Khama’s dilemma

The current administration does not have any clear strategy to fight unemployment and poverty levels in the country, economists say. Instead it has decided to take costly short-cut initiatives to curb the problem.

Fresh from the 2015/16 budget speech this week, the consensus among economists and social commentators is that initiatives that government has created over the years have instead created dependents. They have not improved the livelihoods of citizens.  They argue, government also appears to be lacking alternatives even after realising that projects they have come up with have not yielded intended results. In a desperate attempt to ward off social problems, government has instead resorted to throwing money at problems. Annual budgets for such initiatives have increased over the years, but tangible results are conspicuously absent.

This week’s budget is a case in point, the economists say. The treasury minister told legislators on Monday that well over P1 billion will be spent in tackling the current employment issues in the mineral-led economy. The mere fact that unemployment is now approaching the 20 percent mark, in a population of about 2 million, clearly shows government is losing the battle it claims to be winning.

Projects cost rising, at whose benefit?
Finance and Development Planning minister, Kenneth Matambo said during the budget speech presentation for 2015/16 that nearly P1, 5 billion will be spent on key government initiatives that aims to fight poverty and rising unemployment levels. Ipelegeng, a labour intensive programme that hires unskilled people on rotational basis has been allocated a whopping P635, 6 million. Another programme, Integrated Support Programme for Arable Development (ISPAAD) and Livestock Management and Infrastructure Development (LIMID) have been given P730 million to share. “Increasing money to these programmes is not the solution,” a University of Botswana’s Prof. Brothers Malema commented. “We need to address the root cause of these problems (unemployment and poverty)”.
Ipelegeng-a short poverty eradication scheme- has seen its budget rising by more than P580 million to nearly P650 million.

“Government likes quick fixes, often not backed by research,” said social scientist, Prof. Keitseope Nthomang at a previous budget briefing organised by this publication. His views gel with that of another Social worker, Kgomotso Jongman. Commenting on the programmes Jongman said increase in budget allocations for social safety programmes, is a clear indication that there is no exit strategy for the individuals from the support to become more independent. Despite more money spent on the projects, their cost benefits are yet to be realised. “They have no cost beneficiation analysis and they are also not monitored,” stated another macro-economist from University of Botswana (UB).

Rising beneficiaries show Gov’t is failing More and more beneficiaries are signing for government poverty eradication schemes. Few are graduating from poverty. Well over 50 000 are benefiting from Ipelegeng, a number that keeps rising on monthly basis, department of social services has said. Malema told Botswana Guardian that the rising number of beneficiaries shows government is losing the war against challenges such as unemployment and poverty. “We now only see new beneficiaries entering into these programmes whilst there are no exits.” Jongman said the clinging onto the programmes indicates a decline in Batswana’s standard of living. An example is Ipelegeng. The programme pays each person $2,20 a day. The figure barely exceeds the $1,25 a day that has been stipulated as the breadline. At 17 percent, Botswana currently has one of the highest unemployment rate in the Sub-Saharan region relative to its population and economic status.

‘Poverty eradication programmes ill-conceived’.
Initiatives such as LIMID and ISPAAD   could have done a lot to empower Batswana and raise economic status of the economy. Malema explained that the programmes are often poorly implemented. He gave an example of ISPAAD, which has been formed to boost grain production. “The problems with government are that she wants to create farmers from non-farmers. With ISPAAD government is not addressing the root cause,” he told Botswana Guardian.  Instead, said Malema, government should approach ‘serious farmers’ who are eager to move from subsistence farming to commercial farming. He said in the current system, government wants to come with a blanket approach to every problem. Additionally, government has not addressed the issue of lack of water, which hinders meaningful agricultural production. Speaking at a Kgotla meeting in Mosolotshane, President Ian Khama said ISPAAD continues to empower Batswana. In the 2014 state of the nation address, Khama said since inception in 2007, LIMID has assisted over 18 000 small livestock farmers who have benefited from the programme which supplies small stock, poultry, animal husbandry and water provisions.

Programmes to turn country into  a welfare state.
With programmes such Ipelegeng and ISPAAD, government risks creating a welfare state. “We have turned into a social state and that might hinder economic growth and diversification,” said Motlaleng. The macro-economist said the programmes are more of government social responsibility and not at all informed by economic returns. “They have no cost beneficiation analysis and they are also not monitored.” He however pointed out that reliance on social welfare programmes is not sustainable, despite that fact that it might seem enticing at the beginning. “They have no returns and they require more expenditure,” he said adding that it would have been better if they were at least focused on creating long-term employment solutions. “They just have minimal impact more so that people are not graduating from them as it was supposed to be the case.”