Mmegi

Genesis of the GUC, LSB battle

According to GUC, the arrangement was not only transparent but was subjected to scrutiny by regulators from the outset PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO
According to GUC, the arrangement was not only transparent but was subjected to scrutiny by regulators from the outset PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO

What began as a seemingly straightforward academic partnership between a Botswana tertiary institution and a United Kingdom university has evolved into one of the most consequential legal education disputes in Botswana’s recent history, writes Mmegi Staffer SPIRA TLHANKANE

The beginning of the Leeds

Beckett-GUC partnershipAt the centre of the controversy is Gaborone University College’s (GUC) Bachelor of Laws (LLB) programme, delivered through a franchising arrangement with Leeds Beckett University in the United Kingdom. The origins of the dispute date back to 2018 when GUC and Leeds Beckett University entered into a formal franchising arrangement under which the UK University would deliver its Bachelor of Laws programme through GUC in Botswana. According to GUC, the arrangement was not only transparent but was subjected to scrutiny by regulators from the outset. In 2019, GUC claims it wrote to the Law Society of Botswana seeking confirmation on whether graduates holding Leeds Beckett law degrees obtained through the partnership would be eligible to practise law in Botswana.

Editor's Comment
Public servants deserve better than union infighting

‘The strongest bond of human sympathy outside the family relation should be one uniting working people of all nations and tongues and kindreds’.- Abraham LincolnUntil then, the Council’s operations remain suspended, delaying critical decisions affecting thousands of public sector employees.The current standoff is between the Manual Workers Union on one side and the Six Cooperating Trade Unions, namely BONU, BOPEU, BTU, BDU, BOSETU and...

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