'We won't rest until every citizen is employed'
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Wednesday September 24, 2025 06:00
Gaolathe was addressing the general public, who included graduands, parents, and stakeholders, during the 10th year Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) graduation ceremony. When addressing multitudes of people who came to witness the ceremony, Gaolathe said that the BETP promises to be an emerging anchor for the transformation of our economy. “We are moving from diamonds and government as the centre to a vibrant ecosystem fired by the private sector, innovators, social entrepreneurs,” he added. Gaolathe said that they are building an economy with an export base, an economy that is diversified, digitally-led, and one that churns jobs for every citizen.
He highlighted that they are building an economy from diamond dependency to a vibrant private sector-led, innovative, export-based economy. “We will not rest until every citizen is employed, every citizen is empowered, and every citizen is fulfilled,” he continued. He further explained that the BETP process is a mirror of a government and a nation that has reimagined the future of this country and redefined its true North. “A high-income Botswana that is digitally-enabled, export-driven and economically diversified where every citizen is employed, empowered and fulfilled”. He also shared that BETP identifies nine priority sectors to power the growth of our country. Six of these sectors are economic, which include Agriculture, Tourism, Energy and Mining, Manufacturing, Financial Services, Infrastructure, and Digitalisation. Gaolathe stated that the other three are of a social dimension, underpinning their commitment to access to high-quality basic services and the empowerment of their people through healthcare, education, and social protection. He also said that Botswana has a tradition of excellence in policy conceptualisation and policy formulation, but we have consistently fallen short in execution. “BETP focuses and emphasises execution, more execution, extra execution, super execution, ultra execution. The time has come for our nation to build a culture of getting things done. We have started doing so with the Permandu economic lab methodology, and this is only the beginning,” he added.
When addressing the graduates, he described the class of 2025 as trailblazers of innovation and custodians of their dreams, and are the torchbearers of national pride, and the architects of a Botswana reborn. Gaolathe indicated that the class of 2025 graduates at a time when Botswana stands at a great crossroads. He highlighted that Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM disciplines), are no longer optional subjects of interest; they are and have become the scaffolding of a new nation. He stated that the new government is reimagining and reinvesting in TVET to give our youth a fair chance at reshaping our future. Gaolathe indicated that STEM and TVET are the twin engines that will drive Botswana away from diamond dependency to a digitally-led, export-driven and diversified economy, in which every citizen is employed, empowered and fulfilled. He stated that he has experienced the power of collaboration between BIUST’s growing partnerships with Japan, Akita University, and MIT. These show that knowledge has no borders. Japan’s relentless discipline in engineering and MIT’s fearless culture of experimentation should be infused into their own nation, he added.
According to the acting President, these collaborations are not just academic, but they are the bridges through which Botswana builds the muscle necessary to enter the global innovation economy. “You inherit a Botswana that is not perfect but teeming with possibility. We face challenges, especially youth unemployment, but you are the generation destined to convert these challenges into opportunities,” he added. Gaolathe encouraged the graduates to be innovators who must not only take jobs but create them. He cautioned them that they should not become slaves to their certificates. “A qualification without practice, creativity, and contribution is nothing more than paper. True power lies in what you do with the knowledge you carry. Go forth and practice, innovate, create, and generate new knowledge,” he said.