BQA suspends 5 executive managers
Trouble is brewing at Botswana Qualifications Authority (BQA) following the suspension of about five (5) executive managers early this week.
This publication has learnt that Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Selebo Jobe; Finance Director Magdeline Motswagole; Bakani Thothe Director Quality Assurance; Daisy Letshwenyo, Manager - Qualifications and Instrument Development and Ofentse Disang, Manager - National Credit Qualifications Framework have been suspended indefinitely.
While information was still sketchy at press time Botswana Guardian understands that the suspensions have to do with among others poor performance and abuse of office. This development at the local qualification regulatory body happens when BQA was expected to conclude its last phase of transition by end of this year.
BQA’s transition from the old tertiary education accreditation framework to the new systems has seen the completion of Phase one of the development. BQA was established in 2012 taking over from the Botswana Training Authority with the sole mandate of improving quality of education and training locally as well as dealing with National Credit and Qualifications Framework. BQA started implementing the regulation in January 2017.
The transition is divided into three phases with the first phase being Education and Training Provider (ETPs) registration and accreditation which was successfully completed in December 2018. Qualification registration which was scheduled to be completed by end of December 2019 was allegedly delayed while the last phase which is Learning Programme accreditation is set to conclude in December 2020.
BQA Communications and PR Manager Selwana PilatweKoppenhaver
in response to a questionnaire sent to her on Wednesday on the alleged suspensions referred this publication to a Public Notice dated 16 September 2020. She said the Notice is the only official response that her office could give.
The Notice informs stakeholders and the public that “some of its Executive Staff members are, effective 14 September 2020 until further notice, absent from office to allow completion of an internal process review exercise.
“BQA assures its customers and stakeholders that it is committed to improving quality of education and training. The Authority has put measures in place to ensure business continuity.”
BQA Board Chairperson Charles Siwawa stated in the Authority’s 2018/19 Annual Report that during the fourth quarter of 2018, BQA commenced registration of qualifications on the NCQF, which represents the second phase of the transition.
“Registration of qualifications is expected to build momentum during 2019/20 to facilitate Phase 3 of the transition, which is accreditation of learning programmes. This will help address challenges of the country’s Education and Training System, such as equity, access, relevance, quality and lifelong learning since development and registration of qualifications and subsequently learning programmes, involves industry, professional bodies and other stakeholders.
“Over the past three years, implementation of the five-year strategy was done with a focus to improve learner and societal outcomes. The BQA 2016-2021 Strategy, dubbed ‘Towards 2021’, was reviewed to analyse and reflect on the progress made in its implementation focusing on priorities for the remaining planning cycle of 2019-2021,, said Siwawa in the Annual Report.
BQA was in April this year also marred by controversy when it did not renew contracts of some of its employees who were deemed key to the organisation. In 2014 a whistleblower filed a report with then President Ian Khama detailing how incompetence and poor corporate governance are destroying the country’s education system.
The report castigated the Human Resource Development Council (HRDC) and BQA for failing to spearhead the country's education polices due to alleged maladministration.
The whistleblower stated that senior management at both the two institutions were hellbent on ensuring that there is decline in education standards in Botswana in an effort to discredit Khama’s administration. He stated that tertiary institutions are also in a crisis as a result of failure of leadership by those at the helm of the two institutions.