25 Mar 2014

There is need for government to review its minimum wage across industries, says Gaborone mayor, Mr Haskins Nkaigwa.

Mr Nkaigwa who was speaking at the city’s full council meeting, on March 24, said the minimum wage for the retail sector should be raised to cater for the high cost of living in the city.

He said most retail stores were paying their employees peanuts while they continued to reap high profits. Mayor Nkaigwa said the minimum wage for those in the diamond industry should also be increased.

He said companies were taking advantage of the low minimum wage to under-pay employees while realising huge returns. “It is Batswana who continue to be beggars in their own country but helping other nations to reap what could have been theirs,” he said.

Mr Nkaigwa said government should encourage more Batswana to invest in the diamond sector, saying that diamond beneficiation opportunities should not be secretive but should be made public for all Batswana and provision should be availed through the various government programmes to finance Batswana who have the interest to invest in the diamond industry.

He said India and Dubai collectively had over five thousand diamond cutting, polishing and trading companies while they did not mine nor have diamonds deposits, noting that government had a responsibility to help Batswana establish such entities in Botswana which had a lot of diamonds.

He said that would help grow local economy and create more employment opportunities. Furthermore Mayor Nkaigwa observed that civil servants and private sector salaries had remained stagnant overtime. This was despite the fact the companies were making handsome profits.

He said the cost of living having dramatically gone high in the country, any salary increase less than 10 per cent would not be of value to civil servants. Ends