Ngamiland, the epicentre of poverty in Botswana

Prosperity has become unattainable for Ngami - a region that has financed the economic progression of other regions – yet it has no natural resources.

This is the contention of Dumelang Saleshando, Member of Parliament for Maun West and President of Botswana Congress Party (BCP). He cites various poverty reports conducted in Botswana, which point to Ngami area as being the epicentre of poverty in Botswana.

The pristine Ngami boasts among other things, as one of the best areas when it comes to wilderness and wildlife in the world and contributes tremendously towards the growth of the economy of the country.

Funds set up by government to collect revenue from tourism ventures are heavily dependent on Ngami based operators, yet disbursements from the established tourism funds elude the district.

Buttressing his point on how not just his Constituency, but the entire region is affected, Saleshando said in the case of the North West District, a region blessed with natural resources that contribute handsomely to national income, there is not much in the lives of the inhabitants of the region that reflects the wealth found in their region.

In an interview with Botswana Guardian, the hard-hitting Saleshando cited poverty, unemployment, underdevelopment and poorly performing public schools as the glaring features of Ngami area.

He said BCP has always placed a high premium on respect for human rights. The Botswana constitution to a large extent protects first generation human rights such as the right to freedom of expression and the right to vote or to be voted.

Further that the second-generation rights, that is, socio economic and cultural rights are not guaranteed by the Botswana constitution. He said as an example, the BCP has been a strong proponent of minority language rights.

But, for a long time the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) rejected calls to recognise other languages besides Setswana and labelled the BCP a tribalistic formation for calling for mother-tongue instruction in schools.

He added that the BDP finally shows signs that they will accede to calls for second generation human rights.

'But we need to introduce third generation rights into public discourse. These are rights that embrace collective rights of societies, such as the right to sustainable development,' he said.