By Matṧeliso Phulane
Relebohile Motebo is a young gifted herdboy who uses locally available resources to bring his creativity to life while herding his flock at Fanana, not far from Oxbow in Botha-Bothe district.
Motebo uses small oat (moseea in Sesotho) – tufted perennial grass that grows in mountainous regions – to craft hats, fruits and vegetable baskets of different in sizes, and anything that is made of grass.
He started crafting way back in 2018 but due to loss of interest he took a break and resumed this year.
Motebo said he got the inspiration from one of his colleagues who he stayed with at the cattle post. The friend used to have skills in crafting hats even though he used a different type of grass.
“I used to learn and imitate him whenever he was crafting and thought of doing the same but I preferred moseea,” Motebo said.
Nineteen-year-old Motebo did not go far at school, having dropped out after completing his Junior Certificate (JC) at Lancers Gap High School.
Unfortunately, after completing his JC Motebo was forced to stay at home after an accident which affected one of his hands and a leg. That is how he ended up becoming a herder.
“Besides crafting, there is nothing else I do except earning my living through livestock herding. The crafting business is running smoothly since I sell my products to both local and international tourists who mostly travel to Oxbow.
“Most of my customers are local people. I cannot really tell how much I have earned since the business commenced because I spend whatever I get instantly,” Motebo noted.
The artist, who crafts whenever he gets bored, has so far made more than 50 products. However, the idea of advertising his products on social media has never occurred to him.
“I am on Facebook but it has never occurred to me to advertise my business on the platform. However, from now on I will starting doing so in order for people to get to know more about my business. I like the idea of being motivated by people’s interest in my products as well,” he observed.
Motebo said the only challenge he encounters is lack of threads which sometimes run out before completing his work.
“I hope to focus more on the business for it to grow. Like I said, with the motivation and support I will gain from people who will be interested in my products, hopefully I will get fruitful results at the end of the day.”
He added that with the money he earns through his products, he is able to put bread on the table for his family to survive.
Motebo sells his products by the A1 national road side at Fanana between Botha-Bothe and Mokhotlong. He can be contacted on +266 57572234.
