05 Oct 2017

Vice President, Mr Mokgwetsi Masisi says Botswana has made ‘tremendous’ strides in improving the health care system.

Speaking during World Health Organisation (WHO) regional director, Dr Matshidiso Moeti’s courtesy call on the Office of the President yesterday, Mr Masisi indicated that Botswana was going through a transformation stage  to  create  working groups within communities to see how best to intergrade health policies and the society.

Mr Masisi noted that government however kept on identifying new challenges of alcohol and drug abuse that continued to emerge.

Such, he said were a consequence of the transformation process and a major setback to government’s efforts of achieving its heath mandate.

He applauded efforts made by WHO in partnering with government and private sector in addressing some of the key issues of concern in the health sector.

He thus pleaded for more health related research to be conducted in Botswana to find mitigations to certain challenges.

He highlighted that the country had availed itself to be used as a  research centre with the hope that the research outcomes would be documented and be of great benefit to the nation.

Mr Masisi said the relationship between democratic dispensation and health practices was an area that needed to be explored for research and documentation.  

He said WHO had a plethora of dispensation in Africa hence Botswana was willing to share its experiences and even invite introspection investigations into why certain resolutions benefited certain community and failed others.

As a member of the international community, he said Botswana’s contribution to the wellbeing of other human beings could be to avail itself for research methods that benefited the entire international community.

Meanwhile, Dr Moeti applauded government for its efforts in leading the world in curbing the spread of HIV and AIDS virus.

She said it was pleasing that her organisation had been part of the success story of HIV and AIDS public sensitisation drive in Botswana.

She added that more efforts needed to  be invested in fighting non-communicable diseases  as they posed  major threat in the country’s health system. ENDS