Botswana: The President of the Republic of Botswana, Dr Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe Masisi, has said that SmartBots does not only have an inward focus on Botswana but also builds on the skills and capabilities of our youth and innovators towards a knowledge workforce that can compete regionally and globally.
The President was speaking at the occasion of the official launch of the SmartBots Village Connectivity project that was held yesterday at Maun.
Dr. Masisi highlighted that digitalisation has the potential to unlock and enable high productivity among people, as well as business continuity during unstable times.
In furtherance, the President underscored that Phase 1 of the Village Connectivity project has connected 1,138 public facilities in 144 villages across all districts of Botswana, covering an estimated 1,6 million.
When virtually joining the launch from Palapye, the Vice President, Slumber Tsogwane, highlighted that SmartBots was intended to, among other things to, contribute to rural development initiatives, bridge the gap between urban and rural settlement communication, close the digital divide between cities and rural centres and more importantly to facilitate the broader national development transformation.
Tsogwane urged citizens to wholeheartedly support and protect this initiative by avoiding any form of vandalism, especially when it comes to the equipment used for service distribution.
“Let us uphold community values that promote the responsible and sustainable use of all the developments provided. Vandalism has the potential to undo all the progress we’ve made,” he said.
Meanwhile, in Molepolole, the Minister of Communications, Knowledge and Technology, Honorable Thulaganyo M. Segokgo and other Heads of Government Departments, together with the general public converged at the Molepolole main Kgotla yesterday to watch the livestream of SMARTBOTS Village Connectivity Project launch.
In a panel discussion, Minister Segokgo appreciated the availability of an e-portal called 1Gov e-services, which will enable Batswana to log onto the portal for simpler and faster services than ever before.
In conclusion, Segokgo said that Government programs are now being intertwined on the internet, and his wish is for the community to learn and partake in how to access government online facilities.