20 Oct 2013

The Minister of Transport and Communications, Mr Nonofho Molefhi has urged Botswana Teachers Savings and Cooperative Society (BT SACCOS) to invest their savings and contribute to the diversification of the economy as well as the country’s Gross Domestic Product..

Officiating at a BT SACCOS fundraising dinner in Gaborone on  October 17, he said cooperatives were a way of empowering Batswana financially. Mr Molefhi encouraged the cooperative to invest in the property and transport industry and also to appreciate their tax exemption and utilise the opportunity to raise more money.  Minister Molefhi also called for transparency amongst the cooperative leadership and asked the commissioner to comply with statutory requirements for cooperatives and guard against maladministration.

For her part, Gaborone regional cooperative officer in the Department of Cooperative Development, Mrs Tlhapiso Mmopelwa said cooperatives have a unique way of empowering Batswana as they provide a lifeline toward savings and access to credit at affordable rates. The Cooperative Development Department, she said, was currently working on a transformation strategy that would ensure growth of the cooperatives sector.

Mrs Mmopelwa said the strategy would enable cooperatives to have their own insurance company and eventually form their own bank. She noted that cooperatives in other countries have contributed immensely to their country’s GDP, adding that the same could happen in Botswana if they invest their savings through diversification. Chairperson of BT SACCOS, Mr Kwante Kwante said their cooperative membership has grown and they have branches in Maun, Francistown, Mogoditshane and Palapye. He commended the government for cooperatives tax exemption and encouraged more teachers to join. Mr Kwante also noted that BT SACCOS came into being in 1993 through a resolution by Botswana Teachers Union (BTU) after members and the leadership raised concern that many teachers had financial problems because they could not invest in robust income generating activities. ENDS