AboutTime Issue 23 | Page 3

Mongala Mall Celebrating a year April 2015 marked the first anniversary of the opening of Mongala Mall, a partnership between Time Projects and the Southern District Council. Mongala Mall is right in the heart of Kanye; the only shopping centre of its size in the Ngwaketse District. It hosts a number of some of Batswana’s favourite multinational chain stores such as Mr Price, KFC, Edgars Active, Debonairs with Spar as the anchor tenant. It is also the home of the new bus rank. The centre’s presence has not only given the village a face lift, it has also brought with it economic empowerment for the locals in the form of jobs as most are employed by the shops operating from the center. The center has also reserved seventeen kiosks from which local vendors can sell their goods. Mongala has also transformed tourist activity for the village, with most tourists now preferring to stop over to refill their groceries or grab a quick bite on their way to venture into the great Kgalagadi desert. Most people have wondered why the center is called Mongala .Well the answer is quite simple, the piece of land on which Mongala Mall is built used to belong to the Mongala family who unfortunately had to be relocated to make way for the development. We therefore saw it fit to name the shopping center after them as a token of appreciation. Re a leboga betsho! 3 Q3 2015