Botswana renews NDP 10 operational plan with UN

KEIKANTSE LESEMELA
Correspondent | Tuesday March 26, 2013 00:00

 

The revised programme, as an action plan of the United Nations Development Assistance Programme (UNDAF) for 2010-2016, represents the shared conviction of the partners on how the UN can best support Botswana to achieve its aspirations and realise NDP 10 goals. The original 'Government of Botswana-United Nations Programme Operational Plan' was signed in December 2009. Speaking at the signing ceremony of the renewed plan in Gaborone last Friday, the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Kenneth Matambo said the event reaffirmed the good relationship between Botswana and the UN system. He said the mid-term review established that the implementation of the consolidated programme contributed to positive outcomes such as the reduced transactional costs and savings over time for both the government and the UN system and the potential for improved resource mobilisation for the country and integrated and streamlined programming.

He said the partnership between the government and the UN has been in the form of technical and material assistance at various times.  Matambo said that in recent years, UN agencies focused their development assistance strategies on national capacity building but the current programme covers broad areas. The Botswana-UN programme covers arrears such as poverty reduction and job creation, HIV/AIDS prevention and management, gender equality, youth empowerment, population management, health, education and natural resources conservation.

NDP 10 is a three-pronged economic and social development strategy that seeks to create a private sector enabling and supportive policy environment, stimulate increased domestic and foreign private investment and enhance competitiveness in both goods and services markets. Matambo said that over the years Botswana has signed agreements with individual UN agencies and these have had benefits though they are limited by the fragmentation of support provided to the country.