14 Jun 2022

A dirty environment can thwart the country’s efforts to attract tourists, Kanye South Member of Parliament Dr Lemogang Kwape has said.

 Speaking in an interview during a cleanup campaign organised by Botswana Democratic Party in Kanye recently, Dr Kwape noted that tourism contributed significantly to the country’s Gross domestic product.

 “A clean environment would complement the picturesque topography of Kanye,” he said, adding that the village was strategically positioned along the Trans-Kalahari corridor.

He said it was therefore  paramount to keep the village clean to lure truckers, tourists and investors into the area.

Dr Kwape who is also Minister of Foreign Affairs said Botswana should not rest on its laurels but rather should push forward to increase her goodwill and reputation, noting that Botswana was one of Africa’s economic success stories, a beacon of democracy, known for good governance, least corrupt country in Africa and tremendous improvement in the provision of potable water, among others.

He said a clean Botswana would aid other successes that the country needed to build on.

He said cleanliness would also provide a conducive environment for learning at schools, resulting in good academic results that had an impetus on the performance of the economy as quality education had a strong correlation to economic growth.

Dr Kwape spoke of the importance of waste segregation as sorting and separation of waste types facilitated recycling and correct onward disposal, adding it was an important component in the waste management chain.

 He said refuse management methods of  reuse, recycling and recovery had unfortunately received little attention and was normally informally practiced.

 He said people should make it a habit to keep environs clean, segregate waste, recycle and dispose-off waste safely, arguing such a move would also create employment opportunities for Batswana.

He said there was also a need to change the mind-set with regard to disposal of waste as indiscriminate disposal was not helping the situation.

For her part, Minister of Finance Ms Peggy Serame shared the same sentiments that dirt was both a health hazard and an eye sore. She thanked the cleaning crew for their efforts, saying such a move was a positive step in the right direction. She pledged support to ensure the campaign remained fruitful and benefit Batswana..ENDS