70.5 million Euro support for Botswana-EU

MPHO TLALE
Correspondent | Friday May 21, 2010 00:00

 

Speaking at the celebrations of Europe Day, Head of the delegation of the EU to Botswana and SADC, Paul Malin said there has been increasing cooperation between EU and Botswana.

Alluding to President Ian Khama's visit to the EU, Malin said; '...since the president's visit we have signed a 60million Euro programme to support the government on human resource development and allocated extra funding to Botswana of 10.5 million Euro to compensate for some of the export losses suffered by the diamond industry. The money also aims at topping up the Human Resource Development programme that supports the effort to improve the quality of education in Botswana and to increase access to it for those still excluded from the system. The EU is also preparing a new support programme for non-state actors, that is both non-governmental organizations and the private sector. The programme will be based on implementation of the government's non-government (NGO) policy whose aim is to find more sustainable methods of funding NGOs.'

Phandu Skelemani, minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said Botswana and the EU have enjoyed good relations since the signing of the Lome Convention in 1975.