Botswana future hinges on science

Botswana in the next 30 years should be shaped by prevention, preparedness and science-driven delivery to strengthen the country’s scientific capacity, reinforce its institutions and build a more independent self-reliant economy. It is against this backdrop the Vice President and Minister of Finance, Mr Ndaba Gaolathe said Botswana-United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC) partnership must evolve to address non-communicable diseases, emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, climate-related health risks and the growing pressures of urbanisation Delivering keynote address at the US CDC-Botswana 30th Anniversary Science Summit in Gaborone yesterday, Mr Gaolathe said the country’s approach must increasingly prioritise prevention, early detection and rapid response. These he said should be supported by stronger national data and disease surveillance systems, sustained investment in local researchers, epidemiologists, laboratory specialists and frontline health workers as well as enhanced African capacity to research, manufacture and supply diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics.

Mr Gaolathe said this was the path towards greater health security and national self-reliance, adding that meaningful partnerships should transfer knowledge, build local capability and expand a nation’s capacity to act independently. He said the partnership’s legacy would be reflected in resilient institutions, capable professionals and systems able to withstand future challenges. “The years restored through public health were also years of learning, labour, invention and enterprise, where the public-health story became an economic argument,” he said.

Mr Gaolathe said a healthy population was the country’s greatest asset in building an independent and self-reliant economy because the value of roads, factories, farms, laboratories and digital systems ultimately depended on healthy people who could learn, work, innovate and lead. He said time was the first dividend of sound public health, explaining that every life preserved retained valuable skills, income and opportunity. “Sustaining a parent strengthened a household, while protecting public health safeguarded productivity, fiscal resilience and the nation’s freedom to act.” The Vice President said the capabilities developed through the Botswana-US CDC partnership had expanded well beyond the programmes that established them, citing accredited laboratories, disease surveillance systems, electronic medical records across more than 500 health facilities and a workforce trained to detect health threats early.

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He said when COVID-19 struck, Botswana relied on institutions and professionals strengthened over many years through the partnership. The same foundations also supported the country’s responses to malaria, COVID-19 and the 2024 mpox outbreak, demonstrating that investments made for one emergency created resilience for future crises.

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