29 May 2017

Assistant Minister of Basic Education, Mr Moiseraele Goya  says the Botswana Annual Schools Debating Championships aim to prepare young people for leadership.

When officially opening the 2017 championships on May 26, Mr Goya said debates prepare future diplomats, skilful negotiators, persuasive orators and other professions.

He said the country desired to have  more representation in world bodies such as the UN, AU, SADC and others and emphasised that the growth of debating associations would ultimately afford the country an opportunity to export labour to the international community.

“As a democracy, we have always believed that the pen is mightier than the sword, the peace that we enjoy, which some people take for granted, is a result of our well entrenched culture of debate; we always usually say, ‘mafoko a kgotla a mantle otlhe’," he said.

Mr Goya also said  debate sought to continue Batswana’s culture of interaction and was intended to enrich a culture of academic excellence.

“Our schools are currently challenged because of the ongoing problem of underachievement; it is my hope that this passion that goes with this competition will be replicated in the classroom."

He further said even though the curriculum was delivered in English, many students were struggling to achieve mastery of the language, and this could be the reason for the decline in academic achievement levels.

“We are pinning our hopes on this debate to build proficiency in English,” he said.

The assistant minister further said today’s debate had grown in leaps and bounds because it enabled one to understand spoken word sounds, word meaning, grammar and patterns of word formations.

He encouraged the debate coaches to continue with their spirit of selfless service to the nation.

Botswana Institute of Debate Association chairperson, Mr Kingdom Kebaitse said debate in schools brought students to a place where they operate with wisdom.

“I firmly believe any debater or speaker if they are to convince the judges or the audience, has to engage wisdom before they speak,” he said.

Mr Kebaitse also said a person who debated out of wisdom was sensible, knowledgeable, accurate and they had a deep understanding of issues.

He said there was no how one could be a debater and not want to study or succeed in academic work, citing debate as a way of making students realise their full potential at the time where merits and A* are scares.

This year’s debate championships will see about seven motions being debated. ENDS