14 Oct 2025

While government has been working round the clock to address critical shortage of medical supplies countrywide, some Batswana still experience shortage of supplies.

In a kgotla meeting addressed by Member of Parliament for Serowe West, Mr Onalepelo Kedikilwe in Marobela ward in Serowe recently, Metsimasweu Village Development Committee chairperson, Mr Moses Monthe also decried the shortage saying most clinics were without medication.

As a result, he said patients were compelled to buy supplies for themselves, with some prices being exorbitantly high, adding that those who did not have the means, would be affected. 

He also requested for Sekgoma Clinic to operate on weekends, saying that would ease the burden on the already strained Sekgoma Memorial Hospital emergency unit.

For his part, Mr Kedikilwe expressed regret that the nation was experiencing such difficult times, noting that government strived to provide medication to meet all patients’ requirements, but was confronted with the significant challenge of tough economic conditions, with limited financial resources, which he linked to critical resource shortages across the board and postponed project completions.

He hovewer assured the residents that things would normalise once the economy recovered. Mr Kedikilwe also urged the residents to acquaint themselves with the newly enacted laws.

He also encouraged them to familiarise themselves with forestry regulations, since people frequently neglect these issues out of ignorance, emphasising that the laws existed to protect both the community and their resources.

“We have regulations regarding the introduction of foreign tree species into our nation to safeguard our natural resources. You cannot simply bring seeds or seedlings from other countries and plant them without first consulting forestry experts to prevent the consequences of introducing invasive tree species that could disrupt the ecosystem," he said.

"There was an instance where an individual sowed a seed of an exotic variety, only to discover that it was an invasive species; relentless in every way, it destroyed all vegetation nearby, and regardless of how much they attempted to cut it down or burn it, it would proliferate in even larger quantities."

He also noted that regulations, like requiring a permit to harvest mophane worm, were established to protect the country’s resources, saying without appropriate laws and guidance, individuals might become greedy and excessively harvest the delicate worm, resulting in its eventual extinction. 

The MP urged the citizens to comply with the laws and protect their country’s resources so that future generations could also gain from them. ENDS