Ramotswa, Botswana ? Draped in a ceremonial leopard skin, a former bank manager was installed as the first female paramount chief in Botswana Saturday, one of the few women in traditional African society to hold such a high-ranking position.

Mosadi Seboko took over as the highest-ranking chief of the Balete people in a five-hour celebration attended by thousands, including some of the country’s top political and religious figures.

One of eight such traditional leaders in the country, she will preside over community matters concerning Botswana’s 30,000-strong Balete community.

“She is a born chief. She is calm, she is caring … she is intelligent,” said Leabile Mokgosi, a Balete elder who is also her uncle.

Seboko is the daughter of the former paramount chief of the Balete people. She was appointed by Balete elders after her brother died in the office.

Seboko, said by relatives to be about 50, is among two female chiefs in the country’s 15-member House of Chiefs, where she has been appointed chairwoman. The House of Chiefs advises the government on matters of Botswana custom and tribal property. It includes the paramount chiefs of Botswana’s eight tribal groups.

Thousands gathered in the rural village of Ramotswa, about 20 miles south of the capital, Gaborone, to get a peek of the new paramount chief. Children scampered onto stone walls and leaned on one another during ceremony attended by the president of Botswana, priests, chiefs, diplomats and the community.

The sound of cheers and the echoes of ululating women and choirs singing “She’s the chief” thundered into a cloudless sky as Seboko, wearing a pale pink silk suit and a rope of pearls, waved from under the leopard skin, which signifies supreme authority.

In her hands she held a shield and a spear.

Mosadi Seboko, center, receives blessings from church ministers after being draped in a leopard skin to symbolize her supreme authority as the Botswana's first female paramount chief. The ceremony was Saturday in Ramotswa village outside Gaborone. Seboko will now officially rule the Balete people of Botswana in traditional matters.

“Use it if troubles come, but it’s best to use your mouth to fight,” said one of her uncles, Mareko Mosiele, as he handed her the spear.

Seboko, speaking from the podium, spoke of working within tradition while moving forward.

She also spoke of the need to fight the scourge of AIDS — Botswana has the highest HIV infection rate in the world — about one in three adults carry the virus.

At a feast following the ceremony, 70-year-old Galatwe Kgari reflected on seeing a female paramount chief in his lifetime.

“Before the time had not yet come; now the time has come for a woman to be leader,” Kgari said.

Cattle, a symbol of wealth in Botswana, are traditionally given as gifts.

But keeping in line with new traditions, the chief was presented with a silver Toyota pickup truck filled with more gifts — a washing machine, vacuum cleaner, computer and printer.