23 Aug 2020

Tertiary institutions both private and local, embarked on measures intended to respond in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic.

This was said by the Minister of Tertiary Education, Research, Science and Technology Mr Machana Shamukuni answering a question in Parliament.

He said the measures included technical, financial and educational platform support.

Mr Shamukuni said the support received through Botswana Institute for Technology Research and Innovation (BITRI) included IT solutions permit, ventilator and Splitter and the nanofiber membrane for protective clothing.

He said University of Botswana (UB) provided clinical and psychological care to the COVID-19 quarantined and infected patients admitted at Sir Ketumile Masire Teaching Hospital (SKMTH) and those in other nearby areas.

Additionally, he said a wellness clinic that looked after frontline workers set up at SKMTH was manned by the UB clinical psychologists, counsellors and social workers.

He further said UB was also prototyping ventilator hoods for low technology increase of oxygen tension around patients with pulmonary challenges.

“The prototype is at an advanced stage of its testing and more innovations and research is being pursued by various UB researchers and the outcomes of the programme will be made public until passing certain stages of its protection and some regulatory requirement,” he said.

Furthermore, he said UB professionals were providing advisory services to various COVID-19 response organs from the National Response Command Centre through the economic response, health logistics and services. He also mentioned UB designed face shields and masks.

Mr Shamukuni noted that measures from Botswana University of Science and Technology (BIUST) included drones for spraying public areas, design and production of sanitiser dispenser and production of sanitisers as well.

He also noted that BIUST also developed an information dashboard which intended to give detailed analysis of coronavirus using maps, diagrams, graphs and pie charts.

Still on measures by BIUST, Mr Shamukuni said the university partnered with Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) on production of bathing and liquid soap for the national market.

Mr Shamukuni also shared that Botswana Open University was also engaged , saying the university collaborated with the Commonwealth of Learning Courses had provided 1 000 Batswana with free access to 3 800 employability courses across 400 disciplines facilitated by Academics and experts in 200 of the World Leading Universities and Companies.

Meanwhile, Mr Shamukuni also revealed that contributions made by private institutions in efforts to help in the fight of the COVID-19 came in form of cash and kind.

He said the total cash contributions made to the relief fund amounted to almost P2 million while the total contributions in kind amounted to at least P5 million

“Contributions in kind covered sanitisers, anti-microbial soaps, free masks for both staff and students, two fully equipped ambulances, dissemination of health related messages on various social media,” among others.

Nata-Gweta legislator, Mr Polson Majaga had asked the minister to highlight the measures put in place to help relief government in acquiring COVID-19 materials such as masks and sanitisers from public institutions such as UB, and BIUST. Mr Majaga also wanted to know the input of private tertiary institutions in assisting government to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. ENDs