As I see it

Mmegi Online: He could have been depicting Khama's Five-Ds! President Ian Khama took over the reins of power on April Fools Day 2008, bristling with macho determination to steer the ship of state forward-ho with gusto of a worthy successor of his predecessors. Making his inaugural speech a short distance from his late father's statue which hitherto had faced East, but had now turned around to face West, whether to ensure the father watched him deliver a renewal of his vow to guide the young republic to prosperity or whether it was to protest that his father's image had been distorted and falsified by making him face East when his gaze was always westward, we will never know!

BotswanaPost to sell electricity

The Botswana Gazette: “A total of 24 organisations, including BotswanaPost, submitted bids for the tender, and six were approved as preferred bidders. We are still at different stages of negotiations with the preferred bidders so names can only be disclosed after negotiations,” said Moreri.

Kalahari Desert Sands An Important, Forgotten Storehouse of Carbon Dioxide

ScienceDaily (Apr. 1, 2008) — The sands of the desert are an important and forgotten storehouse of carbon dioxide taken from the world's atmosphere, scientists heard April 2, 2008 at the Society for General Microbiology's 162nd meeting.

"Desert soils are unusual because the sand grains at the surface are bound together into a crust by bacteria, reducing wind erosion and adding nutrients to the soil. Deserts cover over one third of the world's land surface and yet our understanding of their contribution to the atmospheric carbon dioxide balance is poor", says Dr Andrew Thomas of Manchester Metropolitan University.

Colorado State Anthropologist Finds Fossil Treasures In Africa

Science Blog
The vast collection of fossils is one of the few uncovered in Botswana and contains well-preserved specimens of small mammals that may have roamed the earth sometime between 100,000 and 3 million years ago. Most likely used by owls and other mammals to eat their prey, the cave is so rich with fossils it's called Bone Cave.
Waddle and the other researchers believe the find can help fill the gap in the fossil record of Botswana, an area that has not been a major focus for anthropologists or archaeologists in recent years. Although there are numerous sites containing stone tools in Botswana, the only human or primate remains from Botswana are less than 10,000 years old and are fully modern. Other fossils found in Botswana have been from the Middle Stone Age, roughly 100,000 years and earlier.
"This is a great find because of the wealth of fossils in the cave," Waddle said. "It's particularly important because Botswana has virtually no fossil sites of this kind and there really is no fossil record of primates at all. Many fossil sites may only produce a few fossils.

When natives become homeless

"Ao! they even demolish our house while we are still gathering our stuff ... bring that radio... ntela kiriba hoo (bring me a wheelbarrow)," a woman says, racing against time. She hands a small wireless set to a young woman carrying a small child. A sense of urgency permeates the atmosphere in this Mmamashia settlement. It surely is no normal Friday morning for Ikanyeng Linchwe. The unscheduled meeting with the 'yellow monster' has her hurredly packing her belongings. The sudden visit is big in a big way. It has attracted the attention of Botswana Television (Btv) cameras. As she gathers her pots, dishes and other things in the ramshackle house, camera shutters make a symphony of noise. "Banna ba mmuso, le re gakaletse (government officers, you have no mercy)," she says, directing her gaze to Kgatleng Landboard officers for emphasis.

Umbro beats Puma to Zebras deal

Mmegi: English sportswear giant, Umbro is the new Zebras technical sponsor, beating Puma to the deal, while All Kasi was out of the reckoning after proposing a partnership with the Botswana Football Association (BFA), Mmegi Sport has learnt.

Montsho sets new 200M national record

The Monitor: "World beater, Amantle Montsho continued to inscribe her name in history books when she broke the Botswana 200 metre women's record, clocking 22.89 seconds in Japan last Thursday. Running in her first competitive event of the year, the reigning 400 metre-world champion smashed her previous record of 22.94 seconds by 0.05 seconds to set a new national 200 metre record."

Infraco plans giant network overhaul

TechCentral
Broadband Infraco currently has capacity to provide backhaul to Johannesburg from Cape Town and is supplying this service to cellular operator Vodacom. MTN is trialling it. Maharaj says Infraco also intends to provide backhaul access for landlocked sub-Saharan African countries and is developing links to Botswana.  — (c) 2012 NewsCentral Media

GBCHealth Recognizes Leading Businesses for Their Work Addressing Pressing Global Health Challenges During Annual Conference on May 14th and 15th

"Winner: Partnership/Collective Action – HP: The Disease Surveillance and Mapping Project is a public-private partnership between HP, Positive Innovation for the Next Generation (PING), Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), Mascom and the Botswana Ministry of Health (MoH). Before the project, the process of tracking notifiable diseases in Botswana was manual and slow. The PING program uses smartphones to collect data on malaria activity to streamline data collection and analysis to improve the quality of disease surveillance. By the end of the pilot, 93% of facilities were reporting on time (compared to 20% beforehand), and MoH officials had been notified of 19 potential malaria outbreaks to which they were able to respond immediately. The pilot was so successful that the MoH plans to expand PING’s mobile platform to track all notifiable diseases in Botswana."

