29 Jul 2015

The annual cost of paying the scarce skills allowance is over P500 million, says the Assistant Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration.

Mr Dikgang Makgalemele said the scarce skills allowance was introduced in 2008 to enable the government to attract and retain expertise deemed to be scarce.

He said it was a product of the recommendations of a study undertaken by the Botswana Institute of Policy Development and Analysis (BIDPA) in 2007.

Mr Makgalemele further said eligible employees were made to sign an undertaking that allows the government to terminate the allowance whenever the skill was no longer scarce.

He said the cost factor was a major implementation challenge that government had to contend with, and that was derived from the fact that the allowance rate was high ranging between 15 to 40 per cent.  He said 42 occupations had been categorised as being scarce.

The MP for Nata/Gweta, Mr Polson Majaga had asked the minister to state the total cost of scarce skills allowance annually and to state the justification for that arrangement.
Mr Majaga also wanted the minister to state associated challenges and to provide a list of skills and professions enjoying the benefit. Ends