On 17 November 2023, Love Botswana held a ribbon-cutting for a new playground at The Life Centre in Maun. The playground was assembled in six days by an amazing team of volunteers from Project Playground, a nongovernmental organization in Texas that also donated the playground. Project Playground’s mission is to “build playgrounds for children who have never seen one.”
Deputy Paramount Chief of Batawana Kgosi Kealetile Moremi (left) and Pastor Matt Clayton, Co-Founder of Project Playground
Tens of thousands of children throughout northern Botswana have never seen a playground, and that is why Love Botswana used the occasion of the ribbon-cutting in November to launch its 40/40 Legacy Vision to commemorate the upcoming 40th anniversary of Drs. Jerry and Jana Lackey’s arrival in Africa. To honor this legacy of service, Love Botswana is committed to constructing 40 playgrounds at 40 primary schools throughout Botswana’s North West District.
Along with Project Playground (which will decommission, repair, and restore the playgrounds), Love Botswana is partnering with USAID’s Ocean Freight Reimbursement Program to fund the playgrounds’ transport from the Port of Houston in Texas to Gaborone, Botswana. Donors will be approached to fund the last leg of the journey by truck from Gaborone to northern Botswana ($700 per playground).
The Lackeys and Love Botswana believe passionately in the power of play in a child’s physical, mental, social, and emotional development. As part of constructing a playground at a school, Love Botswana will train school staff in how to use the playgrounds to derive the most benefit for the students’ development.
Love Botswana will work with the Regional Education Office to determine which of the 80 primary schools in North West District will receive the 40 playgrounds. One factor will be the strength of relationships with the schools through the Metro World Child program.