Stimulus package rollout starts next month

Giving a keynote address on Monday at the inaugural Botswana jobs summit in Gaborone, Masisi said the ESP was meant to diversify the economy and create jobs. He said the programme was open to everyone who might want to give ideas and suggestions. “ESP is not a closed book,” he said. “We are open to suggestions that can be brought up.”

He also said the onus of job creation lies with the private sector, meaning that the number of jobs would increase when the private sector is successful and vibrant. Unemployment rate in Botswana was 20 percent in 2013, 17.8 percent in 2010, the average was 18.4 percent between 1991 and 2013, with an all-time high of 23.8 percent in 2006 and a record low of 13.9 percent in 1991. Masisi said the government would provide a conducive environment for the private sector, adding that it had the budget and the political will to resolve unemployment in Botswana.