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<strong>2014</strong>-2019 MANIFESTO<br />
Ready<br />
to Lead<br />
Leading Botswana out of the crossroads<br />
Our social contract with<br />
the people for <strong>2014</strong> – 2019<br />
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<strong>BCP</strong> <strong>2014</strong>-2019 MANIFESTO<br />
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Table of Contents<br />
Foreword<br />
Introduction<br />
1. Delivering a Citizen Led Economic Alternative<br />
2. Development of Water and Energy Resources<br />
3. Establishing a Conducive Work Environment<br />
and Decent Wages<br />
4. Ensuring an Educated and Skilled Batswana<br />
5. Delivering Equitable Land Distribution and<br />
Providing Decent Housing<br />
6. Promoting a Healthy Nation<br />
7. Ensuring Good Governance<br />
8. Promoting Gender Equality<br />
9. Sports Development and Youth Empowerment<br />
10. Foreign Affairs and International Trade<br />
11. <strong>BCP</strong> Shadow Cabinet<br />
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8<br />
10<br />
16<br />
18<br />
20<br />
23<br />
25<br />
27<br />
32<br />
34<br />
36<br />
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4<br />
Hon. Dumelang Saleshando<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> President<br />
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<strong>BCP</strong> <strong>2014</strong>-2019 MANIFESTO
Foreword<br />
Fellow citizens, it is with great pleasure for me to present to you the Botswana<br />
Congress Party (<strong>BCP</strong>) manifesto for the <strong>2014</strong> general elections. In 2009,<br />
we jointly presented a <strong>BCP</strong>- BAM manifesto under the theme “A Nation at<br />
Crossroads: Which Way Now – Democracy and Prosperity or Dictatorship and<br />
Economic Collapse” We had at the time warned that electoral victory for the<br />
BDP would usher in an era of disastrous economic management and reverse<br />
our gains on democratic governance. Our fears have come to pass.<br />
Our economy is on a free fall as evidenced by the crisis in water and power<br />
supply, failed government projects due to corruption such as the Palapye Glass<br />
Project, a mismanaged agricultural sector that is impoverishing the farmers<br />
and rising unemployment particularly amongst the youth. Our education<br />
sector is in total disarray as demonstrated by the results of public schools<br />
in the past 5 years. The term extra judicial killings, though unknown to most<br />
Batswana before 2008, is now a common phrase in our daily public debates.<br />
Government has declared an unending war on the trade unions and we have<br />
an aggrieved national workforce. The Happy Planet Index, an independent<br />
entity measuring progress on how nations are delivering a better life for their<br />
people, has consistently ranked Botswana as one of the unhappiest nations<br />
in the world.<br />
In the midst of the negative developments experienced since 2009, we have<br />
a positive message to convey to you as the <strong>BCP</strong>. In 2010, the <strong>BCP</strong> and BAM<br />
merged into a single entity, defying the perception that opposition parties are<br />
a constant source of infighting for positions of leadership. We can proudly<br />
assert that we remain the most stable political formation in Botswana. It is on<br />
account of this ability to manage our internal affairs in a dignified manner that<br />
we present ourselves as a credible alternative.<br />
Though in the opposition, we have had a profound positive effect on the<br />
governance of our country. Through our limited number of seats in Parliament,<br />
we have tabled motions that have impacted on the lives of ordinary Batswana.<br />
Parliament instituted a select committee to investigate the declining<br />
performance of the beef industry and the Botswana Meat commission through<br />
a <strong>BCP</strong> sponsored motion. Many families rely on the beef industry for their<br />
financial sustenance and efforts to turn around the sector will directly impact<br />
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on the economic fortunes of Batswana. We have strongly advocated for<br />
promotion of home ownership for those who are still to secure their first house,<br />
and as a result, first time home owners will not have to pay transfer duty.<br />
Parliament has also adopted a <strong>BCP</strong> sponsored motion to do away with Value<br />
Added Tax for first time home owners.<br />
In an effort to develop our democracy, we have sponsored motions such as<br />
the live broadcast of Parliamentary debates. Once implemented, this will allow<br />
the electorate to follow national debates on issues that affect them and better<br />
demand accountability from their leaders. Parliament has also adopted our<br />
motion calling for the ratification of the International Covenant on Economic,<br />
Social and Cultural Rights. Once signed and ratified, the right to work, the<br />
right to education, and the right to an adequate standard of living will become<br />
a feature of the human rights menu in Botswana.<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> has also been actively providing strong leadership outside Parliament.<br />
In different local authorities where we had the opportunity to assume positions<br />
of leadership, our councillors have performed with distinction. We have<br />
engaged the public to take part in peaceful demonstrations to democratically<br />
express their views on issues such as the mismanagement of land and the<br />
energy crisis.<br />
Our party has undoubtedly grown in leaps and bounds. At every election<br />
since formation, we have increased our share of the popular vote. Since the<br />
2009 general elections, we are the only party that has not lost any Member of<br />
Parliament but rather attracted other legislators to join our party, confirming<br />
that we are indeed the party of choice. We will be approaching the <strong>2014</strong><br />
elections with a single primary objective, to win the elections and form a<br />
government. We have done our part as an opposition party and are now ready<br />
to assume the reins of power as a government.<br />
To demonstrate that we are ready and willing to form a government, we recently<br />
announced our shadow cabinet composed of men and women who have<br />
the requisite skills, knowledge and experience to lead our country to greater<br />
heights. We have stated the changes we wish to make to the government<br />
ministries to better deliver on our pledges. Through this manifesto, we now<br />
present the key ideas to drive our economy forward and create jobs. We<br />
commit to address the rot in the education sector to give our youth hope for<br />
the future. We also pledge to modernise our democracy to ensure that we can<br />
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all truly celebrate our freedom; freedom from hunger, deprivation, illness and<br />
all the negative impediments dominating the lives of many Batswana.<br />
I am convinced that with our experience of over 15 years managing a growing<br />
party, the skills we have attracted to manage and lead our party, quality of<br />
leadership in our shadow cabinet, the diverse pool of skills possessed by<br />
our Parliamentary and Council candidates for the <strong>2014</strong> general elections and<br />
having put together a manifesto articulating an alternative that will radically<br />
change Botswana for the better, the <strong>BCP</strong> is now ready to Lead Botswana out<br />
of the Crossroads.<br />
I invite you to take time to read our manifesto, which we consider to be our<br />
contract with you once we assume government and administer the country on<br />
your behalf until 2019. I urge you to play your part to ensure that the true potential<br />
of our country is realised and together we can stop the eminent collapse of our<br />
economy and democracy. Be part of the solution to the problems our country<br />
faces by voting for the <strong>BCP</strong>. We are Ready to Lead.<br />
Kgololo!<br />
Dumelang Saleshando<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> President<br />
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Introduction<br />
This <strong>Manifesto</strong> continues the theme of the 2009 one, entitled: “A Nation at<br />
Crossroads: Which Way Now – Democracy and Prosperity or Dictatorship and<br />
Economic Collapse This year’s theme is “<strong>BCP</strong>- Ready to Lead”- Leading<br />
Botswana Out of the Crossroads. In this manifesto, we pledge our readiness to<br />
lead Botswana out of the cross roads. We have a proven track record of stability<br />
and sound organization. We present in this manifesto clear alternative policies for<br />
Botswana anchored on social democratic principles. This ten point manifesto focuses<br />
on critical areas of national life namely; the economy, energy and water resources,<br />
labour relations, education, land and housing, health, governance, gender equality,<br />
youth development, international relations and trade.<br />
Section 1 outlines how the <strong>BCP</strong> will deliver an inclusive citizen-led economic program<br />
that shall create decent jobs for a majority of Batswana. Through beneficiation of<br />
