03 Nov 2025

Government is in the process of introducing a monthly allowance of P300 in the coming financial year (2026/2027). The monthly allowance will cover citizen newborn babies from birth until the child reaches 12 months of age. 

Minister of Local Government and Traditional Affairs, Mr Ketlhalefile Motshegwa told Parliament on Thursday that initiative sought to ease the financial burden on parents and caregivers during the critical first year of a child’s life, ensuring that no child was deprived of essential needs due to economic hardship. 

He said this was also part of government’s intent to stay resolute on its mandate of safeguarding the welfare and rights of every child from conception the completion of basic education. 

Minister Motshegwa said, in an attempt to promote the wellbeing and dignity of girl learners, government had introduced an initiative to provide free sanitary pads to all female students to eliminate barriers that often lead to absenteeism and dropouts. 

All these initiatives, he said were a reflection of government’s unwavering dedication to building an inclusive, caring and equitable society that leaves no child behind. 

With relation to school supplementary feeding programme, Minister Motshegwa noted that government will during the implementation of National Development Plan 12 roll out the home grown school feeding program. 

“This transformative initiative seeks to leverage the demand for school meals as a power catalyst for local economic development and agricultural transformation,” he said.  

He stated that by prioritising the procurement of food from local farmers and producers, the programme aims to create employment opportunities, empower farming communities and stimulate local value chains thereby building stronger and more resilient communities. 

Mr Motshegwa stated that school going children would through this intervention receive fresh nutritious and locally sourced meals which would not only enhance their health and wellbeing but also instil a deeper sense of national pride and self reliance in the country’s food system.  Minister Motshegwa highlighted that the successful implementation of this programme was closely linked to the readiness and capacity of the agricultural sector and distribution, hence pleaded for the alignment of agricultural policies and support mechanisms to ensure consistent supply.  

He said government would continue to strengthen farmers support programmes and market access facilitation to ensure that local producers were prepared and positioned to meet the increasing demand generated by this initiative. 

For his part, Moshupa/Manyana MP, Mr Karabo Gare commended the former ruling party for laying a solid social protection programmes for the benefit of the coming generation.  

“Credit to the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) government for establishing a fully functional social protective unit which the current should nurture and ride on,” he said.  

Mr Gare also cautioned government to close the double dipping gap indicating that social safety nets were prone to exploitation which could cost government. 

Kgalagadi North MP, Mr Reason Lekhutlane decried high poverty rates in his constituency considering it a human rights violation, particularly when it stemmed from systemic issues where governments fail to fulfill its obligations to protect economic and social rights. 

He said it was pleasing that President Advocate Duma Boko took a firm position that poverty and exclusion were human rights violation, therefore expressed optimism that government would fulfill its obligation to protect economic and social rights particular of people in rural areas. 

It is on this background that Mr Lekhutlane thus said government should consider resourcing Kgalagadi North with roads infrastructure to enable residents to access resources. ENDS