20 quirky things Batswana do that make

us quintessentially Batswana

1. Is it?

"Is it" is widely used as a universal question tag. Youll very seldom hear people using questions tags like - Does it?
Does he? Doesnt he? Dont we? Do we? etc. Its all about is it? which has somehow become a one-size-fits-all
question tag. For instance;

! I really like this dress! --- Is it?

! Im going to Madikwe this weekend. --- Is it?
! I would like a glass of water. --- Is it?

Ok, maybe theres an element of exaggeration in there, but thats basically the gist of it.

2. Sorry!

It seems were a very apologetic nation,

and will even apologise for things that
are in no way, shape or form our fault.
For instance, if someone falls and hurts
themselves; the first thing a lot of
Batswana will say is sorry (which
sounds more like soriii!).

3. Cold or Flu?

Nobody has a cold in Botswana. Most people talk of being down with the flu! In fact, youll very seldom hear
anyone say they have a cold.

4. Stay or Live?

Youll almost never hear anyone saying they live somewhere! Everyone stays somewhere, regardless of the length
of their stay. It doesnt matter that theyve only ever lived where they live, its always I stay at.

5. Driving Lingo

In the event satellite navigation manufacturers plan to introduce their devises to Botswana, or you are new to
driving in Botswana and are given directions, here are a couple of things worth knowing.

I cant speak for the rest of the world, but in the UK the circular junction in the road, where traffic travels in one
direction around a central island is called a roundabout. In Botswana we refer to them as circles. If you hear
Batswana speaking of robots, theyre referring to traffic lights.

6. Batswanas love of acronyms

Batswana have a huge affinity for acronyms. Youll observe that a lot of companies are very rarely referred to by
their full names. Sometimes Batswana also shorten or re-name places and people. For instance;

! Botswana Telecommunications Corporation = BTC

! Botswana Power Corporation = BPC
! Botswana National Development Bank = NDB
! First National Bank = FNB
! University of Botswana = UB
! Botswana Bureau of Standards = BOBS
! Botswana Training Authority = BOTA
! Botswana 50th Anniversary = BOT50 (although everyone pronounced it Bots50)

! Limkokwing University = Limko

! The name Mpho becomes Posta
! People called Tshepo are sometimes referred to as Trust (English for Tshepo)
Even the Vice President, Hon. Mokgweetsi Masisi is often affectionately referred to as Sisi Boy.

7. Companies Names

A lot of establishments use Botswana somewhere in their name. Many of these companies only operate within
Botswana, but just to make it abundantly clear its a business in Botswana, Botswana just has to be included in the
name. If you want to be easily found in the telephone directory, you might want to have a company name that
doesnt start with the letter B.

You will also find company names can be a twist on certain words. Swana will be taken from Botswana i.e.
Debswana. In the north, popular words such as Okavango and Delta will be modified.

8. Botswana is a Toyota country

Maybe because its widely known to be more affordable, the parts are easy to source locally and Toyota models are
cheaper to run than most cars. Only now have Batswana started buying alternatives such as Jeeps, Land Rovers,
Ford, etc. In any case, there are still a lot of white cars.

9. Do not criticise, attack or complain about Botswana

Much like Brits with the UK; many Batswana have a love-hate relationship with Botswana, and will regularly
moan and criticise their country and countrymen. BUT the minute a outsider makes similar observations; many
Batswana will not tolerate it. We know Botswanas faults, and we love it warts and all, so for someone who isnt
Motswana to moan and hold them up against the glare of the sun is TABOO.

You therefore have to gauge your audience and tread very, very carefully or you will receive the If its so bad, what
are you doing here? Go back to where you came from? comments or something along those lines.

The subject that will almost definitely trigger a negative response is language. If theres a discussion thread on
social media and someone has commented in Setswana, asking them to comment in English can garner a negative
response. To be fair, many Batswana speak excellent English and yet still choose to comment in Setswana.

However, some Batswana are not confident with their English and people can get a little precious about Setswana,
which isnt dissimilar to Brits with English.

10. We love hugs

Yes, Batswana are big huggers. Its not unusual to

meet someone for the first time and the introduction
will be followed by a hug!

11. Batswana can be tactile

We dont shy away from touching others in the same

way as some other cultures, especially in the West. By
touching I dont mean being slimy or having grabby, wandering hands; its more like being ready with the hugs, a
little touch on the knee or slapping hands during a hearty laugh. In some cultures this may be viewed as being
flirty or maybe even being over familiar, but in Botswana its usually very innocent.

