01 May 2017

Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Ms Botlogile Tshireletso says the nation needs to be empowered so that citizens are self-reliant and reduce dependency on government.

Officially opening the first National Exclusive Annual Botswana Social Work and Community Development Summit held in Mahalapye, Ms Tshireletso said collaborative efforts by government, private sector and civil society remain key in improving the quality of life for the people.

She said strategies geared towards reducing dependency on social grants should be employed by empowering citizens to be self-reliant in order to divert the already limited budget to other critical areas of the economy.

“I therefore challenge you to engage objectively on how we can prudently cushion the vulnerable groups without necessarily creating any dependency,” she said.

The summit was held under the theme “Strengthening and Re-defining social work and community development interventions in Botswana: Promoting Botho, Self-reliance, Empowerment, Redressing Dependency and Social Welfare, Improving Health, Wealth and Maintaining Human Dignity.”

Ms Tshireletso, who is also MP for Mahalapye East, said there were various challenges facing the nation, citing emerging complex social issues and  limited resources.

“It makes me optimistic that we will come up with viable solutions and plans to address these challenges,” she said.

She also commended the Human Resource Group for realising the need to invest in people by keeping them abreast with evolving issues facing social work and community development.

That, she said would enable them to encounter modern challenges and also meaningfully contribute to their personal and professional growth.

“We all have a responsibility to actively participate in the development of our country and therefore we should feel obligated to make a difference in one way or the other to enhance the quality of lives,” she said.

Department of Social Protection director, Ms Ruth Radibe said some of government programmes encouraged dependency syndrome citing beneficiaries under temporary destitution programme.

Ms Radibe said such beneficiaries were mostly reluctant to exit the programme.

“They are not interested in poverty eradication programmes and seem to be interested in the food basket,” she said.

Also, she said plans were underway to develop a graduation strategy to assist people to graduate from poverty.

She further emphasised the need to empower the community to get out of the poverty trap and dependency syndrome.

She added that school children must also be given life skills and empowered to develop into adults who are self-reliant and not wanting to depend on government.

Meanwhile, she indicated that  empowerment could be done through educational campaigns, skill training workshops for women and group counselling interventions.  ENDS