13 Dec 2016

Employees at the local level of governance are key drivers of government policies and programmes says managing director of the Botswana Bureau of Standards (BOBS), Ms Masego Marobela.

Ms Marobela, who was speaking during the North East District Council (NEDC) performance awards ceremony  in Masunga on December 9, said such employees contributed to among others; economic diversification and good local governance and attributed the positive role played by employees to government having invested heavily in the ideals and principles central to unparalleled service delivery.

Further, she observed that the achievements being celebrated were an important reminder that in order to achieve good results, good governance ought to be made a shared responsibility.

“We must also ensure equal participation in the decision making process and ensure that the public servant at the lowest level in the structure fully participates in this process,” she said.
On a different note, Ms Marobela commended the NEDC for having heeded the call for zero tolerance to corruption.

Observing that the image of the council remained intact to date, she underscored the need for the continued mainstreaming of of anti-corruption strategies into annual plans and processes.

Still on the positives, Ms Marobela praised the district leadership for the good work it was doing, noting that their concerted efforts aimed at ensuring adequate support and implementation of government programmes, policies and projects continued to pay dividends.

Highlighting some of the council’s achievements during the 2015/16 financial year, the BOBS managing director said the NEDC human resource and administration had obtained first position nationally, beating all other councils and government departments.

She added that the NEDC landfill operation and management had similarly scooped first position nationally, with the NEDC settling for second position of all the 16 district councils.

For her part, the council secretary, Ms Rachel Jeremia said rewards not only boosted employee morale, but also served as an important tool for driving business growth.

She noted that rewarding employees was a way of appreciating the important role they were playing, stating however that those not receiving any awards not to be demoralised and discouraged as they too had contributed significantly to the organisation’ success.

Ms Jeremia called on employees to be determined to excel even in the face of challenges, and to use whatever setbacks encountered as stepping stones towards their goals.

The council chairperson, Ms Flora Mpetsane, in her welcome remarks, had pointed out that the awards were the final stage of a process of self-introspection after having paused to reflect on its achievements and shortcomings.

“We must analyse our data and analyse what has brought us good fortunes and what we must improve on,” she stated.

The awards, which were held under the theme, Excellent Performance is the Key to Prosperity, saw recipients walking away with certificates of recognition as well as cash vouchers. ENDS