03 Sep 2014

Ministry of Education and Skills Development, through the Botswana Education Hub office, recently bid farewell to 78 top achievers.

Speaking at the event, the permanent secretary in the ministry, Mr Richard Matlhare said the Top Achievers’ initiative was meant to reward and encourage top performers.

Mr Matlhare said they were trying to transform from a natural resource based to a knowledge based economy, noting that the students were taken to school through the nation’s sacrifices from taxpayer’s money so they had to come back and plough back into the economy.

He said the students earned it because they spent sleepless nights to be where they were.

For his part, Botswana Education Hub coordinator, Mr Lucky Moahi, said that there had been challenges in terms of resources, but they still managed to gather and bid the students farewell as they embark on a long journey of life in academics.

He implored the students to keep up the good work and be ambassadors for Botswana. “You should make your presence felt in those respectful countries,” he added.

The scholarship was intended for a select number of students, who had just completed secondary education, with outstanding academic performance to pursue careers that are of strategic importance in terms of driving the economic diversification agenda of Botswana.

The fields of study for the scholarship included Finance and Business, Engineering and Technology, Medical Sciences, and Natural Sciences.

The initiative aimed at motivating young people to excel in their studies, gain recognition, learn at the best environments to realise their potential, and ultimately to create a pool of exceptional leaders for the country over time.

The ministry introduced the Top Achievers Programme in 2009 in an endeavour to improve academic excellence at basic education level. 

The programme rewards students who attain 6 A* grades (Category A) and 4 A* grades (Category B) in the BGCSE/IGCSE or equivalent examinations by sending them to some top institutions of learning around the world.

Since, its inception the numbers of learners who qualify have steadily increased from 19 in 2010 to 30 in 2011 and to 42 in 2012.

This time around 78 top achievers are being seen off with 34 on (Category A) and 44 on (Category B). 

To this day, 344 top achievers have been sent to school with the country investing almost P33 million per year.

The students were happy for the opportunity the government has presented to them noting that it is not every country in the world that does this to its citizens. ENDS