News

𝐌asisi Continues suspension of trade in alcohol until further notice

Ke a ledumedisa ka Pula.

1. Fellow Batswana, today I will be updating you on issues of national importance and priority, as I have done in the past.

2. The relentless attack of the COVID-19 pandemic on our country and the rest of Africa has pushed both our human and financial resources to the limit, particularly, as a result of the continued emergence of new and more transmissible variants which are more contagious, the Delta variant being the latest.

3. Thus, at the beginning of this month, the World Health Organisation reported that the third wave of COVID-19 infection rate could increase exponentially.

4. In the week ending, 4th July, Africa experienced its ‘worst pandemic ever’, with over two hundred and fifty one thousand (251 000) recorded new cases in one week, according to the WHO findings.

5. The global shortage of vaccines, is making it difficult for African countries, including Botswana, to vaccinate their populations. It has become even more challenging for some of our fellow African countries to follow up on the second vaccination of their people.

6. Bagaetsho, COVID-19 cases in Botswana have rapidly increased over the past five months. We have recorded eighty thousand one hundred and fifty four cases (80 154) positive cases, with eight thousand nine hundred and seventy (8 970) active cases. Sadly, we

lost one thousand two hundred and fifty three (1253) people to the pandemic as at July 12th 2021, compared to three hundred (300) in February 2021.

7. The situation of the pandemic will worsen before it gets better. Therefore we must take individual and collective responsibility to protect ourselves and the entire nation from COVID-19. We must brace ourselves for the imminent shortage of basic necessities, such as food and fuel, occasioned by disruptions of the supply chain in the region emanating from COVID-19 and its associated impact on the economy.

8. Our national principle of Self-reliance has become more urgent than ever before. I want to implore you Batswana, to rise to the occasion and enhance food security in Botswana.

9. People with underlying medical conditions, such as, diabetes, hypertension and cancer are more at risk, and those most affected by these conditions are the elderly. To this extent, eighty percent (80 %) of those who have lost their lives in this country are over 50 years. Our vaccine roll out plan therefore prioritises these groups. Front-liners, including teachers, are as well in the priority list of the vaccination strategy.

10. On this note, let me reiterate my Government’s unwavering commitment to roll-out a successful and timely vaccination programme against COVID-19 that will eventually cover all the people of Botswana, as set out in the Reset Agenda which I recently announced.

11. As at 2nd July 2021, over one hundred and sixty five thousand (165,000) citizens and residents had received at least one dose of vaccine, of this number, one hundred and eight thousand (108,000) people were fully vaccinated.

12. We are expecting to receive 50 000 Mordena Vaccines and at least 500 000 doses of Johnson and Johnson vaccines by December 2021. Our plan is to have vaccinated every eligible Motswana by the end of 2022.

13. COVID-19 has also negatively affected businesses of all sizes. According to the Bank of Botswana Business Expectations Survey of March 2021, the most affected businesses are in Retail, Hotels, Restaurants, Transport and Communications; Finance and Business Services; Mining, as well as the Construction sector.

14. In response, Government has introduced interventions to address the challenges, which have yielded success in many important ways. These include the following;

i. CEDA was allocated three hundred million Pula (P300 million) under the Economic Recovery Transformation Plan to assist companies that were affected by the pandemic. To date it has approved 149 working capital loans valued at P24.7 million.

These loans are in the Manufacturing, Property and Services sectors.

ii. The Informal Sector Recovery Plan was another notable initiative administered by the Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) to support the informal sector businesses. LEA has been allocated one hundred million Pula (P100 million), and has so far disbursed thirty eight million Pula (P38 million) to thirty eight thousand two hundred and

thirty two thousand (38 232) informal sector businesses.

15. I am happy to inform you that Government has completed the rollout of the Reset Agenda to Accounting Officers, Chief Executives of State Owned Entities, Heads of Local Authorities and Heads of Botswana Diplomatic Missions abroad.

16. In this regard, there are ongoing structural reforms to the Public Sector to improve the implementation of Government programmes. This entails, among others, the rationalisation of the Office of the President (OP) to make it more strategic than operational.

17. Reviews for the rationalisation of the Office of the President have been completed. The capacity of the Presidential Private Office will be enhanced to be more responsive to the public. A Chief of Staff will assume duty on 1st August 2021.

18. With the view to accelerate Public Sector Reforms, a Public Sector Change Management Framework (CMF) is being rolled out across the Public Service. CMF will enable public sector organisations to effectively manage change, including those related to the Reset Agenda.

