The 24-year-old Tonota-born was selected for the competition after emerging the winner during his school, Boswa Culinary Institute’s culinary competition last year. He leaves Gaborone for India on January 27.
YCO, which is organised by the International Institute of Hotel Management to award the youngest chef from over 60 countries, will be held from January 29 to February 4, 2024. Speaking to Arts&Culture this week, Kwati expressed excitement at being part of the competition. He described it as an opportunity and privilege for him to showcase his talent.
He said taking part in YCO would not just be a competition but a chance for him to learn and explore. “As for my preparation for the competition, I feel that I’m really prepared to give the other contestants a run for their money. With the help of Xigera Safari Lodge, which is the leading safari destination in Africa and my mentor executive chef Ziyaad Brown, I believe I am ready. I had to sacrifice time with family and the festive season in order to polish my skills,” Kwati said. “For me it’s not only about winning as going there will also be a learning curve and a stepping stone, but winning will mean a lot to me,” he added.
Whilst he believes there is so much that culinary arts can offer, Kwati is of the view that there is little appreciation for it in Botswana. He explained that culinary arts are integral to the tourism sector and deserve more recognition. His mentor, Brown says they have been working hard to ensure that Kwati is competition-ready. “I have been coaching him to be competition-ready. In the kitchen, this is like training for game day; we practice and perfect each technique and each skill to ensure the final dish is perfect in itself. I look critically at what we are doing, to see where we can improve.
Going into a competition of this magnitude means we are competing against the world’s best. The only way to compete with the best is to practice and perfect,” Brown said. Brown explained that it is critical that Kwati had self-belief going into the competition as it is a true driving factor.
“Showing him that he is good enough, in fact, great enough to show his incredible skills to the world. We are out to represent Botswana on the world’s culinary stage. We are here to show the world what we have to offer,” he concluded. Boswa Culinary Institute principal, Diane Howell Wood said they have faith that Kwati will do well in the competition. “On behalf of the staff and students of Boswa Culinary Institute, I would like to wish Kaone and his mentor Ziyaad all the best in the competition as he represents the rest of Botswana,” said Wood.
