Retirement planning is vital- Tsimako

Many Batswana do not plan for retirement early and wait for the last minute when it is a little too late to plan for life after work. The former Botswana Police Service Commissioner Thebeyame Tsimako has observed this and cautioned Batswana against “living one cheque away from poverty”.

In a conference organized by Trainsol Pty (Ltd) to train personal assistants and secretaries from different companies and government departments yesterday, Tsimako said that many people die poor yet they had good paying jobs in their youth. He said the importance of investment is often overlooked at times when workers are still comfortable in their salaries.

Trainsol had invited Tsimako who has since retired from public service to share with participants, the experience of life after retirement. “Retirement has been a discovery for me, I never had time before to notice the beauty of my family, my livestock and the trees outside my very own front door. As you retire, careful financial planning has to be in place to account for every penny so that your family can enjoy the rest of your life without financial stress,” he said to over 70 participants.

Investing in property has proven to be difficult to many young workers as access to land is a challenge, however Tsimako has noticed that often people complain and do little to help themselves out of poverty. “Many Batswana have shunned the culture of saving and live for the moment,” he said. He retired into full time farming and said those who lack passion for farming could invest in buying shares in stock listed companies. “When I retired, it took me only two days to relocate from my government house to my personal family house that I built while still working and I was not ashamed of it because I had a clear plan the day I started working and planning for retirement.”

Kathleen Kayembe, the Managing Director at Trainsol said the conference was to train personal secretaries on workplace etiquette and sensitize them on retirement planning. Over 70 participants attended the conference in Gaborone.