natural resources, provision of infrastructure and cutting edge technology, agricultural<br />
diversification and commercialization, agro-businesses and a state inspired tourism<br />
sector, the <strong>BCP</strong> government will expand Botswana’s economic base and stimulate<br />
industrialization. A citizen empowerment law will be enacted by the <strong>BCP</strong> government<br />
to allow Batswana to fully participate in their economy.<br />
Section 2 covers energy and water resources. We offer our long term strategy<br />
to provide energy and water to both businesses and households in an affordable,<br />
environmentally friendly and sustainable manner.<br />
Section 3 spells out how the <strong>BCP</strong> government will foster cordial industrial relations<br />
as a way of fostering productivity, innovation and creativity in the work force. The<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> government will respect tripartite arrangements as well as honour the collective<br />
bargaining process at all times.<br />
Section 4 of the manifesto covers the education sector. <strong>BCP</strong> holds the view that<br />
education is a vital resource for the overall development of the country. It is on<br />
that basis that if the <strong>BCP</strong> is given the mandate to govern, it will divide the Ministry<br />
of Education into two, namely, Ministry of Basic Education and Ministry of Higher<br />
Education for ease of management and coordination. To transform the sector the<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> will introduce free and compulsory education from pre-school to Form Five. Preprimary<br />
education development will be emphasized and appropriate infrastructure<br />
and personnel will be made available. The reduction of class size; mother tongue<br />
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instruction at entry levels; refocusing the curriculum to meet market needs and<br />
improvement of the welfare of teachers as well as students will be given priority by<br />
the <strong>BCP</strong> government.<br />
Section 5 outlines the <strong>BCP</strong> strategy on land and housing. The <strong>BCP</strong> will deliver an<br />
equitable land management and distribution program which shall confer same rights<br />
and benefits to land owners. Land servicing shall be carried out on a massive scale<br />
and by the end of the first five years in office, waiting periods for land allocation will<br />
be reduced to only one year. Home ownership will be prioritized and in this regard,<br />
first time home owners will be exempted from VAT when buying a house. The tenant<br />
purchase scheme will be structured to make it easy for occupants of BHC houses<br />
to acquire them.<br />
Section 6 covers the health sector. We will promote the full implementation of<br />
Primary Health Care and revert to the Alma Ata Declaration of 1978 to ensure a<br />
health delivery system anchored on equity, accessibility, affordability and community<br />
involvement. The <strong>BCP</strong> government will also pay particular attention to observance<br />
of high standards of care in health facilities. Sexual reproductive health will be given<br />
greater attention and HIV/AIDS interventions will be integrated into the health system<br />
to avoid stigmatization.<br />
Section 7 covers democracy and governance which spells out how the <strong>BCP</strong><br />
government will modernise Botswana’s democracy and make it open, accountable<br />
and transparent. A Constitutional Review Commission shall be set up to review<br />
the constitution and align it with international best practices on issues such as<br />
separation of powers, powers of the President, independence of the Judiciary, and<br />
independence of Parliament. We shall improve transparency and accountability in<br />
Government by ensuring that appointment to oversight institutions is done with<br />
the input of Parliament and that such bodies report directly to Parliament. Local<br />
authorities will be transformed to afford them greater autonomy in decision-making.<br />
Sections 8 and 9 are devoted to gender and youth issues respectively. Mainstreaming<br />
gender and youth development in the political, economic, social and cultural life of<br />
the country is a key priority in the <strong>BCP</strong> government’s development agenda. The <strong>BCP</strong><br />
will implement an affirmative action policy that shall ensure greater participation of<br />
women and youth in decision-making and economic activities.<br />
Section 10 outlines how the <strong>BCP</strong> government will deal with international relations<br />
and international trade. The <strong>BCP</strong> will constitute a Ministry of Foreign Affairs and<br />
International Trade. In this regard, our government will refocus the work of our<br />
foreign missions to have a special bias towards opening up investment avenues for<br />
Botswana businesses in the international community and attracting genuine Foreign<br />
Direct Investment. Foreign missions will be staffed with fully resourced investment<br />
experts who shall place Botswana as an investment destination of choice.<br />
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1. Delivering a Citizen led<br />
Economic Alternative<br />
1.1 Situational analysis<br />
The Botswana economy continues to overly depend on revenue from mineral<br />
exports. It is characterised by high levels of unemployment, particularly amongst<br />
the youth, high levels of inequalities and exclusion of Batswana from participation<br />
in the key sectors of our economy. The manufacturing sector is marginal and its<br />
capacity to diversify the economy is untapped. Our exports are sold in international<br />
markets with minimal processing to add value. Procurement of goods and services<br />
by government and Parastatals is dominated by foreign suppliers or their agents, in<br />
the process stifling the opportunity to enhance domestic production capacity. The<br />
historically impressive data on economic growth are not reflected in the average<br />
lives of Batswana.<br />
Botswana has an underdeveloped infrastructural base that is not able to open up<br />
opportunities for investment in strategic sectors. In most parts of Botswana, poor<br />
road network, limited access to power and water as well as telecommunication<br />
services in areas that have potential for economic activity remain key barriers to job<br />
creation. Compared to other countries with a GDP comparable to Botswana, we<br />
lack a modernised infrastructure base that can support our drive to attract foreign<br />
investment.<br />
1.2 Our Contract on Delivering a Citizen led Economic Alternative<br />
The key thrust of our economic strategy will be premised on the need to deliver<br />
inclusive growth and job creation leading to improvement in the quality of life for<br />
Batswana.<br />
To broaden the base for economic growth and industrialization, the <strong>BCP</strong> will prioritise<br />
investment in infrastructure such as provision of power and water as well as modern<br />
roads, expanded rail and telecommunication networks in all areas with potential for<br />
economic activity.<br />
To attain industrialization, we shall:<br />
• Put measures in place to attain a minimum of 50% beneficiation for most of our<br />
mineral products by the year 2019. The targeted sectors shall be diamonds,<br />
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copper, nickel, soda ash and coal<br />
• Promote the establishment of industries that are related to cattle by-products<br />
such as leather products<br />
• Aggressively pursue an import substitution policy for goods whose inputs are<br />
available in the domestic economy and offer protection for the infant industries in<br />
sectors such as cement, bricks, glass and dairy products<br />
• Identify products with competitive advantages for the regional and international<br />
markets whose raw materials are available in the domestic economy and support<br />
industries that will focus on production for export.<br />
To promote citizen involvement in the mainstream economy, the <strong>BCP</strong><br />
government shall;<br />
• Formulate a law on citizen economic empowerment compelling the involvement of<br />
citizens in all major economic activities<br />
• Re-formulate the citizen reservation policy to target more high value ventures<br />
• Improve the capacity of the government to monitor the implementation of the<br />
citizen empowerment strategy.<br />
To finance our industrialization and infrastructure expansion strategy, we shall;<br />
• Influence financial sector lending with the identified national priorities<br />
• Mobilise domestic savings by sectors such as the pension industry to finance the<br />
infrastructure expansion program<br />
• Promote joint partnerships between government and the private sector.<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> government will play an active role in conjunction with the private sector to<br />
ensure that the above stated strategy for industrialization is realised. In expanding<br />
the economic base, special attention will also be paid to promoting procurement<br />
of locally produced goods. The total government procurement budget for goods<br />
will be biased towards goods produced by the local business sector and shall be<br />
