Robelela is a village in Central District of

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...

. It is located south-east of

Francistown Francistown is the second largest city in Botswana, with a population of about 103,417 and 147,122 inhabitants for its agglomeration at the 2022 census. and often described as the "''Capital of the North''" or as the natives would have it “''T ...

, close to the border with

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

. The population was 471 in 2001 census. Robelela in the Bobirwa Sub-District, is the village closest to the

Dikgatlhong Dam The Dikgatlhong Dam is a dam near the village of Robelela on the Shashe River in Botswana, completed in December 2011. When full it will hold . The next largest dam in Botswana, the Gaborone Dam, has capacity of . Purpose The dam is located on t ...

, completed in 2012. This will be the biggest dam in Botswana with a carrying capacity of 400 million cubic meters. A pipeline to

Selebi-Phikwe Selebi-Phikwe (also spelt ''Selibe Phikwe'') is a mining town located in the Central District of Botswana. It had a population of 42,488 in 2022. The town is an administrative district, separate from the surrounding Central District. Mining ...

is planned to carry the water to the

North-South Carrier Pipeline The North-South Carrier (NSC) is a pipeline in Botswana that carries raw water south for a distance of to the capital city of Gaborone. Phase 1 was completed in 2000. Phase 2 of the NSC, under construction, will duplicate the pipeline to carry ...

, which will take the water south from Selebi-Phikwe to

Gaborone Gaborone ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Botswana with a population of 246,325 based on the 2022 census, about 10% of the total population of Botswana. Its agglomeration is home to 421,907 inhabitants at the 2011 census. Gaboron ...

. The influx of construction workers for the three major components of the project, which includes a new tarred road, and the relocation of affected settlements has started to increase the population of Robelela, and there is concern that these previously isolated communities are a high risk for HIV/AIDS and STD infections. Recognizing the risk of mobile communities for HIV and STD transmission, the Department of Water Affairs has contracted Tebelopele (the largest NGO in Botswana, responsible for HIV/AIDS Counseling and Testing) to implement a program of intervention, education and testing in the region. Tebelopele has appointed Golekanye Monare as Project manager for the Dikgatong Dam.

References

Populated places in Central District (Botswana) Villages in Botswana {{Botswana-geo-stub