allAfrica.com: Botswana: Ex-Bomu Team Leaves Sound Legacy, Rasina (Page 1 of 1)

The ousted Botswana Musicians Union (BOMU) executive committee made significant progress just before it was toppled at a rowdy meeting recently.

The committee was elected earlier this year, but was forced to resign during the meeting that was characterised by chaos.

But earlier on, former secretary-general Rasina Rasina presented a progress report, highlighting some of the projects the committee had undertaken during its tenure.

Rasina said they have entered into an agreement with Men Sector & AIDS to assist BOMU with capacity building, funding and institutional support to fight the HIV/AIDS scourge. Rasina said as artistes, they could no longer deny the fact that like any other industry, the music sector is also affected by HIV/AIDS.

The activity plan of Men Sector and AIDS also caters for BOMU. He said the BOMU secretary general sits on the Men Sector and AIDS executive committee, while the BOMU assistant secretary general sits on the technical committee.

Rasina said they have also collaborated with the Registrar of Companies - through the copyright office - in numerous ways. He said they requested the office of copyright to speed awareness of the copyright law. He added that most of their members are beneficiaries as they have persistently continued to attend workshops and seminars.

BOMU also organised a copyright workshop for artistes in Francistown.

He said they have, through the Registrar of Companies' office, pioneered the registration of the Collecting Society of Botswana (CSB) as a public company. BOMU is also represented on the board of directors. The meeting also heard that the CSB will be responsible for collecting royalties for local artistes. In addition, BOMU has joined forces with the Youth Health Organisation (YOHO) as a strategic partner. Rasina said they had realised that the move would be mutually beneficial to both parties. He said for many years YOHO had been working with their members on various health issues, hence they have made it a point to formalise their links.

YOHO has agreed to assist BOMU sub-structures with management as well as offer artistes relevant training and opportunities.

The former BOMU official said to fight piracy and advance copyright matters, they found it fitting to seek the assistance of the American Embassy. "We have, together with the Botswana Police Service and the United States (US) Embassy, prepared an Intellectual Property Handbook that shall be used by the law enforcement officers, including the police, in engaging in copyright cases and materials. Our relationship with the American Embassy on copyright and intellectual property matters shall exist as long as the music industry continues to exist," he said.

Rasina also briefed the meeting on their relationship with Botswana Television (Btv), which "extends beyond the BOMU annual music awards". The partnership, he said, does not only focus on production, airing and broadcasting of the awards but also on the development of the music industry in general.

They have negotiated a five-year contract with Btv. Rasina said they have also negotiated with Mascom to increase the sponsorship for the music awards. Mascom has been sponsoring the BOMU awards since their inception in 2006. Just before they were removed from office, the BOMU executive was about to finalise the amount for the sponsorship with Mascom.

BOMU has also entered into another deal with Storm Studios to organise a traditional music festival. "We must appreciate the fact that this music is the basis from which we all derive our talents and ignoring its development would be tantamount to forgetting that we exists as artists. We have, however, realised that we cannot go it alone because of not only lack of financial resources but also capacity and expertise. Storms Studios, who are members of this organisation, have since showed interest in hosting, on our behalf such, a festival at a shared cost."

On other developments, the meeting was told that the Department of Culture and Youth continues to cover BOMU's administrative costs. Rasina said the department was not only a relevant partner because of the grant it issues to BOMU but because it continues to parent the music association.

The department will also offer training to BOMU members.

Rasina said BOMU and the government department will continue to hold Presidential Music festivals on annual basis with cash prizes.

The meeting was also told about negotiations with a South African recording company, EMI Records, to become partners for the local music awards.

BOMU is also on the verge of joining the Botswana National Youth Council (BNYC). The former BOMU executive had realised that the association needed to affiliate to BNYC for realistic operational frameworks and genuine support of young people in the music industry.

BOMU was also to join the Botswana Council of Non-Governmental Organisations (BOCONGO). Rasina said affiliating to BOCONGO meant that they were subscribing to corporate global government of the NGOs. This is also a way of rationalising their operation by opening up to relevant stakeholders.

It was reported that BOMU held meetings with the Botswana Telecommunications Authority (BTA) and the two organisations agreed to monitor what percentage of local music is played on radio stations. The two organisations will continue to explore other areas of cooperation.

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