BIHL Trust Rolls Out New Strategy
Correspondent | Monday May 15, 2017 15:26
The 2017-2021 strategy will focus on supporting community projects that align with six areas, namely, Education, Social Upliftment, Economic Empowerment, Public Health, Recreation and Conservation of the Environment. The Trust’s decision came in consideration of factors including pressing social needs of Batswana, the extent to which private sector aid is required and communities in which BIHL Group operates where community resources are limited. In addition, the Trust will support projects where the Group can make a sustainable impact in the lives of Batswana. The five-year strategy sought to also align with Botswana Government’s Vision 2036 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Said Trust chairman Major General Bakwena Oitsile, “Since its inception in 2007, the Trust has continued to focus on supporting or introducing community projects that make a tangible contribution to the growth and development of Botswana. Through the Group’s annual subsidiary contributions, we are pleased to note that we have supported at least 8 major initiatives housing several projects that support thousands of Batswana across the country.
Going forward with our new strategy, we will work on extending our reach in a manner that has even greater sustainable impact. In particular, the Trust will focus on supporting projects concerning the education sector, as we believe supporting knowledge and skills development is the foundation for empowering Batswana to be active participants in other sectors of the economy”.
In 2016, BIHL Trust ploughed back over P23 million into local communities to support sustainable growth and development of Botswana initiatives including community businesses and education. As part of their new direction, the Trust has allocated a significant proportion of annual funding to education initiatives including the realignment of the BIHL Trust Thomas Tlou Scholarship focus.
From 2017, the Scholarship will focus on applications in pursuit of postgraduate degrees in the business, finance and information technology disciplines. Founded in 2012 on the legacy of the nation’s most accomplished and beloved scholars, Professor Thomas Tlou, this initiative is a highly competitive scholarship seeking to assist exceptional youth to achieve their highest potential and play an active role in the development of Botswana. Since inception, the Trust has sponsored 7 programme participants and in 2015, the Trust increased the number of recipients from 1 at inception to 10 per year. To date, the Trust has sponsored 18 participants.
Concluded Major General Oitsile, “We are confident that through this five-year strategy and particular focus on supporting the education sector, we will achieve more in partnership with Botswana youth, businesspeople and communities. We will continue collaborating with our partners to identify, support and develop sustainable initiatives that will enable Batswana to empower themselves, be more productive and in turn see the uplifment of their communities”.