19. Digitisation, remains one of the main drivers of our economy. By the end of 2021/22 financial year, a minimum of twenty five (25) services will be online. Applications for; bursaries for tertiary education, Youth Development Fund, Land Boards and company

registration, are already online. The Implementation of e-learning and e-health services are also progressing well.

20. Government has adopted a Cluster Model approach to

drive Value Chain Development, and as such, relevant Ministries are at various stages of developing sector cluster strategies.

21. One of the tenets of Mindset Change is to place economic empowerment of citizens at the epicentre of Botswana’s economic development. For that purpose, Cabinet has approved the Economic Inclusion Bill, the Public Procurement Bill, the National Employment Policy for Botswana and Botswana Intellectual Property Policy of 2021 for consideration during the current Sitting of Parliament.

22. The success of the Reset Agenda is largely dependent on the support of Batswana and the leadership of this country, as well as the development partners. I want to once again, urge you to support the Agenda, which I strongly believe will move Botswana’s socio-economic development forward.

23. Bagaetsho, as pronounced in the 2019 Botswana Democratic Party Election Manifesto, my Government considers arts and culture as critical to the economic development of our country and communities. We are committed to the development of the local arts, music, literature, performance and theatre, film, dance and

crafts.

24. Through a creative art strategy we will strive to commercialise the creative industry and include more Batswana in the lucrative wildlife and tourism filming and photography industry.

25. Funds amounting to, fifty-two million six-hundred thousand Pula (52,600,000.00), under the Economic Recovery and Transformation Plan (ERTP) were approved for the refurbishment of the Mass Media Complex during the 2021/22 financial year. The Mass Media Complex will be the hub for the production of

local film and television production.

26. A feasibility study on the utilization of the Media Complex by the locals is ongoing and is being conducted by a citizen owned company, at a cost of approximately eight hundred and seventy eight thousand Pula (878 000). Completion of the study is expected on 23rd October, 2021.

27. Fellow citizens, our national peace and security cannot flourish if our own region, Africa and the world as a whole are in conflict. Therefore one of our key foreign policy principles, is the promotion of international peace and security. To this extent, Botswana participates in the promotion of regional peace making and peace building efforts.

28. As you may be aware, Botswana assumed the Chairmanship of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defense and Security in August 2020, until August 2021.

29. We assumed the Chairmanship at the peak of negotiations between SADC and the United Nations, regarding the reconfiguration of the Force Intervention Brigade (FIB), which is the offensive arm of the UN Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO). One of SADC’s objectives is to

ensure that there will be no security gap after the withdrawal of the UN troops from the DRC, which is expected in 2022.

30. I also convened a number of Extraordinary Meetings of the Organ Troika to discuss the terrorism situation in the Northern Province of Cabo Delgado, in Mozambique, which is threatening the peace and security of the whole region and humanity at large. In this regard, the deployment of the SADC Standby Force is underway and will be conducted in accordance with international

obligations and instruments.

31. As chair of the Organ, I despatched a Ministerial Level Fact-Finding Mission to the Kingdom of Eswatini, on 4th July to gather information on the situation and appeal for calm and restraint from all stakeholders. The team was constituted by Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe,

and led by Dr. Lemogang Kwape. As second Mission comprising technocrats from the three countries will leave for Eswatini tomorrow to engage all stakeholders and report back to the Ministerial Committee of the Organ.

32. In Botswana, our law enforcement officers have noticed

an increase in crime and non-adherence to Covid-19 health protocols, a development which is worrisome and unfortunate. In this regard, our law enforcement officers will take stern measures against those who break the law. They will ensure that we as a nation continue to enjoy peace and security as guaranteed by

the constitution.

33. Bagaetsho, allow me to conclude my Address by reverting to the predominant issue of COVID-19. I am aware that you are hurting. On a daily basis we are becoming a COVID-19 statistic. We regularly become bereaved as the death toll from the pandemic rises. I too, am hurting with the nation.

34. Each day, my empathy and sympathy transcend to the nation, at all levels – individual, family, and community and at national level. Truly, human wisdom alone is not sufficient to forestall the ravages of COVID-19. But, I will not lead the nation into despondency, despair or dejection. We must look beyond our responses to the disease and be determined to fight this pandemic with all our might to its end.

35. I want to urge you to start prayer services for COVID- 19, beginning this Sunday 8th July to 25th July 2021.

Allow me to conclude my Address by reverting to the

issue of COVID-19, and inform you of the following

decisions:

• The curfew period will remain as it is, from 2200 hrs

(10PM) to 0400 hrs (4AM) daily.

• To continue the suspension of trade in alcohol until

further notice.

• Schools will close on Friday 16th until August 17th

2021

• I would like to emphasise that for us to defeat

COVID-19 fully, we will have to continue diligently