progressively increased to at least 60% by 2019.<br />
It will be the objective of a <strong>BCP</strong> government to promote the growth of a strong<br />
entrepreneurial base to drive the economy. To this end, there will be a Ministry of<br />
Business Development and Citizen Empowerment focusing on development of the<br />
local business sector. Levies, taxes and licensing fees will be reviewed so as to<br />
cancel levies that do not go into the consolidated fund. The licences required for new<br />
business to operate will also be reviewed with the aim of minimising requirements for<br />
businesses to operate.<br />
Small and Medium Enterprises will be assisted to access government contracts and<br />
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for major projects, those awarded the tenders shall be required as a condition of<br />
the main contract, to sub-contract aspects of the contracts to small and medium<br />
enterprises. The <strong>BCP</strong> shall support and protect the informal sector by reviewing<br />
existing laws, regulations and by laws to remove any form of harassment of informal<br />
sector traders.<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> government will focus on promoting Botswana’s international business<br />
interests. Growing local businesses will be assisted by Botswana foreign missions<br />
to explore market opportunities beyond our borders to export a more diversified mix<br />
of goods, thereby increasing opportunities for earning foreign revenue.<br />
1.3 Our Contract to Promote Rural Development through the Agricultural Sector<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> recognizes the central role of agriculture in the economy and rural<br />
development. It is through enhanced agricultural production that the <strong>BCP</strong> hopes<br />
to restore the pride, dignity and confidence of Botswana citizens and expand<br />
opportunities for meaningful economic activities in the rural areas. Attainment of<br />
food self-sufficiency, upliftment of the rural economy and improved livelihoods shall<br />
be the cornerstones of our agricultural policy. The <strong>BCP</strong> shall:<br />
• Develop rural infrastructure – we shalll develop roads, telecommunications, dams<br />
and provide electricity to facilitate development of rural areas through agriculture.<br />
This will be our key strategy to attract investment and the youth into the agricultural<br />
sector and improve opportunities for the rural populations to be fully engaged and<br />
earn decent incomes. In addition, we will introduce and support infrastructure for<br />
large scale irrigation schemes.<br />
• Promote green energy programes for agricultural production – we will promote and<br />
support the use of solar energy and related technologies to produce affordable,<br />
sustainable and environmentally friendly energy for farming households.<br />
• Develop area specific strategies – we shall develop targeted assistance schemes<br />
for small, medium and big commercial farmers and support each geographical<br />
area according to its needs and circumstances.<br />
• Establish an agricultural bank and credit system to serve both large and small<br />
farmers.<br />
• Diversify agriculture – we shall diversify the sector by promoting the exploitation<br />
and management of wildlife by establishing community based game farms,<br />
upscale small stock and ostrich farming, encouraging exploitation of veld products<br />
and strengthening fishing as part of expanding the agricultural base.<br />
• Create agro-businesses – we shall create rural agro-industries such as milling,<br />
skin tanning, basic technology production (plough, planter and harrow), fertilizers<br />
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and livestock feed to create more long term jobs in the agriculture sector.<br />
• Promote export - we shall identify products for potential export.<br />
• Emphasize agricultural education for all – we shall develop a comprehensive<br />
agricultural education programe where children and parents will be exposed to<br />
and educated on the importance of agriculture and the need to produce some of<br />
the basic foodstuff for themselves. In addition, we will build and sustain a critical<br />
skill mass of Batswana artisans, technicians and professionals to meet both the<br />
current and future needs of the agro-industry.<br />
• Increase public investment in agricultural research - we believe that agricultural<br />
research should be the principal tool to producing evidence-based policies and<br />
practices. We shall make research central to agricultural production by establishing<br />
district agricultural research and experimental stations.<br />
• Support insurance in the sector - we shall establish a comprehensive insurance<br />
scheme for crop and livestock sub-sectors in collaboration with private insurance<br />
firms.<br />
• Provide sustainable water as the key to productive non-rain fed dependent<br />
agriculture- we will build small and medium scale dams to support agricultural<br />
projects, harvest water and drill syndicate owned boreholes to allow for crop<br />
diversification and all year agricultural production.<br />
• Control, management and possible eradication of animal diseases – we shall<br />
dedicate resources to the control and eradication of diseases such as foot and<br />
mouth. This will include a robust program of ensuring that disease control fences<br />
are well maintained.<br />
• Alternative markets for Botswana beef - We shall seek alternative markets for<br />
Botswana beef with less regulatory requirements for the farmers.<br />
• Access to artificial insemination – We shall expand access to artificial insemination<br />
as way of improving the quality of the national herd<br />
1.4 Exploiting Tourism for Sustainable Economic Growth<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> aims to develop tourism as a strategic industry that can contribute to<br />
national development by generating more revenue, creating more jobs and providing<br />
leisure and entertainment to both citizens and foreigners. The <strong>BCP</strong> pledges to fully<br />
exploit the economic potential of this sector as follows:<br />
• Develop tourism infrastructure by establishing the Parks and Tourism Board that<br />
will develop lodges and other infrastructure and invite the private sector to run<br />
them under a management contract. This arrangement will ensure that these<br />
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lucrative concessions remain under citizen ownership at the same time benefiting<br />
private investors who will not worry about the lease periods as well as the costs<br />
of constructing the lodges.<br />
• Localize the concessions to ensure that all concessions (hunting, photographic<br />
etc) are allocated to citizens only. International tourism investors will go into joint<br />
ventures with these citizens. This will ensure that the means of production stay<br />
with locals.<br />
• Create linkages with other economic sectors such as agriculture by ensuring that<br />
agricultural products such as vegetables, meat and poultry are sourced locally by<br />
hotels and lodges. This will grow both the agricultural sector and tourism for the<br />
well being of the entire economy and the people.<br />
• Develop a robust, holistic marketing strategy and plan for different regions of<br />
Botswana’s products.<br />
• Formulate a well researched, coordinated and branding marketing strategy for the<br />
country with clear deliverables and targets.<br />
• Promote and protect community based tourism by developing a Community<br />
Based Tourism (CBT) Policy to ensure that local communities are actively involved<br />
in this industry.<br />
• Develop a national tourism profile by mapping out all the different cultural sites,<br />
build halls for cultural performance, and protect traditional music and art.<br />
• Promote and facilitate the establishment of joint venture tourist enterprises<br />
between Batswana and non-citizens to embark on the development of complex<br />
projects that require significant levels of investment, as well as technical and<br />
managerial expertise.<br />
• Eliminate or reduce tourism leakages with the view to augmenting the level of<br />
tourism benefits accruing to Batswana unlike presently where most of the money<br />
paid by international tourists for their Botswana Tourist packages remains in the<br />
country where they pay for the said packages.<br />
• Review the current policy of high cost low volume in the tourism sector.<br />
It is our view that the economic strategy outlined above will stimulate industrialization,<br />
create decent jobs and economically empower citizens of Botswana. However, there<br />
will be some individuals who may not sufficiently benefit sufficiently from the growing<br />
economy. It is on this basis that the <strong>BCP</strong> will offer protection to the vulnerable and<br />
disadvantaged members of society.<br />
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1.5 Protecting the Vulnerable<br />
In Botswana, there are high levels of poverty and deprivation that require government<br />
to specifically target and prioritise for social and economic up-liftment as well as<br />
sustenance. The <strong>BCP</strong> shall;<br />
