26 Jan 2016

The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Infrastructure, Science and Technology, Mr Dikagiso Mokotedi says the Botswana Academy of Science will act as a mouth piece of the government and the nation within the research, science and innovation fraternity. 

Launched in November 2015, one of its objectives is to advise the government on the quality of science as well as on scientific aspects of social and economic issues.

Giving welcoming remarks at a media briefing on Monday, Mr Mokotedi said it was important that the country starts to recognise professionalism and get professionals to organise themselves in a manner that would make it easy for the government as well as the nation to source advice from them as experts in various areas.

Mr Mokotedi said as the ministry they have to assist professional organisations to set up so that they were able to do what they were expected to do.

“We are desirous that as the academy develops into a fully-fledged organisation, we believe that at one point they will want to be legislated so that anybody who is working in this environment of research, science and technology will be legally recognised as a proper qualified scientist or researcher,” said Mr Mokotedi. Ends