Sorry, this product is not available. Please another combination.
Botswana misses PAP committee meeting
BPC allays fears of power sabotage
“The troubled Morupule B will be fully operational until 2026”
Masisi’s sister opposes ‘bidding for donations of 500 million pesos’ says BDP
NEW HIV INFECTIONS: Gaborone, a critical point
Botswana ranks among the top for investment in the mining sector
Inflation falls to 7. 9% in April
IMF warns of falling GDP in sub-Saharan Africa
Forbes Summit as Saving Grace
Bank of Botswana forecasts decline in inflation
Lack of budget hurts boxing team performance
From charity to peanuts
Launch of the reels: Jagdish’s is approaching
Makwala questions Amos about a million-peso appeal
Why local players don’t appeal in the PSL market
Driving Change: The Changing Dynamics of the Oil and Gas Industry
Brands are important
Botswana’s case for ratifying ACDEG
The Taiwan Issue: China Steps Up Military to Repel U. S. Provocations
Internal democracy under pressure
FISHING PARTY
“Me to Diana tonight”
RAMADAN – The Blessed Month of Fasting
THE KEY TO HAPPINESS
Anguish for Kelly Fisher
lesbians out
He explains two award-winning books
Local wins spot on Mzansi’s O channel
DJ LANINAH BENZ: Creativity and breaking stereotypes
Why use contraceptives in secret?
Several countries have expressed considerations on Botswana’s human rights record in the recently concluded review of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the UN Human Rights Council.
A former colonizer of Botswana, the United Kingdom was one of 30 UN member states that its former colony “took effective measures to address threats to democracy by strengthening press freedom, freedom of expression, transparency and accountability. “
China called on Botswana to continue to sell sustainable economic and social development, provide a solid foundation for people to enjoy all human rights, and continue to guarantee people’s right to life and fitness and the equivalent enjoyment of children’s right to education.
Germany also expressed fear by calling on Botswana to cover politicians, news hounds and dissidents, to investigate intimidation and threats against them, and to remove from the law all provisions that undermine press freedom.
Another country that expressed concern about Botswana’s human rights record was Italy, which urged Botswana to make efforts to “guarantee freedom of expression, as well as the independence and freedom of the media; and ensuring a safe and enabling environment for press hounds and human rights defenders. “. “
Kenya and Spain also joined the chorus and suggested that Botswana guarantee non-violent freedom of opinion, expression, assembly and association. Ghana, Honduras and the Netherlands also stressed the desire to repeal the law restricting these rights.
The United States has expressed fears that mining, tourism and agricultural activities are displacing communities such as the Basarwa or the San. The USA said these communities should not challenge their displacement or have equal access to land, and that members of these communities suffer human rights violations.
The U. S. According to the U. S. government, Botswana announces respect for the rights of members of minority communities such as the Basarwa or the San.
Switzerland called on Botswana to guarantee media freedom and freedom of expression and data and to take measures to “protect media professionals from attacks, harassment and intimidation, especially in the run-up to the 2024 elections. “
Canada called on Botswana to “entitle indigenous peoples to the lands, territories and resources they historically own, occupy, use or acquire; indigenous peoples from threats of relocation; and provide timely access to education and public services from quality”.
Honduras said Botswana “will intensify its efforts to combat torture and enforced disappearances by incorporating foreign tools into domestic legislation. . . and repeal provisions restricting access to data and freedom of assembly and association. “
India advised Botswana to “consider accelerating the operationalization of the Office of the Ombudsman as a national human rights institution, in accordance with the Paris Principles. “based on violence, adding access to reproductive health services.
Israel has suggested Botswana “allow independent and transparent investigations into cases of extrajudicial arrests, illegal detentions and arbitrary executions,” while Namibia needs Botswana to “strengthen its efforts to fight the entire slavery bureaucracy, adding through the implementation of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act. “
Paraguay urged Botswana to “adopt mandatory legislative measures for the total and definitive abolition of the death penalty, both in law and in practice” and to outline “and punish violence against women in all its manifestations, including physical, mental and sexual. “. , professional, economic, political, family, media, telematic and institutional, and opposed to their dignity”.
