‘President unimpressed with project standards’

Assistant minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Setlhabelo Modukanele says his ministry’s strategic direction is aligned with President Mokgweetsi Masisi’s Reset and Reclaim Agenda, Economic Recovery and Transformation Plan, National Development Plan and Vision 2036.

However, the assistant minister recently told council technical officers at their two-day retreat in Gaborone that Masisi has expressed great concern over the quality and standards of the projects. Therefore, it calls for the ministry and its employees to take stock of themselves and improve on that. “As we convene today, Ladies and Gentlemen, to reflect on your contribution to the policy pronouncements I have alluded to, it will be with great honour and conviction that you take stock of ourselves and identify gaps that stand between success and failure in our collective and individual efforts of project implementation,” he said. “I am saying this because our efforts as government to respond to the growing needs of our people in the delivery of services and projects have been fraught with implementation challenges.”

Modukanele added the challenges have nothing to do with funding or availability of resources, but rather inefficiency on the part of the implementers, leading to delays and substandard execution of projects, despite the considerable amount of investment in infrastructure development. “You will agree with me that a major impact of good infrastructure is felt by and on the common man. A good example is a provision of classrooms to provide conducive learning and teaching environment for posterity,” he said. The assistant minister said there is no denying that infrastructure is extremely important for economic growth and wealth creation, especially in the knowledge-based economy.

In addition, he said the more they develop their infrastructure, the more the chances of people coming out of poverty as such developments determine the size and destination of investment and tourist inflows, which bring about sustainable employment opportunities and inclusive growth.

Furthermore, the assistant minister said as highly trained developers, engineers, technicians and artisans, they are the catalysts and drivers of rural and urban development through the provision of good, quality infrastructure, which remains one of the most critical requirements for attaining faster growth in a highly competitive global space and also for ensuring investment in our local economies. He said as they embark on the ministry’s new strategic direction, anchored on the six pillars, including providing effective and efficient local services and infrastructure and building resilient, inclusive and sustainable local economies, the onus is on all of us to go beyond their limitations to fasttrack and facilitate village economies, community development and rural industries.

He said such a paradigm shift will enable them, especially those serving rural communities to contribute, in no small measure, towards the government’s unwavering commitment to creating requisite infrastructure that allows villages and settlements to grow, sustaining the people and equally addressing challenges associated with urbanisation, where an increasing number of people migrate to urban areas for opportunities. He implored the technical officers to adhere to the long-standing principles and values of accountability, good governance and ethical conduct.

“It is imperative to remove the deep-rooted administrative and procedural corruption as early as possible to ensure transparency and accountability in the delivery of public services,” he said.

A good example is a provision of classrooms to provide conducive learning and teaching environment

for posterity,”