Introduction to MOT
The MOT programme
Vision and Mission
MOT SA
MOT Norway
MOT Co-ordinators
Introduction to MOT
The name “MOT” was chosen because of its simple strength, and its double meaning: the Norwegian ‘mot’ denotes both the ability to exhibit courage, and the ability to take a stand against something; in this case, the prevalence of violence and drug use.
MOT was introduced to South Africa in 2006 through a partnership between the College of Cape Town and the Haugaland Videregaaende Skole in Norway, when teachers at the College of Cape Town identified the need for a similar training programme on local soil. Since then, the Programme Development Team from Norway has trained 270 MOT presenters at the six FET colleges in the Western Cape to present the programme locally. In May 2008 the Board of MOT SA was selected, and on 1 October 2008 the opening of an independent office for MOT SA, and the appointment of the CEO, heralded a new era in the implementation of the MOT programme in South Africa and the integration of the MOT philosophy in South African society.
MOT was started by two Norwegian speed skaters, Johann Olav Koss and Atle Vårvik, at the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway. These two men are passionate about people, and sought, through the establishment of this programme, to strengthen the courage of the youth. On 13 April 1994 they launched a calendar project, entitled “Norske toppidrettsutøvere mot Narkotika”, or “Norwegian top athletes against narcotics”, and on 22 February 1997, during the World Skiing Championships, they took the next step by establishing MOT. The first Norwegian MOT presenters were trained during 1997, and that same year saw the introduction of the MOT programme into several secondary schools in Norway.
