IDM, BPSC Sign MoU

Realising there is a significant alignment in their mandate, the Institute of Development Management (IDM) and Botswana Public Service College (BPSC) last week entered into a partnership. The two signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate in several areas of mutual interest where both institutions will jointly develop and deliver short-term programmes geared towards capacitating individuals in their professional careers.

IDM and BPSC have also agreed to leverage each other’s resources by sharing some of their facilities including the library, training rooms, and the cafeteria. They will further collaborate in joint research interventions to support the government’s transformation journey of a knowledge-based economy.

“The strength of empowered decision-making for the transformation of this nation will be enforced by informed research solutions that IDM and BPSC are together empowered to do. Our institutions have found areas of commonality to strengthen each other and succeed in delivering value for their customers and stakeholders,” BPSC executive director, David Mosetse said during the launch of the partnership.

Some of the areas of strength he highlighted that the College stands to benefit from IDM include the institute’s footprint nationally, regionally and internationally. Other strengths include the quality of programmes offered by IDM which are accredited by the regulator, and the institute’s pool of human resource expertise. In this regard, BPSC is looking towards strengthening the Public Service qualifications by engaging and determining whether some of the short programmes they offer can accumulate credits. They will also enhance professional staff development by strengthening each other’s capacity in training through joint design, development and delivery of programmes, talks and seminars. BPSC was founded in 2010 as a division of the Human Resource Management Arm of Government; Directorate of Public Service Management (DPSM). The establishment of the College was a result of transformation of the Botswana Institute of Administration and Commerce (offering long-term academic training) to a more focused public service competency-based training institution.

According to Mosetse, BPSC is a central learning institution for the Botswana Public Service that plays a pivotal role in developing people for a professional public service, and the College aims to enhance the performance capability of public officers in Botswana to enable them to effectively perform within and beyond borders, and more importantly assist the country to achieve the national objective of a knowledge-based economy and the embodiment of the fourth industrial revolution.

For her part, IDM country director, Onalenna Seitio-Kgokgwe said the Institute remains a relevant and significant partner in the education, training, research and consultancy services in Botswana.

“Today we are excited to witness yet another milestone to facilitate delivery of our mandate. We have strong partnerships with local and international institutions around the world to strengthen our product offerings and internationalise our training standards. BPSC has contributed significantly to skills development in this country and through this joint effort, we believe we can make a more meaningful impact on Botswana’s human capital base. Like IDM, the college offers a comprehensive suite of programmes that build capacity in public governance, leadership, public administration and management,” Kgokgwe said.

BPSC is credited for playing a vital role in the provision of assessment services for recruitment, development and promotional purposes in the public service. Its programmes coordinator, Matshidiso Ditlhogo said the College values collaborative efforts and aims to create partnerships that cover a broad spectrum of local and international opportunities to offer strategic support and exposure to a wealth of learning experiences, adding, “BPSC envisages a value-adding partnership with IDM”.