but was also aimed to empower local manufactures.
The event was graced by Rre Kgosi Mosinyi – Shoshong who welcomed the gesture and thanked SmartSwitch Botswana on behalf of Shoshong dwellers for choosing his village as beneficiaries because he believed this will positively impact the
lives of people in the community.
SmartSwitch uses technology that promotes equal rights in financial access to the underserved, unbanked and underbanked consumers and merchants in Botswana.
It aims to deliver an eco-system of solutions that assist in building safe and secure ways to bank, as well as transact, earn and deliver economic outputs through technology, insights and innovation particularly for the underserved market.
It basically delivers software’s and systems that facilitates the transfer of money from organisations to its beneficiaries.
Speaking in vote of thanks was Council Chairman Hon BD Merementsi, who mentioned that knowing how much Covid 19 had impacted our government and companies since 2019, it makes this effort even more impactful that SmartSwitch found it suitable to spare some funds toward giving back to the community. He mentioned that their biggest efforts in the community is to allocate resources where there is need but it is never enough.
He appreciated Botswana companies like SmartSwitch who has worked with the government over the years and as well for empowering local merchants in financial inclusion activities which the government urges to all local companies to take to the people of Botswana.
He encouraged in reemphasis of Mr Mabiletsa’s speech which was to encourage students to stay away from drug use and focus on their studies.
He said “a gift impacts in two ways, that is it makes your life better and it also shows your how lucky you are that you’re the one receiving instead of someone else.”
He encouraged all students to treasure what they are given and take care of their gifts as well as to grow up knowing it may be them tomorrow giving to someone else in need.
– Handing bags
the donated bags
