Brainstorming about Poverty Relief in Rural Botswana

In this blog post, I present some ideas on poverty relief in rural Botswana. These ideas are the result of regular trips to Botswana since 1996.

I do not in any way intend to be critical of the government of Botswana. Compared to other African countries that I have been in, Botswana has made serious efforts to help the rural poor, including free medical care, free education, free school breakfast/lunch and a work program called Ipelegeng. I admire greatly the stability of government in Botswana.

Nor do I intend these ideas to be politically oriented in any way. As a non-citizen, I do not engage in Botswana politics. I do not engage in political activism at all. Rather, I mean for these suggestions to be taken as ideas to be considered, some of which may work and some of which may not work in the context of Botswana.

I thank Lebo Mabotho and Thapelo Otlogetswe for discussing these issues with me. I do not in any way claim that they share or do not share my ideas about these issues.

1. Strengthen efforts to provide education to young men and women about birth control (in cooperation between clinic and school and social welfare office) in order to prevent HIV/AIDs and teen pregnancy.

2. Strengthen efforts to distribute free birth control to young adults in the villages.

3. Train youth counselors (young Batswana) who can engage young adults on the use of contraceptives in the prevention of Aids/HIV and teen pregnancy. Preferably the youth counselors would be from the local community.

4. Strengthen the ability of the social welfare office to provide food to poor children during vacations. Evaluate ways to make sure that the children in need are targeted and that the food reaches the children in need.

5. Create a voluntary mentoring program in schools for disadvantaged students. Mentors can be teachers, older students, community members who can advise and help students from poor illiterate households. For example, a mentor could direct a student to resources in the community, or help a student find help if they are struggling academically.

6. Make sure that the neediest students are given the materials needed to perform well at school, including school uniforms, shoes, backpack, paper, pencils, pencil cases, reading materials, etc.

7. Increase charitable giving in Botswana through tax breaks. Advertise the nature of the tax breaks to the general public.

8. Increase the old-age pension from 500 Pula to 1000 Pula per month. Institute regular increases pegged to inflation. The Namibian old-age pension is N$1300 which is 1092 Pula.

9. Lower age of old-age pension to 60 instead of 65. The Namibian old-age pension starts at 60.

10. Fund the increase in old-age pension by limiting it to people without a source of income.

11. Use Ipelegeng (work program) to increase food production in villages and settlements (e.g., use Ipelegeng to raise community gardens). 

12. Carefully calculate and advertise a livable wage. Calculate a livable wage for different areas of the country, e.g., Gaborone versus a rural village. Include at least factors such as food, clothing, transport and lodging in the livable wage. For the purpose of this blog post, I am only suggesting that the living wage be calculated, not that it be enforced. The purpose is to make employers aware of how much money their employees need to live.

13. Enforce legal minimum wages where they exist (e.g., for cattle herders).

14. Figure out a way of extending vocational training even to people who have failed out of school early. Match individuals with potential vocational training programs. On vocational training in Botswana, see: (https://www.gov.bw/learning-and-teaching/vocational-education-training)

15. Develop an apprentice systems, on the model of West African apprentice systems. Young adults could be apprentices of various kinds skilled tasks, including apprentice mechanic, carpenter, locksmith, bricklayer, tailor, hair stylist, combi drivers, bread baker, borehole maintenance, etc. Apprentices could work several years before taking relevant tests.

16. Create real job opportunities for those who have failed out of school (not just Ipelegeng and cattle herding). 

17. Make it easier for those who have failed out of school to continue their education. Provide several routes for including reenrollment, distance learning, community college, vocational training. Provide outreach to make villagers aware of the existing resources and opportunities.

18. Provide grants and loans for people who lack money to pay for continuing education. 

19. Create employment and educational opportunities even for those who have failed out of school before finishing standard 7, or who have failed standard 7 twice. 

20. Promote micro-commerce via small government grants and loans to villagers. Micro-commerce could be selling phone cards, selling clothing, underwear, shoes, jewelry and watches, roasted nuts, lunch and breakfast food, vegetables, tomatoes, onions. Provide assistance to villagers trying to apply for such funds. Micro-commerce does not just have to be in the hands of Zimbabweans and wealthy people from outside of the village.

21. Create organizations (like the Salvation Army in the US) that collect used clothes, furniture and other items and distribute them to the poor (regardless of religious affiliation).

22. Encourage expatriates to donate to such organizations (instead of selling their used items for paltry sums on Facebook).

23. Increase hiring of local community members in government run agencies in the village, such as primary school, clinics and police station. Target promising community members for training (including further education) for such positions. Target not only low-level positions (e.g., cleaning staff and drivers), but positions at all levels.

24. Create a system of food banks and food pantries in Botswana to help in cases of hunger and malnutrition. (https://nwpafoodbank.org/get-educated/food-bank-vs-food-pantry/)

25. Using existing resources (clinic, school, social worker, kgotla), raise awareness in the village about alcohol abuse and its consequences (e.g., for the children of alcoholics).

26. Promote the creation in the village of alcoholism support groups such as AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). (https://www.facebook.com/aabotswana/)