Chilume for international Lawyer of the Year award

Local lawyer, Yvonne Chilume of Chilume & Company in Gaborone, is among the five lawyers nominated from across the globe to slug it out for the prestigious Lawyer of the Year award at the annual TrustLaw Awards scheduled for tomorrow in New York, USA.

The TrustLaw Awards is an annual ceremony hosted by the Thomson Reuters Foundation to celebrate the groundbreaking pro bono projects undertaken by legal teams with NGOs and social enterprises around the world. The event is attended by a network of TrustLaw members from over 170 countries to celebrate the impact made by pro bono on a global scale.
The Awards event recognises the work of legal teams, NGOs and social enterprises in five categories - Impact Award, Innovation Award, Collaboration Award, Legal Team of the Year Award as well as Lawyer of the Year Award, which recognizes the individual lawyers who have gone above and beyond in giving exceptional pro bono support. It is in the latter category that Chilume has been nominated, along with four other lawyers from Chicago, US, London, UK, Sydney, Australia and Vietnam. The five finalists were drawn from a list of over 50 nominations made by beneficiary NGOs around the world.
Chilume was nominated by an NGO called Young Africa for her generous pro bono work in

assisting them with setting up the trust and establishing a footing in Botswana. Young

Africa is a non-profit organization based in the Netherlands that in 20 years has successfully

trained underprivileged youth to become employable and self reliant in different Southern

African countries. UNESCO-UNEVOC has recommended Young Africa as one of the best

TVET practices. Young Africa came to Botswana a few months ago at the invitation of the

Ministry of Youth Sport and Culture.

A commercial lawyers who established her law firm in 2002, Chilume has supported NGOs in public interest litigation and pro bono legal services, such as the Emang Basadi Women’s Association and Women’s Shelter among others. She is a Board member Tebelopele Voluntary Counseling and Testing Centre and a member of the Botswelelo Centre Trust or Thamaga Pottery that creates employment for women in Thamaga village through pottery making and handicrafts.
She is presently holding the position of Treasurer of SADC Lawyers Association as well as the
Law Society of Botswana. She also holds membership in Women In Business Association (WIBA) and has a keen interest in business law, real estate (commercial property) and investment.

Speaking to The Midweek Sun on her nomination, Chilume expressed delight at the recognition, saying she found it humbling to be among the chosen few who will be in line for the prestigious award. “My profession encourages one to give back to the community, and I am glad to have been part of the growth of Young Africa which promotes and supports incapacitated people, especially the youth. Among the many things we do, me and Tapiwa, my partner, train the youth there on intellectual property relating to their innovations to ensure the protection of their brands,” she said.
In a separate interview, Jelena Mitrovic of Young Africa, confirmed their nomination of Chilume, praising her for having been instrumental in the organisation’s set up in Botswana