was born in Serowe, Botswana in the year 1978. My family emigrated to Mahalapye early 1980s, so my memories of my early life are mostly of Mahalapye. I was born second child (but first male) of Bothepa Mogalakwe (nee-Bogopa) and Senyarelo Mogalakwe. Perhaps the most important thing about my family is that my father is completely blind. He has been so well before we were born, in his twenties, and has courted, gotten married to my mother, and raised children in that state! The other significant aspect for me is that I have always being given responsibility (beyond my age) and treated with respect because I am the first son in the family, and I am named after my grandfather.

My childhood was unremarkable. I started showing a level of academic affinity in mid primary school. School work just seemed easy. I particularly remember that I used to play a trick on myself by lifting my hand to answer a question before I had thought of the answer. I expected myself to be able to work it out while my hand was in the air! And generally did.

I did my primary and secondary schools in Mahalapye. I developed a love for reading in early secondary school, and by late secondary school I was reading fairly voraciously.

I did national service for one year as a teacher in remore Tsau, Botswana. I was fortunate to subsequently be sponsored by one of the DeBeers companies to do my A-level studies and a medical degree in England. I returned home soon after I completed my studies and started working for the company that sponsored me. In the meantime, I married the love of my life and we were blessed with a loving son. 

In 2013 I resigned from the DeBeers company to start Storkfort Health…

I started being acutely aware of shortage of qualified Occupational Medical Practitioners in private practise in Botswana in 2010. This was brought home by:

1. My experience in the Government of Botswana Compensation Commissioner’s Board for Occupational Diseases and Injuries, of which I became member from 2009. Many compensation assessments were filled inaccurately due to lack of appreciation of occupational medicine in the general medical practitioner populace.

2. My experience in the Botswana Chamber of Mines, which I was part of by virtue of representing my employer at the time. Quite a number of mines in the chamber were struggling to source services of a competent occupational medical practitioner.

3. In providing occupational medicine services for my employer, I had to review contractor employees’ medical reports from private clinics that had previously examined them for fitness to work. It was clear that most private practitioners did not really appreciate matters of fitness to work.

Furthermore, I was aware that opportunities for promotion with my employer were slim because of the structure, and I was likely to be in the same role for at least another 5 years.

I am also a naturally restless person, constantly looking for growth and new opportunities and getting bored very easily. I probably was always going to go into business; it was more an issue of when rather than whether.

I have also always had interest in leadership. I was reading leadership books as early as my high school days. I read the “Seven habits of highly effective people” by Stephen Covey and “Rethinking the future” Edited by Rowan Gibson, to name a few, during this time. I felt that I needed a freer stage to test my leadership skills, and business and entrepreneurship seemed like that stage.

By 2012 onwards, I had a prettly good idea of what I wanted to do: an occupational health company.

In January 2013, I meet Dr Tiroyaone Mampane for the first time. Within a couple of weeks I had decided that I will partner with him and his business partners to start an occupational health company. I remained with my employer for a few more months to allow the financial year to end and bonus payment for that year to be effected in order for me to finance my dream. Boitekanelo Occupational Health Solutions (BOHS) was birthed in the same year. We were operating well and the company grew over the years. In 2017, four (04) years later, I proposed to buy out the other shareholders. They agreed and we rebranded to Storkfort Health. 

Storkfort Health (formerly called BOHS) was initially forcused on occupational health service provision. Over the years we have broadened our scope and our ambition to include broad health consultancy, corporate wellness, developmental projects and allied health services. We intend to leverage on our occupational medicine/health competency and grow beyond the boaders of Botswana. At the same time, we continue to explore growth in other health services with a view to building an international health brand.

We believe we should enjoy our growth. We believe in building a company where people are free to express themselves and grow socially and professionally.

We are very ambitious about Storkfort Health. We believe we are building a multi-national health company. And thats why we have been careful and deliberate in laying a solid foundation of the company. We want to grow into the broader health space, and be useful to the world from a health point of view. We are passionate about innovation and want to contribute to the overall improvements in health, especially in Africa.

So, you are going to see and hear plenty of us in the years ahead…….

This is my story and this is the story of Storkfort Health.

~~Dr Mogwera Mogalakwe