ROYAL BAFOKENG NATION: A FORWARD –THINKING TRADITIONAL COMMUNITY

The Royal Bafokeng Nation is a vibrant African community where tradition meets modernity in Big Five country. Located in the Rustenburg Valley in South Africa’s North West Province, the twenty-nine villages of the Royal Bafokeng Nation boast some of the most innovative approaches to sustainable development in Africa. These include holistic education reform, the use of sport to generate social and economic momentum, and converting mineral resources into the world’s leading community-based investment company.

The King of the Royal Bafokeng Nation is Kgosi Leruo T. Molotlegi, 36^th in a long line of visionary traditional leaders. Thanks to the pioneering spirit of the King’s ancestors, the Bafokeng community controls 1400 km² of land situated on the largest platinum reserve in the world. Vision 2020 and the Masterplan, the strategic blueprints for the community’s future, aim to create a socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable community true to its African heritage and traditions.

The Royal Bafokeng Nation is a model of progressive leadership on the African continent. Bafokeng governance combines elected, appointed, and hereditary leaders committed to long-term, future-oriented planning. The Royal Bafokeng Stadium stands as the only community-owned stadium in the FIFA 2010 World Cup, and the first to proclaim readiness for the world’s best-loved sporting event.

The Bafokeng like other African communities are symbolized by a totem that is linked to the history and heritage of the community.

The Bafokeng totem is the crocodile. The Bafokeng crocodile appears with its mouth closed, and the expression ‘a e wele mo metsing” (“let there be peace”) is associated with the totem and the peaceful diplomatic nature of its people.