• Create economic opportunities for all people who are poor and vulnerable as we<br />
believe that the best form of social welfare is work.<br />
• Reorientate social welfare policies and programmes towards a developmental<br />
approach, where emphasis will be on human development and rehabilitation.<br />
• Accord social safety nets to the poor, people living with disabilities, orphans and<br />
the elderly. The value of safety nets will be guided by the cost of living as well as<br />
the need to prioritise graduation out of dependency on government assistance<br />
• Extend psychosocial and financial assistance to child headed households<br />
• Set 60 as the age for which people qualify for old age pension and this will be<br />
based on the prevailing cost of living<br />
• Introduce special programes for children in difficult circumstances such as street<br />
children to integrate them into society<br />
• Provide support services and facilities for people living with disabilities<br />
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2 Development and<br />
Management of Energy<br />
and Water Resources<br />
2.1 Situational analysis<br />
Botswana’s approach to development and management of water resources has<br />
been unambitious, short term and unsustainable. Energy and water resources have<br />
been treated as commodities that should be generated in modest quantities to<br />
satisfy prevailing current demand. Even more disturbing, the current government<br />
has tended to favour a policy of water and energy importation from neighbouring<br />
countries as a cost saving measure. The policy is flawed in that it ignores the<br />
potential negative consequences of dependence on other countries for such vital<br />
resources as power and water. When the shortcomings of dependency became<br />
apparent, the response of government has been to throw money into the energy and<br />
water sectors without due regard to the quality of the infrastructure that was being<br />
put in place. The impact of this ill-conceived and rushed approach to energy and<br />
water resource development and management has been intermittent power cuts in<br />
the case of energy and water shortage and rationing in the case of water provision.<br />
The net result of the above has been devastating on the business sector. Many<br />
businesses have had to contend with major disruptions to their operations.<br />
Households continue to be inconvenienced by the erratic supply of water and<br />
electricity. Botswana has become a risky investment destination on account of failure<br />
by the government to guarantee reliable supply of water and electricity. This is in<br />
spite of the fact that the country has invested substantial resources in the Morupule<br />
B project and the North South Water Carrier Project.<br />
2.2 Our Social Contract on Energy<br />
Given the strategic importance of energy to the national economy, the sector requires<br />
a long term strategy that is geared towards attaining self-sufficiency in a sustainable<br />
and environmental friendly manner. To this end, the <strong>BCP</strong> shall;<br />
• Beneficiate coal resources with a view to producing sufficient electricity for<br />
consumption and export to other countries.<br />
• Invest in research and utilisation of clean renewable energy programes such as<br />
solar, wind and biomass. We will subsidise households and businesses that wish<br />
to utilise renewable energy so as to reduce pressure on the national grid.<br />
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• Liberalise the power generation regime and institute an independent regulatory<br />
authority that will ensure quality and monitor prices.<br />
• Institute an audit into the Morupule B project to establish the true extent of the<br />
problem and determine the necessary remedial measures.<br />
• Enrol the assistance of international agencies that promote the development of<br />
renewable energy.<br />
2.3 Our Social Contract on Water Resources<br />
Proper planning, development and management of water resources is critical for<br />
sustained economic development. In recognition of this, the <strong>BCP</strong> shall;<br />
• Develop a comprehensive long term plan that details potential dam sites around<br />
the country and develop a timetable for constructing appropriate infrastructure to<br />
capture rainwater for domestic and commercial use.<br />
• Promote the construction of small to medium scale dams that can meet demand<br />
for agriculture and domestic use in given localities.<br />
• Undertake a comprehensive audit of underground water resources with a view to<br />
exploit it for domestic, commercial and agricultural use.<br />
• Prohibit the use of pit latrines in areas identified as potential sources of underground<br />
water.<br />
• Invest in water desalination projects for different areas with high volumes of salty<br />
water.<br />
• Promote the use of grey water by households for usage in their gardens as well as<br />
recycled water for horticulture and other relevant industries.<br />
• Explore the optimal utilization of the water resource availed by the Chobe and<br />
other rivers.<br />
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3. Establishing a Conducive<br />
Work Environment and<br />
Decent Wages<br />
3.1 Situational analysis<br />
Botswana workers are confronted by multiple challenges that include inadequate<br />
earnings; job insecurity; unsafe working environment; limited social security,<br />
ineffective dispute resolution mechanisms and limited engagement between the<br />
tripartite partners (employer, employee and government). Government has adopted<br />
an anti-trade union stance and perceives organised labour as an impediment to<br />
good governance and economic development. This has resulted in a contaminated<br />
environment among the key social partners and acrimonious exchanges have<br />
become the norm.<br />
The Labour Department is under resourced and lacks capacity to resolve routine<br />
labour disputes, which has resulted in the Industrial Court being flooded with<br />
cases that take up to 4 years to resolve. Employers have no regard for the Labour<br />
Department and employees have lost faith in the Departments’ ability to ensure<br />
justice in the workplace. Low wages have expanded the pool of people who can be<br />
termed as the working poor. Upon retirement, most workers are declared destitutes<br />
on account of limited social security offered by employers.<br />
3.2 Our Social Contract with the Workers<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> believes that Batswana have the right to decent work as captured in the<br />
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 1966. We are<br />
committed to pursuing economic policies that are geared at attaining full employment<br />
and according all citizens an opportunity to live a life of dignity in which hard work<br />
guarantees success.<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> is committed to creating work place justice and democracy where collective<br />
bargaining will be the chief instrument for determining working conditions and<br />
salaries. To this end, we shall:<br />
• Make the Ministry of Labour to be a stand-alone ministry and focus mainly on the<br />
implementation of labour laws, inspections in work places to ensure compliance.<br />
The ministry shall also monitor training and localization programs.<br />
• Recognise trade unions as an integral part of our economic and social development<br />
strategy and treat them as equal partners in the development process.<br />
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• Strengthen social dialogue by establishing an Independent Tripartite Council which<br />
will bring the unions, employer organisations and government together to promote<br />
harmonious industrial relations, ensure that effective bargaining is promoted and<br />
propose legislative changes required for ensuring work place justice. In addition,<br />
the Council will on an ongoing basis address issues of productivity by the<br />
workforce.<br />
• Improve Dispute Resolution mechanisms as a matter of urgency. Dispute resolution<br />
in the work place shall be removed from the Ministry of Labour. An independent<br />
body responsible for Mediation and Arbitration shall be established with powers<br />
to timeously adjudicate over disputes.<br />
• Move the Industrial Court from the Ministry of Labour and set it as a specialised<br />
court of the High Court. At appeals level, there shall be a Labour Appeal’s Court.<br />
• Actively encourage the unionization of workers, particularly private sector workers,<br />
domestic and agricultural sector workers to promote collective bargaining in the<br />
work place.<br />
• Support Family Responsibilities at the Workplace - we shall introduce full pay<br />
for mothers on maternity leave and increase maternity leave to 14 weeks in line<br />
with the International Labour Organization (ILO) Maternity Protection Convention<br />
of 2000.<br />
• Introduce a living wage for workers that is aligned to the cost of living.<br />
• We will introduce compulsory pension legislation for all workers.<br />
• Introduce Legislation on Sexual Harassment – we shall initiate legislation which<br />
will provide for prevention and penalization of sexual harassment at the workplace.<br />
