GABORONE — A new documentary exploring human life in the Okavango Delta premiered in Gaborone, signaling a deliberate shift in how one of Africa’s most celebrated natural ecosystems is presented on the global stage.
Directed by Moabi Mogorosi and presented by former Miss Botswana Palesa Molefe, Batho Ba Metsi (People of the Water) focuses on the indigenous communities, traditional polers, and artisans whose livelihoods are tied directly to the inland river system. The 92-minute feature moves away from the traditional wildlife-centric safari genre to foreground community perspectives on land management and environmental stewardship.
Produced by an all-Batswana crew of over 40 local filmmakers alongside UK volunteers, the film was created in collaboration with the Okavango Diamond Company and The Nkashi Trust. The production highlights local knowledge systems alongside modern environmental challenges facing villages such as Shakawe, Eretsha, Boro 1, and Jao, including river blockages and human-wildlife conflict.
“Being able to showcase the lives, traditions and resilience of people connected to the Okavango Delta is a privilege and an important contribution to preserving Botswana’s heritage,” said director Moabi Mogorosi following the screening at the Mass Media Complex. “The Delta is more than a landscape. It is home, culture and life woven together.”
The premiere drew high-level government figures, including President Duma Boko and Minister of Sport and Arts Jacob Kelebeng, as the government works to modernize its legislative framework including updating the 1972 Cinematographic Act to foster domestic creative industries and film exports.
The project aligns with a broader push in regional conservation to integrate local governance into protected areas rather than relying solely on exclusionary models.
“Across Africa, and Botswana can be an example of this, we need to think about a paradigm shift in the way in which conservation works,” said Dr. Steve Boyes, ecologist and founder of The Nkashi Trust. “These can’t be fortresses anymore, they have to be places for the people.”
Producers are in discussions to distribute the documentary internationally via National Geographic, alongside planned broadcasts on Botswana Television and entries into global film festivals.
