18 Sep 2022

Minister of Communications, Knowledge and Technology, Mr Thulagano Segokgo has commended Botho University for developing the Botho Graduate Profile (BGP) in an effort to enhance graduate employability.

Speaking at the university’s 25th anniversary on September 16, Mr Segokgo said the graduate profile trained students on skills right from first year through student centric pedagogy.

“Today’s employers are looking for graduates who possess more than just the technical and vocational skills, but those who have soft skills to adapt to the ever shifting market demands.

Therefore, it is gratifying for the university to have developed the graduate profile,” Minister Segokgo said.

The minister was also happy that Botho University was also a leading institution in promoting entrepreneurship, having established an entrepreneurship lab in collaboration with the University of Stellenbosch, where students were given support on business ideas.

“Due to these commendable efforts as well as findings from an assessment that the university took part in, the International Finance Corporation-World Bank employability survey demonstrates that the university has strong initiatives aimed at strengthening linkages with the industry,” he said.

He said the survey’s results indicated, among others, a 77 per cent institutional employability score, which was at par with other African institutions with a suggested tagline of ‘Comparable with the Best in Africa’ or ‘Competing with the Best in Africa.’

“Such efforts ultimately give your graduates a competitive edge over others and the country needs similar institutions to fully meet the human capital needs of the economy,” Mr Segokgo said.

The minister further congratulated the university for the 25 years of existence in Botswana and for the commendable contributions it had made to the economy.

For her part, Botho University vice chancellor, Dr Sheela Ram said the 25th anniversary was more about maturity and the transformational change of investing in high-quality education.

“Botho University started as a single discipline IT-focused institution in the Main Mall to now a strong multi-disciplinary university offering diplomas, degrees and masters, which are industry-relevant across various countries such as Namibia, Lesotho and eSwatini,” Dr Ram said.

She said a custom campus building was underway in Lesotho while plans of extending its horizons to West Africa were to take place next year.

“BU is the first university in the country to have a physical presence in West Africa, which further cements our commitment to providing quality higher education,” she said.

She also said the university had made conscious effort to advance its use of technology and that its attempts to undergo a digital transformation were successful in enabling it to effortlessly transition to virtual teaching and learning when the COVID-19 pandemic struck.

Again, she said much effort and time were spent by the university’s staff to ensure that its graduates met the needs of the ever changing professional industry.

“At the heart of Botho is making an impact on communities, hence the ability to produce industry-ready graduates who benefit from activities such as foreign exchange programmes, student internships and work-integrated learning,” she said.

She highlighted that the Botho graduate profile, the institution’s blueprint, echoed the World Economic Forum report on future of skills such as critical thinking, communication, collaboration, innovation, entrepreneurship and self-management.

“With a laser-like focus on nurturing employable graduates who can become productive citizens, we are investing in people and technologies and the results are evident,” she said.

Dr Ram further thanked government for its continuous support through their 25-year-journey as a higher learning institution.

“We hope to become a talented, vibrant and dynamic university and a driver for positive social impact in the next 25 years,” Dr Ram said. ENDS