21 Jun 2015

The Minister of Infrastructure, Science and Technology, Mr Nonofo Molefhi, has urged the nation to take advantage of the new intitiative by Botswana Institute for Technology, Research and Innovation (BITRI) .

The initiative provided young Batswana with research, science and technology experience as well as entrepreneurial skills over a two-year period.

The minister, who is also a Member of Parliament for Selebi Phikwe East, was giving a keynote address at the launch of BITRI ICT Associates BITRI programme in Kanye on June 18.

The programme gave the youth exposure in  developing an array of competences in ICT as well as planning, starting and operating a small business in the ICT sector.

Mr Molefhi stated that the government acknowledges the potential of ICT as an enabler for socio-economic empowerment of the society. He said this is shown by achievements that Botswana has made in the last five years.

He said the programmes included electronic, mobile transfer, national broadband connectivity, various policy, legal and regulatory frameworks, reforms and restructuring of the institutions in the sector and promotion of an IT enabled services industry.

“BITRI has certainly taken its mandate seriously by kick starting initiatives to address some of the burning issues facing this country. While there has been a rapid increase in youth unemployment and a decline in youth entrepreneurship over the past years globally, Botswana’s unemployment is now the second highest in the middle income countries’’, he said.

The minister said his ministry is supportive of this programme and has provided BITRI with funding to kick start it, because creating employment opportunities for young people and poverty eradication initiatives are two key national priority areas of the government.

‘’The youth through their energy, talent and enthusiasm should be the employers of other upcoming youths. Botswana has many development challenges and we therefore look forward to the solutions that these young people will develop for Batswana’’ he said.

BITRI’s ICT programme has been set up in all three of its campuses in Gaborone, Kanye and Palapye. Earlier, Kgosi Kebapetse Telekelo appreciated that Kanye is one of the only two villages in the country to be hosting this programme, which is a great honour for him and his community. He said since the associates are stationed in Kanye they will benefit from them as they will rent out accommodation to them.

Kgosi Telekelo noted that the presence of the associates at the village will also help interact with the communities and appreciate the daily challenges that they face and as such help them think of the projects that they may embark on.

‘’It is my ardent hope that the associates will be role models for the children in Kanye by encouraging them to work hard at school in order to produce good grades so that they also become associates in their own villages one day,’’ he said. ENDS