Staff and students of the North-West University (NWU) are mourning the passing of alumnus and prolific Setswana writer Dr Joseph Matlhasedi Mtsime.
Dr Ntsime, a highly acclaimed and respected Setswana author, received an honorary doctorate from the NWU in April 2008 for his contribution to the development and preservation of Setswana.
He has published extensively in the area of language, general science and religious instruction at primary and secondary school level. He has also published Setswana poetry, folklore takes and short stories.
Dr Ntsime’s contribution to and love for the Setswana language go back to the days of his teaching when he excelled in languages and literature.
He later became the first Motswana to provide editorial leadership in the publishing of the first local magazine Utlwang which covered news, articles and current affairs.
As a Setswana teacher he was passionate about the development of Setswana as an African language. Because of his passion and dedication, he was appointed an examiner and moderator of Setswana school examination papers in 1964.
He also served on many committees, including the Setswana Language Committee of the Department of Education and the Setswana Language Committee of the former Radio Bantu.
He was instrumental in the establishment of a Language Services Section in the then Department of Education and Training in 1969. He was subsequently involved in the translation of government documents and the development of terminology in general.
After serving with diligence and dedication, he was promoted to the position of director in the same department. Soon thereafter he was appointed editor-in-chief of the Setswana dictionary in the Institute of African Studies of the former University of Bophuthatswana.
In addition to his official duties, Dr Ntsime mentored and empowered many of his contemporaries in the areas of editorship, examinership and authorship. He also contributed to the development of Setswana radio programmes as a way of creating awareness of the Setswana language and literature.
He has received various awards. They include the Sol Plaatjie Literature Award in the 1980’s; National Award Winner for the Outstanding Author in Setswana Literature (awarded by the Department of Arts and Culture in 2005); Multilingualism and Nation Building Author of the Decade in Setswana (Awarded by the Pan South African Language Board in 2008); and Prolific Author in Setswana (awarded by the Setswana National Language Body in 2008).
Dr Joseph Matlhasedi Mtsime
