He has held many ministerial portfolios. He is currently Minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources. He acted several times as President of the Republic of Botswana between 1994 and 1998. In 1992 he chaired the Presidential Commission on Education whose report provided the basis for the Revised National Policy on Education which continues to guide the development of the country's education system. Kedikilwe became Chairman of Council of the University of Botswana and Swaziland, (UBS) Botswana Campus in 1978 after the retirement of Lawrence Lekalake and he held the office until 1984. He was the first chairman of the autonomous University of Botswana after its establishment in 1982 when Botswana and Swaziland agreed to separation of the two institutions. He negotiated the link with Edinburgh University that endured until 1986 when the University's own department of law was fully established. A major innovation during his tenure was the introduction of the Staff Development Fellow programme aimed at developing citizen academic staff. The SDF programme has over the years been at the centre of the localisation efforts of the University.
Lawrence Lekalake
Lawrence Lekalake is an accomplished scholar who started his education in Kuruman, South Africa and went on to pursue a BSc. (Honours) in chemistry completing in 1957 at Fort Hare University. He subsequently gained a diploma in university education. He moved to Botswana in 1960 to teach at Lobatse Teacher Training College. He had a distinguished career as a public servant and businessman. Lekalake was Chairman of Council of the University of Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland (UBLS) when Lesotho pulled out of the tripartite university in 1976. He was the first chairman of the council of the University of Botswana and Swaziland (UBS), Botswana campus. He played a crucial part in negotiating the sharing of power and authority between the two councils in Botswana and Swaziland whilst retaining the university as a single academic unit. His chairmanship coincided with turbulent years of student activism especially over the liberation struggles in Southern Africa but he helped to ensure the stability of the institution. During his period in office from 1976 to 1978 Lekalake and the then Permanent Secretary for Education had to negotiate the retention of links with other universities. He presided over the rapid construction of a campus in Gaborone. Lekalake bridged the old UBLS and UBS and was instrumental in laying the foundation for the eventual establishment of the UB in 1982. Subsequently, in 1988 Lekalake was appointed to chair a commission to review the institution's conditions of service and benefits for staff.
