Allan Gray Orbis Foundation (AGOF) Botswana held its third annual dinner in honour of students it has sponsored to study outside the country on Friday. At the dinner, Allay Gray representatives reiterated the asset management firm's commitment to its long-term agenda to reduce unemployment among Batswana through facilitating skills development among young entrepreneurs. Allan Gray Botswana managing director, Tapologo Motshubi said the foundation was established to develop potentially high impact entrepreneurs to accelerate economic diversification and employment creation. He said they decided to sponsor young Batswana for further studies in business with the expectation that upon completion, they will come back to the country and open up businesses that hire more citizens, thus reducing unemployment, which has been regarded as the cause of many social ills. "We hope our fellows in time will start businesses that will employ young Batswana and reduce unemployment," he said.
The foundation has so far sponsored six students, with four of them based in top South African universities. The other two have been selected this year and are to enroll for their A-levels at Bishops College in Cape Town before being sponsored at a tertiary institution of their choice. Five specific traits are used to choose those eligible for the sponsorship. They are intellectual imagination, personal initiative, spirit of selflessness, courageous commitment and achievement excellence. Motshubi said they then assess the applicants and select the top two to attend a training camp with fellows selected from other African countries.
