26 Mar 2015

Members of the international community share common interest in addressing issues related to human development and socio-economic growth, the Assistant Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Mr Phillip Makgalemele, has said. 

Officiating at the leaders’ one-day international conference for financial and economic partnership between Afrijapan-Africasia International Cooperation and Botswana, Mr Makgalemele said critical issues such as poverty and youth unemployment were the main challenges in addressing such issues. 

Therefore, he said Botswana, as a true model of sustainable development, had taken the first step in shaping its history for the next generation. 

After many years of promoting free market growth, he said the country had embarked on flagship programmes designed to eradicate abject poverty and realise its economic potential through economic diversification drive and job creation.

As a result, he said Botswana was now becoming globally competitive, adding that “we are committed to fostering sustainable economic development by promoting inclusive growth.”

“Perhaps, the most impressive part of our economic system is our ability to devise prompt and effective steps to obviate social consequences, which could have threatened future growth like poverty and unemployment,” he added.

The Assistant Minister said in 2002, the National Policy for Rural Development was revised in order to effectively deliver on the Affirmative Action Framework for Remote Communities. In this case, he said Affirmative Action was defined by government and other public or private entities’ voluntary and mandatory efforts to address discrimination and to promote equal opportunities in education and employment on and inadequate availability of social amenities. 

This particular programme, Mr Makgalemele said targeted individuals in communities who had been adversely affected by several historical factors, such as; cultural practices, inadequate infrastructural development, low levels of education, unemployment, poverty, malnutrition and inadequate availability of social amenities. 

Under this framework, government had identified key areas for development that, if achieved, would overcome the challenges faced by people in these communities, he said. 

These included; provision of basic services and infrastructure development, agriculture and food security, support and protection of indigenous knowledge, rural entrepreneurial development and harmonization of social welfare programmes. 

As part of its cooperation, the Afrijapan-Africasia International Cooperation intends to work with Botswana on the basis of the following non-exhaustive objectives; support a national strategy for poverty eradication, promote the development of enterprises and their access to Asian partnerships.

The cooperation also aims to support Botswana as a regional key player in the fight against corruption and good governance and initiate Botswana football building strategy to position the country internationally. ENDS