21 Feb 2021

Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development has life orientation programmes designed for Remote Area Development Programme (RADP) and other Orphans and Vulnerable children (OVC) and Social and Community Development (S&CD).

The Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Sethabelo Modukanele, said this when answering a question in Parliament from Kgalagadi North MP, Ms Talitha Monnakgotla,

Mr Modukanele indicated that the said programmes also catered for pupils who did not do well in their Junior Certificate (JC) and Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Examinations (BGCSE) examinations.

The ministry, through local authorities, facilitated admission of pupils who performed poorly from JC and BGCSE into brigades and other tertiary education institutions.

To date, Mr Modukanele said a cumulative total of 535 pupils had been assisted.

“My ministry is also working with the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Research Science and Technology to identify Orphans and Vulnerable children (OVC) and students from RADP settlements who completed BGCSE to access tertiary education,” said Mr Modukanele.

Mr Modukanele added that the admission of OVC and RADP learners to institutions of higher learning was set at a special eligibility criterion of five points lower than the set cut off points for admission for the general student population. “To date a cumulative total of 12,446 students have been assisted through this arrangement,” he said.

He said the OVC programme also has a psychosocial support component through which children were empowered on life skills.

“Some of the areas covered as part of the life skills training include career guidance, resilience building, behaviour change, grief and trauma, sexual and reproductive health,” said Mr Modukanele.

In addition, Mr Modukanele said his ministry had been undertaking Miss RADP Beauty Pageant programme since 2013, with the purpose to identify talent, and increase participation of young women from remote area communities in the mainstream development.

As part of the programme, Mr Modukanele said the pageants participants were engaged through a two weeks boot camp, where they were empowered with skills such as projects identification and management, record keeping, entrepreneurial skills and leadership skills.

So far, Mr Modukanele said a cumulative total of 1 452 contestants from Remote Area Communities had participated in the contest at national level and also benefited from the boot camp.

Ms Monnakgotla had asked the Minister of Local Government and Rural Development if there were Life Orientation Programmes in place designated for Remote Area Development Programme(RADP) and Social and Community Development Students who did not do well in their Junior Certificate(JC) and Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Examinations(BGCSE) examinations. ENDS