• Realign the Scope of Essential Services – We shall align the definition and scope<br />
of essential services to the 1994 ILO Committee of Standards position.<br />
• Facilitate ownership of shares by workers in public corporations.<br />
• Put in place a comprehensive strategy that will ensure a skilled labour force.<br />
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4. Ensuring an Educated<br />
and Skilled Batswana<br />
4.1 Situational analysis<br />
The education system is in a state of crisis. In the past five years alone, students’<br />
performance in public schools has been declining. The infrastructure in most<br />
schools is in a state of disrepair and shortage of books and teaching materials is<br />
common. A number of schools are operating without science laboratories. The<br />
class size in most schools is not conducive for effective learning.<br />
Teacher morale is low on account of poor working conditions that remain unattended<br />
after many years. These range from lack of accommodation and poor remuneration<br />
to poor opportunities for professional and self-development. Relations between the<br />
Ministry of Education and teacher organizations are acrimonious and not conducive<br />
for the development of the education sector. Graduates of tertiary institutions<br />
remain largely unemployed after graduation.<br />
4.2 Our Social Contract on Education and Life Long Learning<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> seeks to transform Botswana into a truly educated and informed nation by<br />
giving all its citizenry quality education relevant to the real world of work, informed<br />
by contemporary research and leveraging on science and technology. To ensure<br />
that these objectives are attained, the education ministries will be segmented into<br />
Ministry of Basic Education and Ministry of Higher Education. The <strong>BCP</strong> shall:<br />
Emphasise Access, Retention and Completion by;<br />
• Redefining basic education to mean early childhood, primary, junior and senior<br />
secondary schools.<br />
• Providing free and compulsory basic education.<br />
• Ensuring that learners with special needs have access to educational opportunities;<br />
• Providing all schools with Information and Communication Technology<br />
infrastructure as a tool to facilitate learning.<br />
Promote Lifelong Learning: To ensure that Batswana participate actively in the<br />
global economy through continuous adaptation to changing opportunities and<br />
labour market demands, we will transform Batswana into lifelong learners by:<br />
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• Widening access to higher education and providing government sponsorship for<br />
post graduate studies.<br />
• Facilitating universities and other tertiary institutions to develop relevant and<br />
appropriate distance education programmes at both graduate and post graduate<br />
levels to reach out to the needs of learners in all parts of the country.<br />
• Maximising shared use of government institutions’ resources by Distance<br />
Education providers.<br />
Promote Education Quality.<br />
We shall establish an autonomous Educational Inspectorate that audits educational<br />
provision and monitors quality at all levels of the education system. The National<br />
Education Inspectorate will:<br />
• Be accountable to Parliament and submit an annual report on the status of<br />
educational facilities;<br />
• Produce school inspection reports that will be made public. Such reports will be<br />
discussed at district council levels.<br />
Develop and Implement a Policy of Multicultural Education. The policy aims at<br />
building a nation that respects unity in diversity and equality. Some of the steps that<br />
will be taken will include:<br />
• Introduction of mother tongue as a medium of instruction from early child education<br />
to standard 4 in communities where Setswana is not the first language;<br />
• Teach moral, civic and family life education in all public schools.<br />
Promote Teacher Professional Development. We shall set up a Staff Development<br />
Agency to ascertain opportunities for professional development and reward<br />
excellence in teaching. In furthering teacher professional development we shall:<br />
• Set first degree as the minimum qualification for all teachers;<br />
• Upgrade Colleges of Education to offer degree programs;<br />
• Ensure subject specialisation in the training of teachers for middle primary to<br />
senior secondary education level;<br />
Restore Teachers’ Self-Esteem and Dignity. We recognize the centrality of<br />
teachers in human resource development. We are committed to radically improve<br />
their working conditions and reward system. The <strong>BCP</strong> shall:<br />
• Remunerate teachers fairly taking into consideration levels of responsibilities and<br />
extra –curriculum activities.<br />
• Provide all teachers with adequate accommodation;<br />
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• Establish a Teaching Council to professionalize teaching.<br />
Transform School Curriculum for Relevance and to Highlight Vocational Skills<br />
Acquisition. This will be achieved by:<br />
• Introducing curriculum at secondary school level that underscores vocational<br />
skills acquisition aimed at ensuring viability of self-employment as a means of job<br />
creation;<br />
• Periodically review the curriculum to align it with the demands of the job market.<br />
Strengthen Collaborative Partnerships in Educational Development by:<br />
• Fostering participation of students, teachers, parents, community and industry in<br />
directing education through committee involvement and resource support.<br />
• Introducing boards and councils to oversee technical and higher education<br />
institutions.<br />
• Encouraging leadership development in schools by supporting Student<br />
Representative Councils which shall be protected through legislation.<br />
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5. Delivering Equitable Land<br />
Distribution and Providing<br />
Decent Housing<br />
5.1 Situational analysis<br />
Land is a critical and finite resource requiring prudent management for present and<br />
future developmental challenges. The key challenges in Botswana are that though<br />
we are blessed with a huge mass of land relative to our small population, many<br />
Batswana are unable to secure land for residence, business or farming activities.<br />
Waiting periods for land allocation can be as long as 20 years. Huge tracks of land<br />
belonging to absentee landlords remain undeveloped while state land allocation is<br />
shrouded in secrecy. The different land tenure systems allow for unequal treatment<br />
for those who hold land depending on its categorization. In some parts of the country<br />
residential plots are allocated in areas without services such as roads and water but<br />
are required to be developed within short periods. Allocation criterion is inconsistent<br />
across the different land boards.<br />
On account of the poorly managed land allocation system, most people find it difficult<br />
to develop property. The artificial shortage of land has led to high property prices<br />
and a thriving black market for land. The Botswana Housing Corporation houses are<br />
unaffordable for the average working Motswana and it is not able to cater for the<br />
total demand in the housing market. There is also a huge pool of people who do not<br />
afford BHC low cost units but are also considered to be above the income threshold<br />
for the Self Help Housing Agency.<br />
5.2 Our Social Contract on Land Distribution and Management<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> maintains that a just, equitable, transparent and accountable institutional<br />
structure for land administration is an essential prerequisite to establishing a just<br />
society.<br />
In order to attain the objective stated above, the <strong>BCP</strong> government shall;<br />
• Undertake a comprehensive land audit to appreciate the current land ownership<br />
scenario.<br />
• Impose a development covenant on undeveloped free hold land.<br />
• Phase out the Certificate of Right and the Land Grant Certificate issued for tribal<br />
land plots and replace them with title deeds to allow those allocated to enjoy full<br />
economic value of the land.<br />
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• Prohibit the allocation of land without services.<br />
• Impose a tax on allocated freehold land that remains undeveloped beyond the<br />
development covenant.<br />
• Undertake accelerated land servicing and reduce the waiting period for land<br />
applications to 12 months by 2019.<br />
5.3 Our Social Contract on Decent Housing<br />
In accordance with Article 25 of the United Nations Declaration on Human rights, the<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> regards decent housing as a basic human right which every citizen of Botswana<br />
should be accorded. We recognize the urgent need for scaling up innovative and<br />
affordable housing initiatives through supportive policy framework. In this regard,<br />
the <strong>BCP</strong> envisages a stronger role for government in housing delivery particularly for<br />
the low income groups and the poor. For the middle and high income groups, priority<br />
