25 Feb 2026

Minister of Youth and Gender Affairs, Ms Lesego Chombo, has called for robust economic reforms targeting young people, women, and persons with disabilities. 

Contributing to the 2026/27 budget speech debate on Tuesday, Minister Chombo stated it was crucial for government to create a responsive economic ecosystem tailor-made to support mentorship, growth and access to capital and markets. 

In that regard, she emphasised that the P1.85 billion procurement budget across all ministries and departments must strictly comply with the 20 per cent reservation for young people.

 “Businesses owned by women, young people and persons with disabilities must get a share of this budget.We must make sure of it,” she said.

 Ms Chombo further emphasised that economic liberty was vital, particularly for women, as financial independence often provided the means to leave abusive relationships.

She also urged institutions entrusted with funding development projects to prioritise youth and women-led businesses.

Furthermore, she argued that government must work harder to create pathways for graduates, noting that the demand for many years of work experience often hindered their breakthrough into the job market.

 To address such gaps, she informed Parliament that her ministry was working to capacitate and equip such groups through strategic partnerships. 

She also announced that the ministry was finalising a Youth Employment Strategy in collaboration with the International Labour Organisation (ILO). 

Additionally, she said a Revised National Youth Policy would be tabled in Parliament to lay the groundwork for a Youth Development Act, intended to secure sustainable opportunities for the youth.

MP for Tswapong North, Mr Prince Maele, commended the budget for focusing on three main pillars which entailed addressing financial haemorrhage, stabilisation and economic take- off.

He noted that the budget speech aligned with both the State of the Nation Address (SONA) and previous budgetary goals. Mr Maele welcomed that supplementary estimates and virement of maintenance votes would be restricted.

 “These measures are meant to address financial haemorrhage,” he noted, adding that strict enforcement of centralised Government Purchase Orders (GPOs) had effectively curbed wastage. 

He also welcomed the transformation of state-owned enterprises, such as the Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) and Air Botswana, as a step toward revitalising the economy, while highlighting the importance of the Sovereign Wealth Fund for posterity. 

Tati East MP, Mr Tlhabologo Furniture, opposed the budget, arguing that the Minister of Finance failed to address bread and butter issues and ignored policy pronouncements previously promised by the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC). 

Mr Furniture suggested that income must be more strictly aligned with expenditure to avoid deficits, stressing the need to improve foreign reserves and revenue collection.

 He cautioned government against increasing taxes, saying it would have negative impact on households. 

On healthcare, he opined a national health insurance scheme was currently unfeasible due to budget constraints. Instead, he argued that government should prioritise improvement of medical supplies in existing health facilities. 

He also raised concerns regarding the delay of Constituency Community Projects (CCP) funds, which he said hampered local development.

 While he welcomed the P97 million budget allocated to fight Foot and Mouth Disease, he disapproved the lack of a detailed plan on how the funds would be utilised.

 He further called for the establishment of a dedicated gender-based violence (GBV) fund to support victims and combat the scourge. BOPA