02 Feb 2026

Secretary for Public Administration in the Ministry of State President, Defence and Security, Mr Richard Molosiwa, says the Directorate of Public Service Management (DPSM) will harmonise employee privacy notices across the public service.
Speaking during the Data Protection Day commemoration in Gaborone recently, Mr Molosiwa said DPSM had successfully developed the first standardised government data subject rights form. He said a standardised approach across government was necessary, adding that intergovernmental collaboration with the Ministry of State President, Defence and Security was continuing to advance digitisation of systems, including the introduction of data protection management solutions to strengthen security infrastructure.
Mr Molosiwa said across governments, the shift towards digital service delivery was no longer aspirational but an operational necessity.
Referring to the Data Protection Act of 2024, Mr Molosiwa said compliance with the Act represented a fundamental reorientation of how government must conduct its business. He emphasised that the protection of citizens and employees data was a core obligation of public administration.
He said breaches of the Act attracted hefty penalties, noting that contravening the Botswana Act could result in fines of up to P50 million or imprisonment. However, through training, workshops, competitions and continuous engagement with data protection officers, the ministry aimed to reduce institutional risk and enhance compliance.
Providing insight into mandatory compliance and alignment of digital innovation with data protection, Commissioner of the Information and Data Protection Commission, Ms Kepaletswe Somolekae, said government had enacted two digital laws , the Digital Services Act and the Cyber Security Act of 2025.
She said the Digital Services Act came into effect in November 2025, with the aim of accelerating Botswana’s Digital Transformation Agenda.
Ms Somolekae said the new laws complemented existing legislation such as the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, the Electronic Records and Evidence Act, the Cyber Crimes and Computer Related Crimes Act.  She said while digital technologies were beneficial, they also posed new privacy challenges and risks, including cyberattacks, phishing scams, identity theft and unlawful collection and processing of personal data. Ms Somolekae said the commission received complaints from data subjects on unlawful processing of personal data and was empowered to investigate them. ENDS