By Mohalenyane Phakela
MASERU — Thetsane-based arts academy Basotho Intelligent and Creative Theatre Group (BICTG) has won an international entrepreneurship award after exceling in a competition organised by the United Kingdom-based Teach a Man to Fish.
According to the BICTG founder, Molefi Ntsonyana, the group — whose focus is on giving the local arts industry publicity and fighting joblessness through encouraging the youths to use their God-given talents to earn a living—won the 2013 Saville Foundation Pan-African (country) Award for Entrepreneurship,
Innovation in Education and Confronting Youth Unemployment in Africa.
Since 2007, Teach a Man to Fish, in partnership with the Sevilla Foundation, have been rewarding organisations that contribute to Africa’s long-term growth and development through an entrepreneural approach to education and training.
The overall winners of the competition take home US$10 000 (about M104 000), while second and third-placed winners each receive $5000, and country winners get $1000.
This week, Ntsonyana said the group was extremely excited by its feat.
“We were announced the country winner for the 2013 Saville Foundation Pan-African Award for Entrepreneurship, Innovation in Education and Confronting Youth Unemployment in Africa.
“We were part of the 380 organisations from 40 countries, which received awards from the Teach a Man to Fish competition,” said Ntsonyana.
“As our organisation is mainly about empowering the youth, we are going to use the money we won to take three of our members for a leadership course so they will equip others with entrepreneural and management skills when they graduate.
“We will also use part of the money to host different shows that we hold annually to give local acts the platform and exposure to showcase their talents. Our events are different from others in that we award certificates to participants, which serve as future references.
“We have partnered with the Film and Publication Board (FPB), and the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), to make our work easier.
“We recently held a workshop for filmmakers and scriptwriters in association with the FPB to equip us with classification of movies.”
Meanwhile, Ntsonyana also announced the annual BICTG talent show will be held in November this year at Ster-Kinekor theatre in Maseru.
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