Efforts to support Botswana San with their Covid-19 struggles

A statement by a community member from D’kar village detailing the vulnerabilities of the San people in Botswana during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the inadequacy of government responses and the risk to indigenous culture.

• The San community in D’kar village faces extreme vulnerability to COVID-19 due to dire poverty, overcrowded housing, and communal cultural practices involving the sharing of food and utensils, which make lockdown regulations difficult to implement.
• The San people experience systemic discrimination and racism within healthcare settings, characterized by derogatory language and coercive treatment from medical staff, which may be worsened by emergency regulations.
• The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant economic loss for the San, particularly those employed in the tourism sector who have faced retrenchment and now depend on government food rations that are often insufficient for large households.
• Government and NGO responses to the pandemic are described as inappropriate and ineffective because health information is primarily provided in Tswana and fails to account for San culture or the practical realities of their living conditions.
• There is a critical risk that the COVID-19 pandemic could lead to the loss of the San's indigenous culture, including traditional knowledge of nature, conservation, medicine, and food.

APA

Martens, C. (2020). Efforts to support Botswana San with their Covid-19 struggles. Natural Justice. https://naturaljustice.org/efforts-to-support-botswana-san-with-their-covid-19-struggles/

Chicago

Martens, Claire. Efforts to support Botswana San with their Covid-19 struggles. Natural Justice, 2020. https://naturaljustice.org/efforts-to-support-botswana-san-with-their-covid-19-struggles/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Martens |first1=Claire |title=Efforts to support Botswana San with their Covid-19 struggles |publisher=Natural Justice |date=21 May 2020 |url=https://naturaljustice.org/efforts-to-support-botswana-san-with-their-covid-19-struggles/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{martens2020efforts, author = {Martens, Claire}, title = {{Efforts to support Botswana San with their Covid-19 struggles}}, publisher = {Natural Justice}, year = {2020}, month = may, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/efforts-to-support-botswana-san-with-their-covid-19-struggles/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }