06 Aug 2014

Minister of Health, Rev. Dr John Seakgosing has applauded Bank Gaborone for their spirit of encouraging good corporate social responsibility by engaging on charitable activities.

Rev. Dr Seakgosing was speaking during a handing over of P140 000 cheque raised by selling apples which was an initiative undertaken by Bank Gaborone to raise money that would benefit the diabetic community in Botswana. 

He said apples were bought by the staff and sold to the community and the proceeds were collected to make the dream of helping other people a reality.

Rev. Dr Seakgosing said as government they had made strides in providing affordable health care to Batswana adding that health facilities compare favourably well globally with a few designated as centres of excellence in certain specialised areas.

He noted that their fight against HIV/AIDS and other health concerns that once threaten their existence attest to the fact that they did not spare anything when it comes to ensuring that their existence as a people was safe guarded.

He said every Motswana access their health services with P5 and that they could not be refused treatment simply because they could not afford to pay the P5 which makes the health care in the country virtually free.

He said the greatest resource of any country was not just the land or mineral wealth, but its people.

Minister Seakgosing said it was that conviction that guides the country’s policies so that the health, as their greatest resource, was ensured adding that resources were not infinite hence gestures such as the one from Bank Gaborone was well and highly appreciated. 

Over the years, he said government had learnt that Public Private Partnerships were a special way of tapping into the expertise of the private sector, and its finance and use government infrastructure to provide some solutions to the problems faced by Batswana.

Rev.Dr Seakgosing said what Bank Gaborone did was a demonstration of the private sector’s project management skills and adding that ideas were brought to life and executed and urged other corporate entities such as Bank Gaborone to be mindful of the needs of the communities in which they operate.

For his part, Bank Gaborone, managing director, Mr Andre Barnard said they brainstormed to establish how they could make a contribution to the communities in which they operate and make a difference in the lives of Batswana.

He said they opted for health and after an investigation of the needs in Botswana they settled for diabetes. 

He said diabetes was commonly known as the silent killer because the symptoms may not present themselves until it was serious or fatal.

He said they raised P140 000 for Diabetes Association of Botswana through the sale of 50 000 apples. The chairperson of Diabetes Association of Botswana, Dr Joel Dipesalema thanked the bank for the noble gesture and promised that the money would be used for a good cause. ENDS