16 Feb 2025

The proposed national budget has proved to offer a pragmatic synopsis of the country’s economic circumstances, responsibly outlining where the country’s fiscal state and making the right choices of pursuing a path to long term prosperity.

The sentiments were expressed by Assistant Minister of Health and Nata/Gweta Member of Parliament Mr Lawrence Ookeditse, in his contribution to the ongoing budget speech debate in Parliament on Thursday.

He also lauded the Vice President and Minister of Finance, Mr Ndaba Gaolathe for offering the country a matured presentation of the country’s financial state.

He said Mr Gaolathe was clear that the country needed to stop the haemorrhaging in government; then work on the stabilisation and preparation for take-off; initial steps for change and then building a new Botswana.

Mr Ookeditse said that countries that do economically well globally invested in areas such as education, healthcare, demographics, policy and institutions, transparency as well as investment, and Botswana would pursue that path.
He said that the new Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) government was interested in investing in quality healthcare.

Mr Ookeditse said Nata/Gweta constituency had good economic and tourist potential if they were to be fully supported in the national development agenda.

He was critical of the Leader of the Opposition Mr Dumelang Saleshando for having not offered an alternative budget when he made his response the previous day.

He added that Mr Saleshando had championed UDC manifesto in 2019, which had striking similarities with the 2024 one, and Mr Ookeditse felt the Leader of the Opposition should thus not have criticised what the UDC pledged. ENDS