will be to avail them with serviced land.<br />
In order to attain decent housing, the <strong>BCP</strong> shall;<br />
• Ensure a fast and efficient acquisition, servicing and allocation of land for housing<br />
to reduce the waiting periods.<br />
• Transform BHC to focus on building affordable houses and its mandate will shift<br />
from treating provision of housing as a profit driven commercial undertaking to a<br />
basic need for the citizens.<br />
• Introduce flexible packages for BHC tenants to buy the houses they rent.<br />
• Offer tax incentives to private companies that promote home ownership for their<br />
staff.<br />
• Abolish Value Added Tax on home purchases by first time home owners.<br />
• Engage private property developers to construct multi residential units for sale at<br />
pre-determined prices.<br />
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6 Promoting a<br />
Healthy Nation<br />
6.1 Situational analysis<br />
The current health system in Botswana is tilted more towards curative. The<br />
curative model has proven to be expensive with less improvement in the national<br />
health status. Despite our high expenditure, we still see emergence of childhood<br />
preventable diseases like diarrhoea, malnutrition and high under five years mortality<br />
rate. Our maternal mortality rate is not improving; resistant TB is on the increase.<br />
HIV infections and STI remain high. The load of preventable life style diseases like<br />
sugar diabetes, cancer and high blood pressure is on the increase. This can be<br />
reduced by robust primary and community based interventions which focus on<br />
prevention, early detection and treatment.<br />
6.2 Our Social Contract on Health<br />
A healthy nation is a pre-condition for development. There can be no meaningful<br />
development when the country’s health sector is in a state of crisis.<br />
In order to promote universal access to quality services we shall:<br />
• Promote the full implementation of Primary Health Care that focuses on prevention<br />
– we shall revert to the Alma Ata Declaration of 1978 to ensure a health delivery<br />
system anchored on equity, accessibility, affordability and community involvement.<br />
• Review the Public Health Act – the Public Health Act will be reviewed to remove<br />
objectionable provisions in as far as HIV and Human Rights are concerned.<br />
• Strengthen the public health system - We shall be unrelenting in our pursuit<br />
for high standards and quality service. In particular, we pledge to preserve the<br />
integrity of the public health system so that access to services is not the domain<br />
of those who can afford to pay for it. We are committed to public health services<br />
that are free at the point of delivery.<br />
• Support health workers as key players for success in the health system. To this end<br />
we shall provide high quality training for health workers , reform the pay system for<br />
health workers to provide better and fairer rewards for all staff including ancillary<br />
staff and increase health workers in all health facilities to minimize staff-burnout.<br />
• Strengthen Partnerships in Health – we shall develop a machinery of collaboration<br />
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with other critical players like the private health practitioners, traditional and<br />
spiritual healers.<br />
• Promote the patient’s voice - we are committed to giving patients and the public<br />
more say in the running of health services. This will entail putting patients first and<br />
building a health service around their needs. In addition, family members, carers<br />
and the community will be involved in ways to improve services.<br />
• Promote Youth Friendly Sexual and Reproductive Health Services – we will<br />
drastically reduce unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections<br />
including HIV among youth through the provision of services in a youth friendly<br />
manner.<br />
• Strengthen Health Referral System – to promote a continuum of care, we will<br />
strengthen referral systems both in the country and within neighbouring countries.<br />
• Establish Geriatric Health Care Services- considering the increasing pool of the<br />
aged in our demographics with their attendant health challenges, we will provide<br />
special services, facilities and medication for them.<br />
• Integrate HIV and AIDS fully in health programes – we will provide for full integration<br />
of HIV and AIDS services with other health programes to promote efficiency in<br />
service delivery and to de-stigmatise the disease.<br />
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7. Ensuring Good<br />
Governance<br />
7.1 Situational analysis<br />
Botswana’s democracy is underdeveloped. The constitution has not been reviewed<br />
since independence and has not entrenched economic, social and cultural rights.<br />
Parliament lacks independence and is virtually under the office of the President. The<br />
appointment of key personnel to institutions of democracy and the judiciary remains<br />
shrouded in absolute secrecy and is primarily decided by the executive.<br />
The election process is presided over by the government of the day and the<br />
Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) is not truly independent. The security<br />
sector, especially the Directorate of Intelligence Services and Security (DISS),<br />
is personalised and serves the interests of the presidency with no oversight or<br />
accountability. Fundamental laws required to ensure good governance such as<br />
Freedom of Information, Disclosure of Assets and Liabilities, Protection of Whistle<br />
Blowers, Conflict of Interest and Insider Trading are not in place. The absence of<br />
these laws has made it difficult to convict ministers and other officials suspected of<br />
corruption.<br />
7.2 Our Social Contract on Governance<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> believes in an ethical, accountable and transparent government that<br />
promotes participatory democracy and collective decision making. In this regard,<br />
we shall do the following;<br />
Reclaiming our Civil Liberties<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> Shall:<br />
• Set up a Constitutional Review Commission headed by a judge to look into possible<br />
amendments of the constitution including the bill of rights to include soio-econmic<br />
and cultural rights, the right to a clean environment, reduction of powers of the<br />
President and qualifying the immunities given to a sitting President.<br />
• Guarantee press freedom in the constitution and forbidding Parliament from<br />
passing any law that restricts press freedom.<br />
• Transform state broadcasters such as Radio Botswana and Botswana Television<br />
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into public broadcasters with independent boards free from political control.<br />
• Establish community based media platforms such as radio stations and newspaper<br />
to promote our cultural diversity.<br />
Strengthening Institutions of Democracy<br />
To promote Parliamentary Democracy, the <strong>BCP</strong> shall:<br />
• Establish an Independent Parliamentary Service Commission that will oversee the<br />
operations of Parliament.<br />
• Confirm the position of Speaker as head of the legislature and Leader of the<br />
House.<br />
• Introduce the position of Leader of Government Business in the House to<br />
coordinate relations between the executive and legislature.<br />
• Promote access to parliamentary debates through live broadcasts of debates<br />
• Introduce legislation to ensure that resolutions of Parliament are binding on the<br />
Executive for implementation.<br />
• Entrench the position of Leader of Opposition in the constitution and make it<br />
accountable to the Speaker.<br />
To promote the Independence of the Judiciary, the <strong>BCP</strong> shall<br />
• Ensure that the Botswana judiciary fully complies with the International Bar<br />
Association minimum standards of Judicial Independence.<br />
• Improve the conditions of service for the judiciary so that we attract and retain the<br />
best judicial officers.<br />
• Ensure that all judicial officers (judges and magistrates) enjoy personal and<br />
substantive independence. To this end, conditions of service for all judicial<br />
officers will be secured to guard against control by the executive. In the conduct<br />
of their duties, judicial officers will be subject only to the law and their conscience.<br />
• Review the composition of the Judicial Service Commission to increase the<br />
number of members not appointed by the President. Representatives from the<br />
judges and magistrates association, civil society and academia will be included in<br />
the Judicial Service Commission.<br />
• Allow for transparency in the appointment process of the judges and introduce<br />
public hearings by a Parliamentary Select Committee.<br />
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• Broaden the scope of legal aid to cover more deserving cases<br />
• Ensure one centre for power of the judiciary – The Chief Justice shall be the head<br />
of the Judiciary and also the President of Court of Appeal.<br />
Reforming Electoral Law System<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> shall:<br />