Primary school heads upgraded to D3 salary scale

Mmegi: He said that the new salary structures would come into effect either in April or May depending on how soon the teachers are notified of the changes. Asked why secondary school heads are left out, he said the Headmasters Association did not sign the agreement arguing that some of the duties included in their job description were not theirs.

BONELA gets private sector funding

Mmegi: Private sector entities responded positively to a call by the Botswana Network on Ethics, Law and HIV/AIDS (BONELA) for them to be more actively involved in funding HIV/AIDS and human rights in the country, at a groundbreaking donor engagement forum held in Gaborone today.


"It thus needs to revise its funding strategy and pilot the investment approach that is based on activities that are evidence-based and have been scientifically proven to have a direct impact on reducing HIV transmission, morbidity and mortality.

BNF petitions ministry over Liquor Act

Mmegi Online: ""They are much advanced in the economic diversification drive initiative which the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) has paid lip- service to," the petition reads. The petition says that by selling liquor at their homes, the sellers are able to provide for most, if not all, of their family needs such as housing, food, water and electricity.

Blind students receive specialised computers

Mmegi Online: "Ministry of Education and Skills Development (MoESD) received the computers on behalf of: Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, the University of Botswana, the Institute of Development Management, the Institute of Health Sciences, ABM College as well as Ba Isago University College.
"

'via Blog this'

Computer disaster looms at govt enclave

The Monitor: According to courts documents, the IT companies handle 24,000 service calls annually, or 50-250 calls a day for service. They also handle a high number of computer virus calls, a situation which has been a feature of the life of the contract, as the anti-virus measures in place do not adequately address the problem.

FCC allocates un-serviced land

Mmegi: ""Our view as the municipality is that we should allocate plots and provide water only. Other services such as electricity, sewerage and drainage systems will be erected later when enough funds have been secured," he said.Nyeku also observed that lack of residential plots in the city discourages home ownership among residents.The arrangement of allocating un-serviced plots has worked well in the past, according to him.
"When we were relocating squatters from Somerset to Gerald Estate some years ago, they were allocated plots without services with the exception of water. Services such as drainage systems, electricity and sewerage lines were erected later," he said. Mokalake welcomed the FCC idea. "The ministry will, however, have to look at the viability of a proposal by the municipality before acceding to their request," he said. He stated that the Ministry of Lands has allocated un-serviced plots in rural areas. He said services would be provided when the government has secured enough funds for the purpose. The arrangement, he said, has worked well."

'via Blog this'

Judge questions Kgafela's professional credentials

Mmegi: "He said he was surprised that in one of the cases in question, it was Kgafela's younger brother, Mmusi, who represented one of the litigants, not him. Tafa described Kgafela as sarcastic, arrogant, paranoid, and a good liar who was able to create things that did not exist, as confirmed in a letter he wrote to the Registrar and Master of the High Court, Godfrey Nthomiwa, last November. "The applicant comes out as a person who is always right, and that anybody who differs with him is oppressive and biased," he said. Besides Tafa, Kgafela also applied for the recusal of the two other judges in the case, Steven Gaongalelwe, and Mercy Garekwe. All the judges declined to recuse themselves from the case. In declining to recuse himself, Gaongalelwe stated that judges have a mandate to dispense justice fairly and should not succumb to mere, unsubstantiated fears as grounds for recusal. Garekwe was to recuse herself on grounds that she was a judge and 'guilty by association'. Kgafela also argued that the matter should be treated as a criminal case on grounds that the constitution of Botswana is a fraud and should be set aside.
"

'via Blog this'

How a soccer game turned fatal

Mmegi: He could not outrun the mob which attacked him with an assortment of weapons such as knives, stones and bottles. By the time the police officers arrived, Moseki had breathed his last."I did not even want to see anyone by my side, I could not trust anyone. It was the first time I saw a person being killed so inhumanely," said a young man who witnessed the mob lynching. Swallows caretaker coach, Ephraim Seagateng said he could not give an account of the incident as police investigations are still ongoing.He added that by the time the fighting broke out, he was far from the scene.

