01 Sep 2022

The Ministry of Lands and Water Affairs is piloting a strategy to grow the middle-class through entrepreneurship and enterprise development. 

The strategy aims to empower middle-class employees to effectively participate in the country’s economic development through the creation of globally competitive and sustainable businesses.

Principal research officer in the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ms Zenzile Sedie applauded the strategy during a pre-retirement workshop aimed at preparing prospective retirees for retirement.

She said the workshop was part of the strategy as attendees were amongst the targeted middle-class and she encouraged them to exploit business opportunities to better their lives after retirement.

Early preparation for retirement, she said, was key as prospective retirees would be able to take responsibility of their economic status beyond formal employment. Ms Sedie said it was never too late, noting that retirees could venture into businesses at any scale.

She advised them to register companies and take advantages of available government programmes and opportunities aimed at improving the livelihood of Batswana.

She cited the National Development Bank and Citizen Entrepreneurship Development Agency (CEDA) as institutions that could finance them to start viable projects.

Apprising participants about the strategy, she said it sought to assist the country to achieve its national goals of economic diversification, job creation and poverty eradication, and urged participants to venture into businesses that could benefit them and the nation. 

Ms Sedie also said the strategy was for both public and private sector employees as well as other workers from different sectors of the economy, as it intended to uplift Botswana from a poor status to a rich one.

She said the strategy’s mission was to provide opportunities for middle-class employees to start businesses that would help them maintain their standard of living and contribute to the economic development of the country after they had exited formal employment.

She noted that the idea to develop the strategy emanated from the Rural Development Council in 2017 as it was found that there was a policy gap in promoting middle-class employees participation in the economy.

Ms Sedie said no previous policies had directly supported middle-class employees to get into entrepreneurship. 

 The strategy, Ms Sedie said, was launched last December and that the Local Enterprise Authority had been mandated to spearhead its implementation. BOPA