For its part, Russia affirmed that Botswana “continues to take effective measures to save you from human trafficking and rehabilitate victims” and to make some coverage in law and practice of vulnerable groups, namely women, children, persons with disabilities, the elderly and ethnic minorities. and continue to take effective measures to prohibit the use of corporal punishment as a disciplinary measure.
South Africa would like Botswana to establish legal and institutional frameworks to protect women from violence and ensure the full and effective implementation of the Domestic Violence Act and introduce special measures to increase the number of women in decision-making positions.
Tanzania called on Botswana to “finalize the validation and adoption of the comprehensive human rights strategy and national action plan for its effective implementation in 2023-2024 and adopt effective measures for the source of electric power in rural areas. “
Zambia called on Botswana to “increase the accessibility of youth empowerment programmes that aim to eliminate poverty and ensure that the implementation of those programmes is supported by monitoring, accountability and sustainability. “
BPC calls BDF and police for copper theft
Criminal Syndicates Honda fit
The Committee on Gender, Family, Youth and Persons with Disabilities of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) in its consultation examined, followed up and brought to the plenary consultation the initial report on the framework of the Model Law on Gender Equality.
According to last week’s press release from the PAP, which will meet with its committees until June 2, the committee is following the PAP’s lead to expand a style of law on gender equality to allow national governments to harmonize, modernize and standardize their laws to meet local requirements. it wants to be discussed in plenary.
What is worrying, however, is the fact that Botswana, which is a Member State, has missed the deliberations. Kgosi Mosadi Seboko, who sat on the committee representing Botswana, has since been expelled by parliament and is a blow to a country that still struggles with gender equity and balance.
“Although the PAP has no legislative powers, it develops style legislation for adoption by member states. The PAP also develops protocols for ratification across countries. The contribution of countries to the prestige of the Committee was incredibly critical. This now means that Botswana’s voice is absent. of discussions leading to the progression of protocols or style legislation,” said one of Botswana’s representatives to the PAP, Dr. Kesitegile Gobotswang, who is attending the existing session.
While Botswana is absent, the committee assembly took a stand on the sidelines of the sixth regular PAP consultation being held under the theme of the Year of the African Union 2023, “The Year of AfCFTA: Accelerating the Implementation of the African Free Continental Agreement. “Trade Area” in Midrand, South Africa, and will continue until June 2, 2023. The Chairman of the Committee, H. E. Mariam Dao-Gabala, expressed his satisfaction with the initial processes carried out so far for the formulas of the Model Law,” he said on the PAP website.
“The law will have to be adapted to all countries, regardless of the majority culture or religion. The aim is to give women the opportunity to participate in the economic, political and social progress of the continent. Women are not well placed and face many barriers. We are introducing the concept of equity into the law because we cannot communicate about equality without equity,” said H. E. Mariam Dao-Gabala in the press release.
The statement noted that among the problems contemplated by the style law is the migration of women. The Committee proposed that this factor be addressed at the continental level to ensure that migrant women enjoy all their rights and live in dignity in their countries of destination. The members of the Gender Committee held consultations to consolidate the contributions of the actors that will shape the logical framework of the Model Law.
The Botswana Energy Corporation (PBOC) has eased lingering fears of “sabotage” of the grid formula following the blackout that left the entire country of Botswana in the dark.
Tebogo Thakadu, head of technical services at BPC, categorically denied accusations that sabotage could have been just the most recent power cuts.
“This is not true, because we encounter such flaws,” he said.
He said investigations into the events that led to Monday’s blackout last week have still resumed and there is no indication of when they will be completed.
In addition, he added, such a technical investigation sometimes takes two weeks, depending on the complexity of the problem, and the designated team will have to produce a report. However, due to the complexity of the research, an extension is considered as and granted.
Thakadu also said BPC would launch its own investigation into the reasons for the disruption of force after restoring force, which was a priority. In terms of the expertise needed to manage and operate the utility, he noted that BPC is a very technical organization. . The 3 components, generation, transmission and distribution, all require an express skill point, and coverage is one of the technical operations that are mandatory for the operation and ensure the stability of the network.