• Introduce a hybrid of first past the post and proportional representation system;<br />
• Introduce direct election of the President.<br />
• Increase the autonomy of the IEC by removing the civil servants as returning<br />
officers.<br />
• Empower the Commissioners of the IEC to independently appoint the Secretary of<br />
the Commission.<br />
• Empower the IEC to issue writ of elections for both parliamentary and local<br />
government by-elections.<br />
• State the date of general elections in the Constitution.<br />
• Introduce party funding by the State in recognition of the indispensable role played<br />
by political parties in our democracy.<br />
• Regulate amount of financial donations per party from private donors.<br />
• Develop a system of declaration of donations by parties; and<br />
• Demand audited financial reports from political parties on annual basis as prerequisite<br />
for continued state funding of each party.<br />
Promoting Transparency and Accountability in Public Institutions<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> shall:<br />
• Ensure that the Ombudsman and Auditor General are directly accountable to<br />
Parliament.<br />
• Ensure that oversight institutions are made more accessible to the public and are<br />
capacitated to undertake their duties effectively.<br />
• Ensure an open and transparent recruitment process for the Ombudsman by<br />
providing for vetting of candidates by a Parliamentary Select Committee.<br />
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Eliminating Corruption<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> aims to pursue zero tolerance for corruption. In this regard we shall:<br />
• Undertake a comprehensive review of all relevant legislation dealing with and/or<br />
linked to corruption, including – but not limited to – the Penal Code, the Criminal<br />
Procedure and Evidence Act, the Finance and Audit Act, the Public Service Act,<br />
the Police Act, The Ombudsman Act, the Corruption and Economic Crime Act<br />
and the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act.<br />
• Enact, as a matter of urgency, the Freedom of Information Act, Disclosure of<br />
Assets and Liabilities, Conflict of Interest and Insider Trading;<br />
• Make the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime truly independent by<br />
reporting directly to Parliament;<br />
• Establish a special parliamentary committee on anti – corruption to monitor the<br />
work of the Directorate;<br />
• Expand the Directorate and provide it with the necessary professional mix that<br />
can meet the demands of its job;<br />
• Introduce a system of Declaration of Assets and Liabilities by senior civil servants,<br />
Chief Executives of parastatal organizations, judicial officers and Members of<br />
Parliament.<br />
• Introduce a law to prohibit political and public officers from participating in decision<br />
making processes where their interests or those of their immediate relatives are<br />
involved (conflict of interest).<br />
Combatting Crime and ensuring safety for all<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> shall;<br />
• Ensure that the Police Service does not become the old Police Force by excluding<br />
soldiers from policing duties.<br />
• Increase the budget for the Police Service in order to increase its capacity to meet<br />
the challenges of law enforcement.<br />
• Increase the budget of the Prison Service to improve the welfare of offices and<br />
review the salary structure to align it with that of the Police Service.<br />
• Improve the working conditions of all the security forces to retain qualified and<br />
quality staff and avoid a corrupt force.<br />
• Allow for collective bargaining on conditions of service for the security sector.<br />
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• Develop schemes to divert juvenile offenders from crime and provide them with<br />
more rehabilitative environment away from hard core and regular offenders.<br />
• Reduce overcrowding in Prisons by encouraging community sentencing and other<br />
alternatives to prison.<br />
• Wage war on drug trafficking by strengthening the capacity of the Police and<br />
Customs and Excise to prevent drugs from coming into Botswana.<br />
Enhancing Decentralisation to Promote Universal Access to Services<br />
The <strong>BCP</strong> believes that effective development must be anchored on a decentralized<br />
system to allow for the voices of the people to inform planning and service delivery.<br />
To this end, the <strong>BCP</strong> government shall:<br />
• Entrenching local government as a second tier of government in the constitution.<br />
• Empowering local authorities to expand their revenue generating opportunities<br />
and reduce their reliance on central government for financial support. Councils<br />
will be empowered to decide on their recurrent and developmental budgets.<br />
• Carry out an extensive review for all government departments to identify services<br />
that will be more efficiently delivered by local authorities in line with our policy of<br />
decentralization.<br />
• Introduce a policy of executive chairpersons or mayors with powers to run their<br />
districts/towns.<br />
• Creating efficient local government authorities by re-demarcating some of the<br />
existing sub-districts into fully fledged districts.<br />
• Enhancing efficiency of local government by strengthening their capacity to attract<br />
and retain appropriately skilled personnel.<br />
• Expand the mandate of local authorities to cover the provision of primary health<br />
care while the Ministry of Health focuses on policy formulation.<br />
• Position local authorities to promote procurement of goods and services from<br />
businesses within their locality with a strong bias towards citizen owned companies<br />
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8. Promoting Gender<br />
Equality<br />
8.1 Situational analysis<br />
Women in Botswana form 52% of the population, with women headed households<br />
equalling those of male headed households. Despite this dominance in numbers,<br />
women remain the most marginalized in society. The patriarchal nature of Botswana’s<br />
society, like in all known societies, has institutionalized the subordination of women,<br />
with the result that women have faced historical and current marginalization<br />
compared to men. Efforts to empower women have not yielded much success<br />
mainly because development processes have continued to espouse the patriarchal<br />
values and norms, which define women primarily as mothers and wives. This has<br />
to a large extent prevented society from seeing women as legitimate actors in the<br />
political, economic and social arenas of society. As a result society has not been able<br />
to provide the bridges and leverages that the majority of women need to transition to<br />
a level where they can participate as equal partners in development.<br />
Inevitably therefore women face many challenges in life. These include limited<br />
access to higher education particularly in the areas of science and technology, high<br />
unemployment, high levels of vulnerability to diseases and limited access to social,<br />
political, economic and cultural resources. Other areas of concern are the low level<br />
of participation in business and political leadership. They also face endemic levels<br />
of violence.<br />
8.2 Our Social Contract on Gender Development<br />
<strong>BCP</strong> is committed to attaining equality between women and men in public and<br />
private life. To this end the <strong>BCP</strong> government shall:<br />
• Establish the Ministry of Home Affairs, Gender Development and Culture to<br />
coordinate the mainstreaming of gender in all government ministries.<br />
• Promote public awareness on issues of gender development.<br />
• Introduce curriculum geared at promoting gender equality from an early age.<br />
• Incorporate gender issues and analysis in all policy making and programe<br />
development in all sectors of the economy.<br />
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• Adopt, domesticate and ensure compliance with the SADC Gender Protocol, the<br />
Conventions on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women<br />
(CEDAW) and other conventions that seek to end discrimination and violence<br />
against women.<br />
• Strengthen legal instruments to protect women. These will include among others,<br />
strengthening legal obligations of paternity and equality of access to property and<br />
inheritance.<br />
• Facilitate economic justice for women: To this end, the party will mainstream<br />
gender issues in economic structures and policies. There will also be specific<br />
policies to ensure increased access for women to employment, credit facilities<br />
and appropriate training. Special attention will be given to the informal sector in<br />
rural and urban areas where women are over-represented.<br />
• Tax incentives will be provided to companies and groups that support women’s<br />
economic projects.<br />
• Strengthen Health Services for Women - emphasis here will be on improvement<br />
and strengthening of diagnostic and clinical technology and services to address<br />
women specific illnesses such as breast and cervical cancers.<br />
