Betway Botswana supports fight against gender-based violence with P2.5m donation
Betway Cares Foundation donates P2.5m to the Botswana Gender-Based Violence Centre to fund a new shelter for survivors.
Botswana.- Betway Cares Foundation has strengthened the fight against gender-based violence in Botswana by donating P2.5m (€175,000) to the Botswana Gender-Based Violence Centre (BGBVC) to build a shelter for survivors, turning betting revenue into protection, empowerment and hope.
The donation was officially handed over at a recent ceremony, attended by representatives from Betway Cares Foundation, BGBVC officials and members of the community. The shelter in Francistown will provide a safe space for survivors to “heal and rebuild their lives”.
Representing Betway Cares Foundation, Michelle France-Mabiletsa, Country Manager, added that the fight against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) requires a unified national effort and said the initiative reflects the company’s commitment to creating a Botswana where “every person, especially women and children, can live in dignity and free from fear and violence”.
France-Mabiletsa said, according to Daily News Botswana: “We must speak frankly about a crisis that continues to steal the futures of too many Batswana. The statistics on GBV in our nation are not just numbers; they represent shattered lives, trauma and dreams unjustly deferred.”
She added that many survivors who break free from abuse often have nowhere to turn, a challenge the new shelter seeks to address. “Betway Cares Foundation found it fit to step forward, given its mandate to empower communities and invest in sustainable development. We want this shelter to be a symbol that when darkness descends, there is a place, a community and a partner ready to headlight the way forward.”
A safe haven for survivors
Lorato Moalusi, Chief Executive Officer of BGBVC, said the support marks a major step forward in the organisation’s mission to provide refuge for survivors and strengthen the country’s response to gender-based violence.
She said: “We accept this support with deep humility, but also with great responsibility. We pledge to use it wisely, efficiently and transparently and ensure that every Pula contributes directly to the safety and restoration of those in need.”
The centre had long faced a shortage of safe spaces for survivors to heal and rebuild their lives, a gap this project aims to close, according to Moalusi. The organisation is working with local authorities to identify and secure land for the shelter and will begin construction as soon as a site is finalised.
Moalusi added: “The donation sends a clear message that survivors of violence are not alone, that their dignity matters, and that the nation refuses to accept violence as part of our society. The shelter will not just be a building, but a place of hope, healing and second chances.”
