20 Oct 2024

The University of Botswana (UB) Indoor Sports Arena broke into a jubilant mood when the name Tsogwane Slumber was called among the University of Botswana Class of 2024 graduands.

The Vice President graduated on Friday with a Master’s Degree in Development Studies.

Speaking in an interview post-graduation, Mr Tsogwane said being among the 2 681 graduates at the 42nd UB graduation ceremony was a great milestone.

He said his zeal to pursue further education was driven by his love for reading and learning and the desire to broaden his scope of knowledge in order to inform, shape and guide government policies.

Mr Tsogwane said his quest to further his studies was further inspired by President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi, who was advocating for the instigation of change and for Batswana to use their knowledge to grow and diversify the economy.

Mr Tsogwane said there was a time where he suspended his studies to prioritise and focus on issues of national interest as dictated by his office portfolio.

Despite lagging behind, he worked hard to ensure that he completed his studies.

“It was not easy, I had to work hard. Even the supervisors were doing their best to guide where necessary,” he said.

Giving a synopsis of his paper, he said it focused on identifying the challenges of the rural development policy and opportunities that it presented to rural communities to better their lives.

He said even though livelihoods of people in rural areas were challenged, the thesis had established that there were opportunities that were not fully utilised that could go a long way in bettering rural livelihoods.

He further said it was important for every individual to advance their scope of knowledge by furthering their studies.

In addition, he said it was important to engage in research that would inform decision-making, guide people on the kind of businesses to venture into that would serve the interests of the people as well general understanding of the business and market environment.

He observed that research was a critical guide of a development agenda, in which government strongly believed as research works guided government agenda in serving people’s needs and growing the economy.

Mr Tsogwane said tertiary institutions such as UB, Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Botswana International University of Science and Technology were engaged in research works to assist government in making informed decisions when drafting its development plans.

Mr Tsogwane said one of the PhD graduates had written a paper that was focused on the LIMID programme.

The graduate in question, Ms Angela Nyane Seiphetlheng, a former employee of the Ministry of Agriculture graduated with a Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration and her thesis title was: An evaluation into the implementation of LIMID Phase II Agricultural Program in Botswana: The case of Mahalapye District.

Of the University of Botswana, Mr Tsogwane said it was an institute of excellence and was among the best.

He said it had always been the best and its graduates were well equipped and ready to influence change.

He observed that UB was also doing all it could to modernise the learning environment. ENDS