Rabia Mayet | rabiamayet@radioislam.co.za

10 July 2025

3-minute read

Exploring how traditional leadership, local resources, and visionary planning are reshaping the future of rural communities Kgosi Nyalala Pilane of the Bakgatla-ba-Kgafela in the Northwest has pioneered a unique development model that’s attracting international interest.

The Bakgatla Development Model is built on four powerful pillars: mining, agriculture, tourism, and manufacturing. But what sets it apart is its core philosophy that rural communities should develop themselves, using the resources and opportunities already at their fingertips, rather than relying solely on government support or external investors.

Kgosi Pilane says that as rural communities who are always doing things for themselves, their main aim was “to take our lives into our own hands,” and not rely solely on government. The model focuses on the activities within the rural area to identify and develop the potential within their own land without too much capital investment. Their self-reliant, bottom-up approach is based on identifying what they already have and making use of it to the maximum to be sustainable and break the cycle of unemployment and poverty.

Mining and agriculture are industries prone to exploitation, and the Bakgatla Development Model practically ensures that the wealth generated from these sectors benefits rural communities proportionately. Taking the lead and being “part of the main fix,” Kgosi says that they started with the mining sector, inviting technical and funding partners to improve and increase productivity. By not coming “cap in hand,” and upskilling their people, everybody is able to participate in the organising of the process.

Agriculture has always been a part of their lifestyle and by providing the adequate skills, they have increased productivity among the locals so that they are no longer just subsistence farmers.

Their model’s tourism strategy focuses on heritage and cultural experiences rather than traditional game tourism. To get the local people to participate, they identified their own lifestyle as part of their heritage and began providing services and cultural experiences to tourists, showcasing their own history of the area using old existing structures that are over a hundred years old.

Amazed by what the model has achieved, a delegation of traditional leaders from Namibia came to South Africa to study this approach firsthand. Their aim was to learn and benchmark the Bakgatla Development Model to “provide a solution for every other rural development.” As Namibia looks to replicate elements of this model, the Bakgatla blueprint could soon inspire rural transformation across the continent.

From transforming mineral wealth into community benefit, to turning heritage and culture into tourism experiences, the Bakgatla are proving that sustainable progress begins at home. Their approach has not only generated local economic activity but has fostered a deep sense of ownership and pride among the people. As Kgosi Pilane put it: “if we ensure we do it to the maximum and the best,” we will have the desired outcome. “Even the outside people have noticed and acknowledged what we are doing,” he concluded.

Listen to the full interview here.