BPC’s reaction came after some electricity experts who chose to remain anonymous expressed fear that the power outage was likely caused by a South African hacker who had tampered with the system, and that the illegal act could amount to “sabotage”. He added that Given the frequency of cable thefts between Botswana and South Africa, it is most likely criminal behaviour.
According to reports obtained through this publication, the Company has hired two hedging specialists to train local engineers as it continues to lose its top professional engineers. two years due to the competitive market in the personal sector.
The Company has five hedging engineers, but it is believed that they were unable to stumble upon the fault between the Morupule B plant and the Phokoje-Matimba transmission line. Unconfirmed sources claim that unknown perpetrators may have manipulated the system, basically on the South African side, causing it to stumble and plunge the country into darkness.
Thakadu said the highly competitive global market causes BPC to lose technical and hedging skills. “About 3 years ago, the company lost 3 hedging engineers, but since they left, BPC has been able to function and maintain its entire formula without any difficulty. “he said.
In addition, he said the company is making significant local investments in the education of those talents, basically in coverage engineers.
David Kgoboko, CEO of BPC, revealed that the company has hired two covering engineering professionals who have been BPC engineers for more than a year.
The messes at Morupule B, Botswana’s multi-million dollar investment in power generation, are superfluous, and the power plant that has lasted 10 years since its final touch is not expected to be fully operational until 2026, a 2-year extension from the original. Full nominal capacity target for 2024.
This was revealed through Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) Managing Director, Mr. David Kgoboko, at a member briefing in Gaborone this week. Repairs to paintings at the plant had been delayed due to COVID-19 and design issues that had been detected during the commissioning of Unit Four and needed to be addressed.
The allocation of Morupule B has been pursued as the least expensive solution for electricity supply, self-sufficiency and coping with the demanding situations of Botswana’s energy sector.
The plant is composed of four sets with a capacity of 150 megawatts each, totaling six hundred megawatts, all coal-fired and related transmission infrastructure.
Located next to the existing 132-megawatt Morupule A plant, Morupule B was built for more than 10 billion pesos, financed through debt financing from the African Development Bank and is expected to be completed and fully commissioned in 2012, but more than 10 years later. the multimillion-dollar Pula plant is not yet fully operational. On the other hand, cost overruns of more than four billion pesos are reported.
At a press conference last year, Mines and Energy Minister Lefoko Moagi said the plant’s structure was budgeted at nine billion pesos, but the total cost of the structure eventually rose to more than 12 billion pesos.
According to Minister Moagi, Botswana does not incur any prices, as the fixed prices are borne entirely by the contractor. to compare the paintings for us etc. “
At a press conference on Tuesday, according to Kgoboko, the multibillion-dollar plant will be fully operational until 2026.
He noted that the same contractor that built the plant is in charge of painting arrangements. The contractor agreed after we hired him to handle all painting arrangements as contractual obligations dictated, as we knew of some defects that occurred in the construction, Kgoboko said.
“We now have other people overseeing these repair works and expect the plant to be operating at full capacity by 2026. “
Meanwhile, Botswana Power Corporation said recent power outages were due to a grid outage, a factor that is still under investigation to get to the back of what may have been the course.
The national power corporation says grid disruption of Morupule A and B power plants, as well as the transmission power line connecting Botswana to South Africa, failed, leading to a nationwide blackout.
Meanwhile, the government is recently ready to locate the appropriate and effective maximum composition of the Botswana Energy Corporation (BPC), so that the national electric power application evolves over time and continues to supply Botswana with electricity optimally, with costs still reflecting moderate tariffs.
Mines and Energy Minister Lefoko Moagi recently told parliament at the presentation of his ministry’s budget proposals for the 2023/24 monetary year that a procedure was underway to separate the more than 50-year-old national electric power company.
“My ministry is preparing and implementing a strategy for electric power sector reforms, which consists of unbundling and socially transforming power generation and allowing BPC to maintain transmission and distribution operations,” he said.
Minister Moagi said the law and regulatory framework will also be strengthened to facilitate the determined design of the electric power market to enable PCB disaggregation.
For years, Botswana Power Corporation has been the sole producer, transmitter and distributor of force, prompting complaints from consumers and experts that BPC’s existing design has led to operational inefficiencies and compromises in service delivery.