17 Nov 2024

Botswana is keen to be engaged more to play a meaningful role and drive change, not just within its borders, but across Africa for the continent to effectively influence international politics.

President Advocate Duma Boko said during a courtesy call by SADC executive secretary, Mr Elias Magosi on Friday, that Botswana fully acknowledged SADC’s role in promoting regional integration and enhancing the standard and quality of life of its people.

“We welcome SADC efforts and the role it plays in facilitating the sub-region to take its place in the international space,” he said.

Similarly, he said Botswana was a true democracy, strong, vibrant and has stood the test of time, adding that the recent government transition was orderly, peaceful and seamless, exemplifying Botswana’s democratic status to the world.

President Boko commended Botswana for remaining one of the world’s leading lights in representative democracy.

“We believe we have lessons to share with the world and the world has a lot to learn from us. It is on that note that we also hope that SADC will give due prominence of a peaceful transition in the continent, where such is not common,” he said.

The President said the world was in some turmoil and the uni-polarity that had defined international politics seemed to be breaking up, resulting in diversity that the world hoped for.

He thus highlighted Botswana’s desire to occupy a special place in this unfolding narrative of a more inclusive and representative international order.

For his part, Mr Magosi commended Botswana for contributing immensely to SADC from its formative years to date.

“SADC will forever be grateful to Botswana for playing a crucial role in the formation of the organisation by allocating a piece of land to host the secretariat,” Mr Magosi said.

He further acknowledged Botswana for allocating another piece of land towards housing the SADC standby force regional logistics depot, which is proposed to cost over P400 million to attain full operational capability.

SADC ministerial council has approved the re-scoping of the regional logistic depot project in the Rasesa area, Kgatleng District.

He noted that the establishment of the depot reaffirmed SADC’s commitment to attaining sustainable peace and security in the entire region, adding that such milestone achievement was pivotal towards the region’s social livelihoods enhancement.

Mr Magosi indicated that the deployment of SADC Mission in both Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo demonstrated the need for a depot to mitigate mobilisation challenges best addressed by a fully functional logistics depot to support prompt reaction. ENDS