17 Jul 2018

 Botswana soldiers understand their unique situation in respect of rank, deployment and progression standard and process within the Botswana Defence Force (BDF).

This was revealed by Minister of Defence, Justice and Security, Mr Shaw Kgathi when answering a question in Parliament on Thursday.

Mr Kgathi said currently there were soldiers who have been in service for 10-20 years without a promotion, saying those who perform below par, they were cognizant that they had to improve their performance within the set guidelines and mentorship.

He said the BDF used a defined pyramid rank structure, which required that there be more junior soldiers and corresponding lesser number of commanders.

“The lowest military grouping in section, which has 10 men to a ratio of one corporal: two lance corporals and seven privates. This structure informs the overall force requirements and ranks within the BDF which influences the context within which the creation and availability of positions within which promotions occur,” he said. Mr Kgathi said he was constrained to divulge information which could inadvertently reveal vital statistics pertaining to Botswana military personnel in terms of number and geography.

Promotions in the BDF, he said were centralised and not based or disaggregated on geographic locations, therefore he was unable to give numbers of affected soldiers pertaining to Eastern Military Garrison.

He, however, said there were instances where promotion was impeded by lack of vacancies or higher ranks, to which they could be promoted, adding that in such situations, officers were counseled

Selebi Phikwe West MP, Mr Dithapelo Keorapetse had asked the minister if he was aware that there were soldiers who had been in service for 10 to 20 years without promotion; and if so, to state:
the reasons why and  the number of soldiers who have been in one rank for 10-20 years, the number of these soldiers at Eastern Military Garrison and  the effects of keeping soldiers on the same rank for that long. ENDS