27 Oct 2025

The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Botswana (NMCB) together with Botswana Qualifications Authority (BQA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance collaboration and ensure the highest standards in nursing and midwifery training.

Speaking at the ceremony that marked a significant milestone in the regulation and development of Botswana’s healthcare education  in Gaborone recently, the Registrar of NMCB Ms Opelo Rankopo, expressed gratitude and optimism for the partnership.

She said the occasion signified a shared journey with BQA to ensure that nursing and midwifery education in Botswana remained of the highest quality, relevance and integrity.

She highlighted that while both NMCB and BQA operated under distinct mandates, their responsibilities were closely aligned in maintaining educational standards and ensuring that Botswana produced competent, ethical and professional healthcare graduates.

“We regulate education and practice, ensuring that nursing and midwifery programmes meet the highest standards, by doing so, we are not overstepping BQA’s mandate, rather, we are complementing each other in a shared responsibility,” she explained.

She noted that Botswana’s nursing and midwifery qualifications were recognised globally, with graduates successfully working in countries such as Australia, Ireland and the United States as a testament.

Tracing the history of nursing regulation in Botswana, she reflected on the council’s deep roots saying, “our regulation dates as far back as 1949, before Botswana’s independence, when nursing and midwifery in Bechuanaland, Basutoland, and Swaziland were jointly regulated. Over time, this evolved into the establishment of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Botswana in 1995.”

Outlining the council’s regulatory work, Ms Rankopo explained that NMCB evaluated nursing and midwifery curricula, inspects training institutions and ensured that teaching staff and clinical practice sites met the required standards.

The newly signed MoU, she said, was intended to bring efficiency, clarity, quality improvement and accountability to the regulatory environment.

“This collaboration will harmonise processes and reduce duplication of effort, it will bring clarity to our respective roles, ensure continuous quality improvement through joint reviews and promote accountability by maintaining national and international standards,” she said.

Ms Rankopo also reassured stakeholders that continuous professional development (CPD) remained mandatory for all nurses and midwives in Botswana.

“Nurses renew their licenses annually and they cannot do so without providing proof of ongoing professional development,” she affirmed, adding that healthcare was constantly evolving.

Sharing the same sentiments, the acting CEO of BQA, Ms Boitumelo Watlhaga reiterated that the partnership aimed at strengthening the quality and global competitiveness of nursing and midwifery training and practice.

Ms Watlhaga said the partnership represented the beginning of a transformative alliance grounded in a shared vision of equality, professionalism and integrity within Botswana’s midwifery and nursing professions.

“Through this partnership, both institutions aim to align nursing and midwifery qualifications and professional standards with Botswana’s National Credit and Qualifications Framework (NCQF). The alignment will strengthen joint quality assurance mechanisms and promote mutual recognition of qualifications both nationally and internationally,” she said.

Beyond academic alignment, Ms Watlhaga said the collaboration would also foster joint research, policy engagement, data sharing, workforce planning and accreditation, adding it will support recognition of prior learning and the development of credit accumulation and transfer systems to enhance professional mobility.

“These initiatives demonstrate our shared commitment to an education system that not only meets national standards but also aligns with regional and global benchmarks,” she said.

She said they were laying the foundation for a qualification system that empowered healthcare professionals, strengthenend the integrity of the  education system and enhanced the quality of healthcare delivered. Ms Watlhaga said healthcare was not a field where people could be treated as mere subjects of technical training.

“We must produce graduates who are job-ready, compassionate and capable of delivering,” she said.

She called for continuous professional development to keep pace with technological innovation and global health challenges. ENDS