• Make Education and Training more Accessible to Women - the curriculum and<br />
other school programmes and activities will address subject choices by girls to<br />
ensure girls entry into the science and technology streams in larger numbers.<br />
• Promote the Participation of Women in Politics - the <strong>BCP</strong> shall introduce civic and<br />
leadership training programes to empower women. Furthermore affirmative action<br />
will be used as an instrument to ensure a fair representation of women at both<br />
local and national levels.<br />
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9. Sports Development and<br />
Youth Empowerment<br />
9.1 Situational analysis<br />
Youth in Botswana are facing the following challenges of unemployment and<br />
underemployment, poverty, wealth and income inequality, unfriendly reproductive<br />
health system, a collapsing and irrelevant education system, lack of access to land<br />
and housing and economic opportunities as well as lack of representation in key<br />
decision making bodies.<br />
9.2 Our social contract<br />
To develop, nurture, and empower the youth to enable them to reach their full<br />
potential and meaningfully contribute to the development of the country, the <strong>BCP</strong><br />
shall;<br />
• Create consistency of laws, regulations, standards and practices in respect of age<br />
of majority for the youth.<br />
• Entrench Affirmative Action in the Youth Policy to encourage youth representation<br />
in decision making.<br />
• Set up a Youth Entrepreneurial Development Agency to assist youth with funding,<br />
training and development and capacity building for business.<br />
• Introduce Employment Tax Incentive for companies that employ unemployed<br />
youth under the age of 36 to promote youth employment, training and skills<br />
development.<br />
• Ratify and domesticate into legislation and implement all youth related conventions,<br />
charters and treaties to align youth laws with international best practices.<br />
• To provide access to youth friendly reproductive health services and establish<br />
substance abuse rehabilitation centres.<br />
• Set up skills development centres around the country to train and equip unskilled<br />
and unemployed youth.<br />
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9.3 Sports, Recreation and Arts Development<br />
Situational Analysis<br />
Sports, recreation, arts and entertainment are not adequately developed and remain<br />
under resourced. Consequently, below par achievements are common occurrences<br />
in all sporting codes. There is no professionalization of sporting activities.<br />
Our social contract<br />
To develop, professionalise and support sports, recreation, arts and entertainment,<br />
the <strong>BCP</strong> shall;<br />
• Develop sports through public and private sports academies and introduce a<br />
competitive schools league in all sporting codes to identify and nurture talent at<br />
an early stage.<br />
• Professionalise Sports through grants to premier sport divisions and attract<br />
investment and sponsorship through enactment of corporate social responsibility<br />
law.<br />
• Build sporting and recreational Infrastructure to create a conducive environment<br />
for competitive sports and recreational activities.<br />
• Unearth, develop, nurture and promote youth talent in visual arts, performing arts,<br />
and art performance through schools, theaters, youth centers.<br />
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10. Foreign Affairs and<br />
International Trade<br />
10.1 Situational analysis<br />
Botswana’s foreign policy lacks clarity and vision. The country’s influence in the<br />
global community of nations is minimal, due mainly to five factors;<br />
• Low profile and priority accorded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the<br />
current government.<br />
• The appointment to foreign missions of persons who neither have the interest nor<br />
the competence in diplomatic relations.<br />
• The indifference of the current Head of State towards participating in regional,<br />
continental and global forums such as SADC, AU and UN.<br />
• Pursuing an isolationist stance on matters of international relations.<br />
• Adequate resources to facilitate the work of foreign missions.<br />
International trade is characterised by uncoordinated international campaigns for<br />
foreign investors that are not informed by the prevailing economic conditions in<br />
Botswana. There is no clearly defined strategy with targets to attract the kind of<br />
investor that is aligned with our developmental needs. No attempts are made to<br />
assist the Botswana business community to expand beyond our borders.<br />
10.2 Our Social Contract on Foreign Affairs and International Trade<br />
We will position Botswana to become a responsible citizen of the world, cooperating<br />
with international partners, actively participating in regional and international<br />
organizations and promoting our trade interests in our dealings with the rest of the<br />
world. The <strong>BCP</strong> shall;<br />
• Constitute a Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade with a view to<br />
place trade at the core of our diplomatic relations. The appointment of officers<br />
to our foreign missions shall be influenced by their ability to attract investors to<br />
Botswana.<br />
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade will also be responsible<br />
for promoting Botswana businesses in international markets. Given the small<br />
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size of the Botswana market, it will be a key priority for the Government to assist<br />
Botswana companies to expand their operations beyond Botswana.<br />
• Reposition Botswana Development Corporation as government’s investment<br />
arm, together with other government owned companies, to pursue investment<br />
opportunities in foreign countries, particularly emerging economies. Such outward<br />
investment missions will primarily be pursued through joint ventures between<br />
Batswana entrepreneurs and the government owned companies.<br />
• Staff all foreign missions with well trained and skilled investment promotion<br />
experts with a good appreciation of both the Botswana business sector and the<br />
global economy.<br />
• Actively participate in regional, continental and international organizations to<br />
advance good governance at a global level.<br />
• Promote the engagement of Batswana professionals in international organizations.<br />
• Subject all international treaties, conventions and protocols to ratification by<br />
Parliament.<br />
• Participate in the Peer Review Mechanism under NEPAD to continuously modernise<br />
our democracy and assist other African countries to learn from our experiences.<br />
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<strong>BCP</strong> Shadow<br />
Motsei Rapelana<br />
Presidential, Constitutional<br />
Affairs and Public<br />
Administration<br />
Gaborone North<br />
Akanyang Magama<br />
Minerals, Energy and Water<br />
Resources<br />
Gaborone South<br />
Taolo Lucas<br />
Agriculture and Rural<br />
Development<br />
Bobirwa<br />
Dumelang Saleshando<br />
President<br />
Gaborone Central<br />
Aron Bagalatia<br />
Basic Education<br />
Okavango<br />
Phillip Bulawa<br />
Higher Education<br />
Tati West<br />
Habaudi Hubona<br />
Health<br />
Francistown West<br />
ASSISTANT MINISTERS<br />
Kesitegile Gobotswang<br />
Vice-President<br />
Sefhare-Ramokgonami<br />
Morgan Moseki<br />
Presidential, Constitutional<br />
Affairs and Public<br />
Administration<br />
Tiny Kojane<br />
Environment, Wildlife and<br />
Tourism<br />
David Tshere<br />
Health<br />
Francistown East<br />
Mmathete-Molapowabojang<br />
Mahalapye West
Cabinet<br />
Batisani Maswibilili<br />
Economic Development<br />
and Finance<br />
Specially Elected Nominee<br />
Kgoberego Nkawana<br />
Environment, Wildlife and<br />
Tourism<br />
Selibe-Phikwe East<br />
Anna Motlhagodi<br />
Business Development and<br />
Citizen Empowerment<br />
Gaborone Bonnington North<br />
James Masisi<br />
Foreign Affairs and<br />
International Trade<br />
Specially Elected Nominee<br />
Dithapelo Keorapetse<br />
Youth and Sports<br />
Selibe Phikwe West<br />
Goretetse Kekgonegile<br />
Labour<br />
Maun East<br />
Kentse Rammidi<br />
Local Government<br />
Kanye North<br />
Elsie Alexander<br />
Home Affairs, Gender<br />
Development and Culture<br />
Specially Elected Nominee<br />
Isaac Mabiletse<br />
Lands and Housing<br />
Mochudi East<br />
James Olesitse<br />
Infrastructure,<br />
Communication and<br />
Technology<br />
Palapye<br />
Alfred Pilane<br />
Agriculture and Rural<br />
Development<br />
Nthusang M. Dibe<br />
Business Development and<br />
Citizen Empowerment<br />
Brains Kwadipane<br />
Youth and Sports<br />
Lebohang Letsie<br />
Local Government<br />
Richard White<br />
Lands and Housing<br />
Mochudi West<br />
Gabane-Mankgodi<br />
Ghanzi South<br />
Specially Elected Nominee<br />
Kgalagadi South
P O Box 2918, Gaborone<br />
Plot 364, Independence Avenue, Gaborone<br />
Tel: +267 3181805<br />
Follow the Growing <strong>BCP</strong><br />
@bwkgololo<br />
congresspartybw@gmail.com<br />
www.bcp.org.bw<br />
sms the word DONATE to 16506<br />
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