04 Mar 2018

Government is aware that some portion of the Jwaneng Mine’s and its contractors. workforce resides in Sese, 15 kilometres outside the town.

Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Development, Mr Nonofo Molefhi said this when answering question in Parliament recently on behalf of Minister of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security.

Mr Molefhi explained that there were about 152 contractor employees residing in Sese, while Debswana has 39 privately accommodated employees within Jwaneng Township, Sese, Kanye and other surrounding villages.

Mr Molefhi said to support a healthy workforce in the village, Jwaneng Mine Wellness department runs life skills capacity building programmes in Sese. These, he said added to amenities and services already in the village provided by government.

He explained that commuting was a widely practiced phenomenon in Botswana adding that commuting from Sese had no negative impact on performance and production as the village was less than 15 kilometres from Jwaneng.

“On the positive side, having our employees and contractors residing in Sese has had some positive socio-economic benefits as the community is now able to generate income from the houses they rent out to these employees and their participation in the village socio -economic activities,” he said.

Minister Molefhi explained that Jwaneng Mine had partnered with the community of Sese through the office of Kgosi and Village Development Committee to facilitate sustainable developments and improve the quality of life in the village.

He said through that partnership, a series of capacity building activities for the community of Sese was continuously being undertaken by the mine in collaboration with other institutions such as the Local Enterprise Authority, Construction Industry Trust Fund, CIPA and Botswana Red Cross.

The minister further explained that Jwaneng Mine also reticulates 200 000 cubic metres of water per month through Water Utilities Corporation from Magagarape to Jwaneng Township and part of it goes to Sese and the Township provides this service at a highly subsidiced price.

“Jwaneng Mine also functions as a referral Hospital for Sese residents and other communities in the government referral system,” he said.

In addition, he said identified key community projects promoted by the mining company included certified First Aid training courses for the VDC, police officers, and cluster policing committee.

Other identified projects include hazardous chemical handling training for the youth, police officers and VDC, fire management training, human rights training and life skills and behaviour change management training for vulnerable groups, including people living with disabilities.

In addition, Jwaneng Mine promotes enterprise development for out of school youth, unemployed women and small and medium enterprises.

He said in 2017, close to 200 residents from surrounding villages were trained in beads and pottery and 60 per cent of the participants were Sese residents.

MP for Jwaneng/Mabutsane, Mr Shawn Ntlhaile had asked the minister if he was aware that a significant portion of Jwaneng Mine workforce and contractors were currently sheltered in Sese owing to lack of accommodation in Jwaneng.

Mr Ntlhaile also asked the minister to state the estimated numbers of individuals and companies who commute to Jwaneng mine.

The legislator had also wanted the minister to state the basic services that were available in the village to support a healthy workforce and the impact on employee performance and production.

He had also wanted the minister to state plans in place to facilitate sustainable developments and improve the quality of life in the village; and identified key community projects promoted by the mining company. ENDS