Majere Applauds Special Education Learners

Special education learners, who participated at the just ended National Special Olympics, deserves special recognition and appreciation for displaying a sterling performance. The mayor of Francistown, Mr Gaone Majere said during the city’s full council meeting citing that the team returned home with an impressive total of 77 medals, a remarkable achievement that he added, spoke to their dedication, resilience and talent. The team secured 34 gold medals, 29 silver medals, and 14 bronze medals, earning not only accolades but also the admiration of the nation of Botswana and ‘their performance is a testament to what can be accomplished when determination meets support and opportunity’, Mr Majere said.

While he acknowledged youth unemployment as one of the challenges in the city, he said the council had however committed itself to creating meaningful opportunities for the youth through the Tender Preference Scheme, under which a portion of procurement was reserved specifically for youth-owned enterprises. Through the scheme, the council has awarded over P1 million to youth-owned companies out of P7,161,161.15 worth of tenders, representing 14.41 per cent of the total. “We should, however, acknowledge that the pace of procurement has been slower than anticipated due to the current economic conditions we are experiencing,” added Mr Majere.

The house was also briefed that the council was more committed to harnessing solar energy across its institutions citing that the solar systems had now been installed and commissioned at Tagala and Lekgaba primary schools while installation works at Mahudiri and Phatsimo primary schools had also been completed and currently awaiting commissioning by the Botswana Power Corporation. The next school scheduled in the programme of works, he said was Pelotshwana Primary School as all required materials had already been procured noting that the commencement of works at the school has been delayed due to the breakdown of the cherrypicker, a critical piece of equipment necessary for the successful execution of the project. He said the council would generate income from International Renewable Energy Credits and Carbon Credits as the government advances efforts for Botswana to participate meaningfully in the global carbon economy. Furthermore, he said the city council had identified and prioritised different sectors, including tourism, manufacturing and the informal sector, among others, as engines for economic growth and development.