For the very first time in the country, there will be an event that infuses health activities with leisure (music, boat cruise, dining, game driving and more) all thanks to Bokopano Trust.

The event, dubbed Bokopano Health Expedition, is a three-day health and wellness holiday retreat aimed at promoting good health and wellness, local tourism scheduled for August in Kasane this year.

Addressing the media on Wednesday, Bokopano Trust project manager, Elvis Busang said COVID-19 showed that health was of great importance and could no longer be neglected as espoused by UNESCO’s Sustainable Development Goals.

“In the aftermath of COVID-19, the pandemic and the raising social and economic pressures, we realised a lot of people are trying to find avenues to better themselves. People are trying to live better sustainable lives so we decided to play an event that will keep this target market with skills and to convert mental physical health issues,” he said.

He explained that they have engaged psychologists on standby with tailor made packages, mental health lectures that had tools on stress management, addiction and other life decisions associated with mental health.

Furthermore, he said since lifestyle diseases such as heart disease, obesity and stroke are common in Botswana, they engaged a dietician to address such issues. He added that there will be fitness activities such as zumba, yoga and martial arts.

In addition, he explained that they chose Kasane as the event venue because it was a tourism destination with beautiful wildlife.

For his part, the event’s head coordinator and technical advisor, Daniel Moeng said they came up with the idea of the event to enhance socialising, fight issues of anxiety and depression. He added that the three days event will kick start with a cozy welcome dinner at Wild View Resort in Kasane, a stone throw away from Chobe river. He explained that the dinner would give revellers an opportunity to relax after a long journey, enjoy an evening with good company, good food, and soothing music from local artists.

He said day two will kick off with a 5km walk and fitness sessions such as yoga class, martial arts and aerobics. He added that they would also have packages being standard and deluxe packages and game drives at the Chobe National Park, boat drive in the Chobe river, visitations to crocodile farm, snake park and others.

The event’s PR and Marketing manager Dintle James said they promise nothing but endless fun. She added that for some deluxe packages, revellers would be given VIP and VVIP treatment depending on the packages they bought. She explained that their packages were called according to the country’s big five wild animals such as buffalo, lion, elephant, hippopotamus and others. Other packages include transport, meals, activities and accommodation.