12. Theres no hurry in Africa, especially in Botswana

Theres no sense of urgency in Botswana and going into places where you are likely to find long queues (bank,
supermarket, post office) can be extremely frustrating. While the queues grow longer and longer, the assistants
take their sweet time and tend to be very laboured in their actions. While this is slowly improving, it is still a
problem in most industries.

Likewise, not many people are sticklers for time. If you go to an event set for 2pm, dont be surprised if it starts
closer to say 4pm! The good thing is that this is very rare with official events.

13. Customer Service can leave a lot to be desired

I see so many flashes of pure brilliance as far as customer service delivery in Botswana is concerned, that it makes
my heart smile. Where customer service is the norm in the developed world, its still only a fledgling sector in
Botswana. I put the blame squarely at the door of business owners, who I strongly believe do not place importance
on customer service training.

I often observe with despair, sullen customer service agents, the lack of interest, the obvious disenchantment (no
doubt due to their poor wages - a story for another day), no attempt at engaging the customer, no offer of a smile
and outright rudeness in some instances, to name but a few.

A lot of companies also dont seem to recognise the importance of communication and customer retention.
Customers are often left in the dark and unfairly find themselves having to chase unresponsive service providers.
In recent years however, the tide has started to turn in the consumers favour.

With advances in modern technology for once unhappy customers will often take to the Botswana Facebook Page
Name & Shame, to name and shame those guilty of shoddy service. Fortunately, this is going some way to
improving service provision in Botswana.

More and more companies seem to be doing something to enhance the customer experience because Im starting
to see it and hear about other peoples positive experiences in Botswana. In Gaborone, Spar (Riverwalk Mall), Rail
Park Mall, Portugalia Restaurant (Game City), President Hotel (Main Mall), Mug & Bean (Riverwalk Mall), Simply
Asia (Riverwalk Mall), Nandos and Bull & Bush are some of the places that give me hope for excellent service
delivery in Botswana.

14. Batswana Hate the Cold

We are always moaning about the weather; when its

summer, we want the winter, and when its the winter
we want the summer. But overall, I think Batswana in
general cope better with hot weather than cold weather.
If you wake up to cloudy weather, youll see a lot of
Batswana warmly wrapped up in their winter woolies,
even knowing that its likely to become scorching hot as
the day progresses! A bit like the shorts and t-shirts
coming out in good ol Blighty at the slightest hint of sun
;-)

15. Batswana are meat lovers

We love meat and as such love BBQs, known in this neck of the woods as a braai. To most Batswana, a meal is not
complete without meat. We particularly love our very own Botswana beef and I have to say, it is the best beef I
have ever tasted but I know, Im biased.

16. Batswana are football lovers

We love football more than any other sport,

specifically Batswana men. Groups of men can often
be seen hanging around, especially in the Main Mall in
Gaborone, discussing football. The national football
team, The Zebras, never gets far in any competition,
but we live in hope and never give up the dream of
some day making it big.

The most popular teams supported in Botswana are Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Barcelona
and Real Madrid.

17. Batswana can be blunt and dont hold back!

Women can often be heard chiding each over excessive weight gain or a hairstyle thats long lost its lustre; where
women from different walks of life may end up in fisticuffs over such a slight. It might smart, but Batswana know
not to object too much. They know their friends might lurch on and rib them mercilessly and incessantly, if they
know they are bothered by something they said. People mostly learn to take it on the chin and laugh along with
everybody else.

18. Batswana are largely passive

Batswana can, with all due respect, be docile and not as vocal or confrontational as their South African cousins
over the border. Batswana would rather have a hearty moan and debate in private rather than protesting loudly
and publicly for fear of the rocking the boat. So people will often resign themselves to the status quo rather than
coming out with their protestation lest they are viewed as rubble-rousers.

19. Batswana love to party

Partying is like a national pastime and we will party with the best of
them. Batswana can raise the roof until the sun rises, or even over
the course of a few days, especially over the festive season. Batswana
can also drink and will drink most under the table! They also love to
dance, men and women alike. The good thing is Batswana are jovial
and fun; they dont get violent and ruin the fun. Although sometimes
they will party long and hard, even if it means keeping the
neighbours up but they wont mind if you join the fun ;-)

20. Batswana are very rarely for twisting

If they have a strong feeling about something, they dig their heels in.
So they have a penchant for debating amongst themselves to
passionately put their point across, whether substantiated or not.

What are some of the things that you feel define Batswana that YourBotswana has left out? Please feel free to
share your views with us.