23 Dec 2025

The Botswana National Productivity Centre (BNPC) and the Special Economic Zones Authority (SEZA) have partnered to enhance productivity across SEZA-supported investor projects, starting with a diagnostic review at the Selebi Phikwe Citrus (SPC) project.

The collaboration follows SEZA inspections that identified productivity gaps, particularly in skills among local workers.

Already, Selebi Phikwe Citrus project is bedeviled with a challenge of unskilled fruit pickers, which reportedly cost the project P9 million.

In an interview, SEZA acting deputy chief executive officer, Ms Tapiwa Masie emphasised the need for skilled labour to help investors meet international contractual obligations and achieve targets for investment and profitability.

She noted that SEZA's licensing prioritises employment creation for Batswana, making productivity issues a key concern.

Ms Masie further explained that SEZA and BNPC partnership aimed to build requisite skills, not only at SPC, but across all SEZA investors to support production and export goals.

For her part, BNPC’s acting executive director, Ms Matlho Seitshiro described the centre's mandate to champion productivity at individual, firm, and sectoral levels. She highlighted consultancy services, policy advisory roles, and productivity measurements, including upcoming launches of agricultural productivity statistics in January 2026 and a five-year national productivity data with projections in February 2026.

Ms Seitshiro acknowledged national challenges, citing a drop in labour productivity from 2.2 per cent in 2023 to 0.4 per cent in 2024, and total factor productivity declining from -2 percent to -3.6 percent.

She attributed labour productivity challenges to work ethic issues, worker motivation and performance management application as seen in the citrus project where there were observable differences in output between local and foreign worker and broader societal factors.

To address this, she said BNPC had launched a nationwide campaign to sensitise citizens on productivity’s importance.

Ms Seitshiro noted Botswana ranked 68 out of 69 middle-income countries in worker motivation, stressing the urgency for improved self-motivation and competitiveness. ENDS