BGSCE results: a sad reality

The Monitor: The Botswana Sectors of Educators Trade Union (BOSETU) president, Shandukani Hlabano, summed up the results as 'a sad reality'. He explained the results through historical problems facing teachers, mainly levels of operation, and recently hours of work. Teachers want their salaries reviewed. Of late the profession has been categorised within the eight-hour working period, much to teachers' chagrin. "The ministry saw overtime as the solution but first of all, there is need to establish how many hours the profession needs to deliver a wholesome education before discussing overtime," he said.

blamed for late payment of teachers again

Mmegi: "We are concerned about the delayed payments and working towards normalising the situation because the intention is not to make temporary teachers appear like second class citizens," he said.

Stanbic robbed of over P100 000 at gunpoint

Botswana Gazette: "Borakanelo Police Station Commander Modise Gabatshwane told The Gazette that witnesses said the five robbers, all men, were armed with guns; they entered the bank shortly after it had opened and some customers were already inside it. They ordered the customers to lie down and demanded money from the tellers. After they took cash, the robbers got into a black car and sped away.
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Petlo Arts Trust hosts workshop

Mmegi: "Sponsored by Investec, the five-day workshop will take place from today to February 26 at the Oasis Motel. Writers will work with actors to write, develop and rehearse a one-act play based on prominent female figures in Botswana’s history. The ultimate aim is to produce a complete manuscript of one-act plays for possible publication. Emphasis will be on writing and performance on stage.The workshop will be facilitated by Cape Town-based actress, writer and director Mbali Kgosidintsi, and Johannesburg-based Jessica Lejowa. They will use the five-day period to teach the participants the basic skills required to create, write, direct and act in a one-act, one-woman play.
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Relative levels of eLearning readiness, applications and trainee requirements in Botswana’s Private Sector | Nleya | Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology / La revue canadienne de l’apprentissage et de la technologie

Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology:

The rapid growth and modernization of economies in developing countries like Botswana creates new and unmet demands for certain kinds of educated and skilled labour. The expansion of secondary and tertiary school systems has also created a problem of unemployed school leavers. The growth of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), globalization and the digital divide likewise, have together put new pressures on developing countries to accelerate their development to meet these demands. This paper reports the results of a survey that sought to assess levels of eLearning readiness, applications and trainee requirements in Botswana’s private sector. Such baseline data can inform policymakers and researchers and promote the transformation required of private sector companies to become learning organizations. The findings suggested that eLearning readiness (eReadiness) levels were moderate to low, and that archaic technology (i. e., overhead projection) was used by more than half of the private sector organizations for training (with far less than half using digital eLearning applications). While the overall findings suggested low levels of eLearning readiness, applications and trainee requirements in Botswana’s private sector, seventy percent of trainers reported that their organizations encouraged them to acquire basic computer skills to facilitate eLearning. The current eLearning situation in Botswana, and the literature reviewed, demonstrates that the integration of ICTs in both developing and developed countries was a gradual process. Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) have expedited the change process in developed countries. However, several limitations are associated with such partnerships and this renders lessons for developing countries to emulate.

Kikwete launches restocking project for herders in Arusha - Lusekelo Philemon

“Denying cattle enough pastures leads to poor production. There is need for everyone to ensure there is enough pasture and water in the area where he lives in order to improve our livestock,” he said, asking: “If Botswana has managed why not us.”
He also issued directives to responsible authorities to come up with a special arrangement whereby livestock keepers will get an opportunity to go to Botswana and learn on how to improve the sector, promising that the government will fund the trip.

2012 Expose Safari focuses on big cats in Botswana and throughout Africa

Travel Daily News: 2012 Expose Safari focuses on big cats in Botswana and throughout Africa
Wildlife conservation in Botswana and Southern Africa continues to grow, as evidenced by this year’s Expose Safari, led by Piper & Heath Travel owner Chris Liebenberg. An annual event designed to explore and promote unique African eco-tourism destinations and features, this year’s sold-out safari will focus on Big Cat Conservation. Inspired by the 2011 film release of “The Last Lions,” a documentary movie filmed exclusively in Botswana by legendary filmmakers Dereck and Beverly Joubert, this year’s safari will expose trip participants to lion, cheetah, and leopard conservation efforts in Botswana and South Africa. The 10-day trip will include travel through Botswana’s Central Kalahari Game Reserve and Okavango Delta, where cheetah, black-maned Kalahari lions, and Duba lions can be found.

The safari, a not-for-profit trip, will be led by experts in the fields of travel and animal conservation, bringing to the participants an in-depth knowledge of the animals and exposing them to the successes and challenges of large carnivore conservation in Africa. Rebecca Klein, Founding Director of Cheetah Conservation Botswana, will join the trip as a subject matter expert. At each stop throughout the 2012 Expose trip, participants will be immersed in the culture, and will be encouraged to contribute travel diaries, video logs, and post-safari blog entries. Participants will therefore not only be at the forefront of this conservation tourism effort, but will also be helping to support and promote conscientious and sustainable travel.

