Botswana National Commission for UNESCO launches committees
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Friday May 3, 2019 13:03
The programmes launched cover Education, Natural Sciences, Social and Human Sciences, and Communication and Information Technology.
Since 2018, the Botswana National Commission for UNESCO has been in the process of strengthening structures for coordination of a UNESCO mandate at national level. Speaking at the launch, the chairperson of the commission Kgosi Puso Gaborone said the focus for 2018 was in strengthening the commission as the highest decision making body of the Botswana National Commission for UNESCO. As a result, two ordinary meetings of the Commission were held in May and December 2018. He noted that that was to prepare for the Programme Committees whose role is to implement UNESCO Programmes and to report status of implementation to the Commission.
Gaborone explained that as mirror images of UNESCO at national level, the National Commissions were to develop and implement programmes in line with the UNESCO mandate, which was to ensure maintenance of peace and security. He added that they were required to collaborate with each other, with UNESCO Regional Offices and with UNESCO Headquarters in order for them to be effective in their work, particularly through the joint formulation and execution of programmes.
“Botswana joined the UNESCO family as a member State in 1980. Later in 1983, the Botswana National Commission for UNESCO was established through a Presidential Directive, CAB 21/83. This was to respond to Article VII of UNESCO’s Constitution, which calls upon Member States to establish the National Commission that will act as agencies if liaison between UNESCO Headquarters and the Member State, in all matters of interest to UNESCO,” he said.
He further explained that as the UN Agency with such structures at national level, UNESCO provides detailed guidance on their establishment, the role they are expected to play, the structure they are to operate with as well as the responsibility of UNESCO and the Member State to the National Commission.
However, Gaborone pointed out that since their establishment, their National Commission had challenges among them being limited capacity to coordinate implementation of the UNESCO mandate. He therefore emphasised that his Commission was doing its best to address such. He pointed out that it was critical to start with the Secretariat, as it is the engine driving the success of the National Commission.
Gaborone said the Commission was prioritised as it is the major decision making body of the National Commission, made up of Deputy Permanent Secretaries of ministries and CEOs of institutions that have a relationship with the UNESCO mandate. He indicated that their work was ongoing explaining that some strategic decisions required a lot of constitution while others had some financial implications.
“The focus for 2019 therefore, is the Programme Commission for UNESCO. The Programme Committees are at the heart of implementation of UNESCO programmes. They are made of heads of departments within government ministries and institutions having a relationship with the UNESCO mandate. Botswana as a Member State pays an annual contribution to UNESCO. “As such, it is in the country’s interest to ensure that as a nation we maximise on our benefits from UNESCO through whatever support available to Member States,” Gaborone said.
He added that UNESCO fostered national development through its five major programmes.
Gaborone explained that the monetary and technical support available under each programme could take them a long way in implementing their national priorities. He emphasised that there was need to ensure proper alignment of their national priorities to the regional and global agendas.
“Central to these agendas are the 2030 agenda on Sustainable Development and the African Agenda 2063 – ‘the Africa we want’. This then calls for Programme Committees to be alive to these agendas whenever they develop programmes,” he said.