15 Nov 2023

A healthy employee who is not stressed by ill health or other issues is likely to be more productive at work.

 It was against this belief that South East District Ministry of Agriculture employees hosted a wellness day at the Rural Training Centre in Sebele last week.

 The aim was to promote healthy lifestyles among employees and to unite the district team.

Held under the theme: Health, Key to Improved Productivity, the wellness day brought together various district teams which span from Gaborone North, Tlokweng and Lobatse.

Officiating at the event, Gaborone Mayor and Sebele Ward councillor, Mr Austin Abraham said studies showed that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) were responsible for 46 per cent of all deaths in the country, and that reports from health screenings had shown that NCDs were rife. 

He said the impact of the diseases and other health issues continued to threaten the ministry’s vision to contribute to the attainment of food security and poverty alleviation in the country.

Cllr Abraham noted that employees spent about 40 hours per week at work hence the workplace should promote healthy habits. 

He said wellness was a healthy balance of the body, mind and the spirit which resulted in a feeling of wellbeing. 

He added that the ministry had embraced health and safety in the workplace.

The mayor also commended the ministry for dedicating four officers for coordinating health and safety issues, saying it was the only ministry with such a unique structure. 

“Research shows that workplace wellness programmes are successful in helping employees make positive health changes. Programmes and policies that promote healthy behaviours can make a difference on employee wellness and have an impact on the ministry’s bottom line,” said Mr Abraham.

The wellness day featured various physical activities including tug of war, football  games, egg race and netball.

In an interview, the ministry’s assistant manager in the district, Ms Gorata Lefofa she said the day was meant encourage workers to keep fit and healthy. 

She said they hoped to promote good health which would ultimately increase productivity and service delivery. She said the day was also an attempt at bringing them together. Ends