Meet Maude Dikobe
Botswanan mentor
Name: Maude Dikobe
Country: Botswana
How long have you been a mentor and How did you learn about ICLD?
– I have been a mentor for ICLD since 2017 till to date. I learned about ICLD from an online advert.
Areas of Expertise: Teaching, research, women and political representation, gender mainstreaming and local governance and sustainable development.
Why did you become a mentor?
– To enhance my knowledge of how inclusive political leadership operates in local governance not only in Botswana but in other African countries as well as Sweden. In this way I felt I could give back to the local communities.
Why do you like to mentor?
– Mentoring allows me to share my knowledge and skills and impact some knowledge to the mentees. But for me mentoring is gratifying as one gets to learn a lot from the mentees and what them grow in certain areas through exchange of ideas and feedback.
What are the success factors for building dynamic, inclusive and professional mentoring culture?
– Professional mentoring has to start with both the mentors and the mentees understanding their responsibilities. Both the mentor and the mentee must understand and uphold their different responsibilities. And this can be followed by building a relationship of trust, which is critical to the whole process of mentoring. Mentoring itself is a relationship driven, and this underscores the need to build trust from the onset. As the advisor, the mentor should be a good listener and a good communicator, and strive to involve the mentees. Mentees, on the other hand, should be receptive to constructive criticism – be it positive or negative – and try to connect regularly with the mentor.
What is the most challenging thing while being a mentor?
– The most challenging thing in mentoring is when the team is not proactive because of lack of support from the municipality. Roll-out-strategy? I think the municipality should provide support for the mentees to make the project visible to the entire municipality without trying to micro-By being supportive this can make the participants feel that their change project is worthwhile. Another strategy which I have used as ICLD mentor when I encountered a challenge, was to share my experience with the fellow mentors on the way forward, and try the suggested strategy.
What is your passion in life?
– Research and collaboration. I also love travelling and meeting new people with new ideas. I like to read about different research projects especially on gender and see how some problems can be solved through policies but also through activism.