Out and about is a column in which we chat with people who currently live abroad or who used to live and work abroad. This week we chat with Stefan Pretorius, who have been working in Botswana for five years and lived there full-time for two and a half years.

Hello Stefan, where in South Africa are you from and why did you decide to go live in Botswana?

My wife, Jani Pretorius, and I are both originally from Bloemfontein, but I moved to the Cape in 2014 to complete my final practical year at Groote Schuur Hospital. My wife (back then she was still my girlfriend) stayed behind in Bloem and we got engaged later that same year. We got married in 2015 on Bloubergstrand Beach and Jani also moved to the Cape after finishing her degree at the end of 2016.

After my practical year (2014) I was appointed full-time at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital. In 2017 I got the opportunity to be part of the new team in Gaborone part-time. In 2019 I left Red Cross and worked in Gaborone full-time. Every week I flew to Gaborone for two days.

Then Covid hit the world, and everything was turned upside down. As a result of the travel restrictions, I was no longer able to fly for work and therefore unable to earn an income. The hospital worked hard behind the scenes with DIRCO to get me across the border so we could work (I am the only cardiovascular perfusion technologist in Botswana.) We had to make a decision: should I go alone and leave my wife and baby here not knowing when we would see each other again, or should we pack up everything and move? For me it was an easy decision to make in that moment and I knew I wanted my family with me. We basically had 72 hours to pack and get from the Cape to Gaborone.

Tell us more about your family.

I am 36 years old. I was born in Pretoria but my whole family is from Bloem and my mom moved back there when I was about 2 years old.

My wife Jani (33) was born and raised in Bloemfontein. She completed her honours degree in Psychology last year.

Jani’s brother and I were friends and went to school together, so that is how I met her. We started dating in 2007 and had a long-distance relationship in 2014. We got engaged and married while living in two different cities 1 000 km from each other. During our first year as a married couple, we lived like this. She was able to move to the Cape in 2016.

Our first baby (Leah) was born in March 2019. She was born in Blaauwberg and in 2020 we went to Botswana.  

Jani and I got engaged on Bloubergstrand Beach, we were married there, and our first child was born there, so when the time came for the second one, there was no doubt as to where we wanted him to be born: Blaauwberg.

Luca was born at the end of December 2021 and we made sure that we were in the Cape by the time he was due to arrive.  

Adjusting in a new country can be challenging, what was the strangest thing for you to get used to?

There are so many things here that were difficult and still are. The culture gap is definitely high on the list. Something else we had to get used to is the fact that you are not able to get just anything in the shops. Months will go by during which basic things such as tomatoes, onions, potatoes and fresh fruit will not be available in the shops, to name but a few. All the medicine are also not always available.

Another thing that gets to me on a daily basis is the way people here drive. For instance, if a traffic light turns red, you first need to make sure that the person behind you is planning to stop before you decide to stop.

Tell us about your work and how the work culture in Botswana is different from South Africa’s.

I work as a cardiovascular perfusion technologist in the only heart unit in Botswana. The work culture is very similar to SA’s except for the fact that I have no colleagues who do the same job as me.

We are a team that comes from various countries. The anaesthetist and a few of the theatre sisters are from Botswana, I am from South Africa, a few other sisters are from Zimbabwe and our surgeon received his training with me in Bloemfontein, although he is from Uganda.

My wife falls under my permit, which means she is not allowed to work. It is also not that easy to simply get a job.  

How do accommodation options in Botswana compare with that of South Africa?

Accommodation is similar to South Africa, it all depends on the area where you want to live. Do you want to buy or rent? Buying a house is expensive whereas rental is cheaper. We are lucky because we live in a house on the hospital premises, so I just walk to work every morning.

What do you do to relax?

There is not much for us to do here. There are many places one can go camping, but my work makes it very difficult for us to go anywhere on a weekend because I am on call 24/7. Other activities are also limited.  

We have a nursery with a coffee shop where we take the children to play, or we take Leah horseback riding, which she enjoys.

Is there anything else you want to share with us?

We miss the Cape, it is where our hearts are.

There are no other family we can visit, and once again, work makes it difficult to visit family in Bloem.

Botswana is a very safe and clean country and people are generally very friendly. I am certain there are many other South Africans who will move here in the future and be very happy here. There are already many South African expats here who have stayed here for many years and are very happy.

Us? We miss our people, our language, and our culture.

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