Boitekanelo graduates challenged to tackle youth unemployment
Larona Makhaiza | Wednesday October 14, 2026 06:00
Deputy Provost Academic Services, Dr Gabalape Sejie, said the country needed graduates who could go beyond seeking employment and instead use their knowledge and skills to develop solutions to pressing national challenges. Sejie noted Botswana and the rest of Africa needed professionals who could turn knowledge into innovation and meaningful change. “Look beyond simply fulfilling a role.
Ask what can be improved,” Sejie implored the graduates when delivering a message to the Class of 2026 at the college’s graduation ceremony. “Look for solutions. Create opportunities. Serve people well,” he added. Sejie noted that graduates were entering a professional environment shaped by rapid technological advancement, economic uncertainty, and climate change, requiring them to remain adaptable and continuously develop their skills. He said artificial intelligence was reshaping professions and the nature of work, making critical thinking, sound judgement and ethical conduct increasingly important. Here in Botswana, he said, global developments were compounded by challenges including youth unemployment, the need for economic diversification, healthcare demands, and the strengthening of institutions.
However, Sejie said the challenges also presented an opportunity for graduates to contribute towards building a more prosperous country. “Botswana, too, has people with the ability to imagine, build, and create what does not yet exist. That is where you come in,” he said. He urged graduates across healthcare, research, education, entrepreneurship, and management to use their qualifications to strengthen communities and improve existing systems. Sejie also called on the graduates to uphold the college’s values of vision, innovation, courage, compassion and botho, saying these should guide both their professional achievements and how they treated others. He said success should not be measured solely by individual accomplishments but also by the difference graduates made in the lives of others.
“The greatest measure of your professional life may not only be what you achieve for yourself, but what becomes possible for others because of your work,” he said. Sejie congratulated the graduates and acknowledged the families, lecturers, supervisors, and mentors who supported them throughout their academic journey. “Botswana needs your skills. Africa needs your ideas and innovation. And the world needs professionals who can bring knowledge together with integrity, humanity and courage,” he said.