While the 2012 Expose is already sold out, all materials from this trip will be made available in the months after the safari.

Botswana gvt replies on its Army Boss’ high praises of Robert Mugabe « National « ZimEye

ZimEye:

Below is the government’s full response to the news article:

1. The Sunday Standard Newspaper of Sunday 12th February 2012 carried a story entitled “The BDF Boss Slams the West, Praises Mugabe Regime’ in which it purported that the Commander of the Botswana Defence Force Lt Gen THC Masire had made statements attacking Mugabe critics, especially the Western countries, about Zimbabwe policies on governance, democracy and the Kimberly Process.

2. The Commander has indicated that his comments were confined to how the media in Africa and elsewhere has the tendency to misrepresent events or situations in Africa, including distorting the obvious and positive results such as the use of the diamonds for development and the Kimberly Process.

3. The Commander had travelled to Zimbabwe in the normal course of his duty as the Commander of the Botswana Defence Force and as the guest of his counterpart, the Commander of the Armed Forces of Zimbabwe. The visit was under the auspices of the Botswana/Zimbabwe Joint Permanent Commission to discuss matters of mutual interest relating to security, training and general cooperation between the two agencies in the interest of bilateral and regional peace and security. The cooperation between the two military organs in the two countries is exclusive of any political or business agenda. Therefore it would have been inappropriate for the Commander of the Botswana Defence Force to make any statement political or otherwise that would have been contrary to expressed opinions of the Government of Botswana.

4. Botswana has taken a proactive stand concerning Zimbabwe in a bid to compliment regional efforts aimed at helping Zimbabwe to return to democracy, economic prosperity, the rule of law and respect for human rights. Botswana wants Zimbabwe to assume her rightful place in the region and thus contribute to regional and international efforts towards achieving greater integration and economic prosperity.

5. Regrettably, the political situation in Zimbabwe has not improved sufficiently, despite repeated calls by the SADC Summits urging the Parties to the Global Political Agreement (GPA) to honour their commitments in order to ensure the full implementation of the Agreement. Such commitments include, among others, the drafting of a new Constitution and its adoption through a referendum. Botswana will thus continue to urge SADC to bring pressure to bear on the Parties to the GPA to honour their commitments.

6. As a country that largely depends on diamond revenues for economic development, Botswana continues to play a key role in the Kimberly Process, which serves as an important vehicle for protecting the diamond market against trading on illicit or conflict diamonds. Botswana continues to condemn any action taken by any country in violation of the Kimberly Process.

7. Botswana currently chairs the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Reform of the Kimberly Process. The United States of America has assumed the Chairmanship of the Kimberly Process, while South Africa serves as the Deputy Chairperson. Botswana fully supports the review of the Kimberly Process, which mainly aims at improving the functioning and working methods of the Kimberly Process.

8. With regard to Zimbabwe’s diamonds at Marange, there has been a divergent view on whether or not Zimbabwe should be allowed to join the Kimberly process in order to export them. Botswana subscribes to the compromise solution reached which allows Zimbabwe to export her diamonds, but only after they have been certified by two monitors, namely: Belgium and South Africa. The Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security reiterates that any statements that may have been made by the Commander of the Botswana Defence Force while in Zimbabwe do not change the Botswana position on the political situation in Zimbabwe.

Dagga turns up in backyard garden

Mmegi: "If they knew that I was in court, they would not be calling," Fani insisted, and the phone rang again. In the end, the magistrate pleaded with the accused to switch his mobile phone off. The case was postponed to Friday.

SA Air force pilot 'borrows' plane for Botswana visit

Times LIVE: A young SA Air Force pilot was earlier this week grounded pending the outcome of a commission of inquiry, after he 'borrowed' a plane to visit a friend in Botswana. He also allegedly stole a petrol card from 21 Squadron, the air force's VIP division, to fuel the plane for the trip, Beeld reported on Friday.

Botswana coach "has no national team" after CAN debut

BBC Sport: The indications are that there is an impasse in negotiations to extend his deal, with the coach reportedly demanding $13,000 a month - which is almost double what the association is offering him.

The coach said that several players had indicated they were quitting international football - hence he had no team to take to Egypt.

"Most of the senior players have said they are retiring from international football and as we speak we are not sure who is in and who is out," Tshosane said.

"So technically we have no team and we need to regroup and organise ourselves."