03 Mar 2026

Government seeks to holistically revive pupil’s development by introducing and resuscitating platforms in primary and secondary schools such as 4B clubs, Drum Majorettes, Girl Guides, Scripture Union and other structured youth development programmes.

These develop different dimensions of a child that include, leadership skills, spiritual grounding, discipline, teamwork, agriculture and practical skills, entrepreneurship, civic responsibility, creativity and talent.

Assistant Minister of Child Welfare and Basic Education, Mr Justin Hunyepa, stated when launching the Botswana Scout Movement at Batanani Junior Secondary School in Mapoka, where he encouraged learners to engage in radical transformation and balance service with academic excellence.

Patrol based study groups, peer tutoring systems, weekend revision camps, subject performance tracking systems, are systems that learners were encouraged to adopt instead waiting to be told what to do.

“The ministry is building a holistic education system, an education system that does not only produce exam writers but produces leaders through education with production,” said Mr Hunyepa, who is also a scout.

As future leaders, learners were challenged to be smart, disciplined, resilient, innovative and think critically with a problem solving minds.

Mr Hunyepa explained that Scouts were volunteers who performed patriotic service without being paid hence must be treated well, properly supervised and their safety and welfare must always be protected.

In the same vein, Scouts must not have a sense of dependency but be self-sufficient.

“For too long we have normalised dependency, too many handouts, too little innovation, too little initiative,” said Mr Hunyepa adding that through the movement, they sought to build independent thinkers where young people must ask themselves, what problem could they solve, business they could start and the value they could create.

Minister of Labour and Home Affairs, and a scout, Major General Pius Mokgware, said he was a good citizen because of the principles instilled in him by the movement and the same could happen with every youth if they followed the same path.

He said Scout built a responsible community and a people who protected their nationality by putting their country first.

“We want a Motswana who protects our way of life, believing in the country’s culture and motto,” he said and explained that the movement equipped one with the tools of life that could be used in any situation.

Mapoka/Masukwane/Nlaphkwane councilor, Mr Nabulane Lenyatso, said job positions were not fixed, reputation was forever. ENDS