Africa-Press – Botswana. The first cohort of 56 Jwaneng Mine employees on Thursday graduated from the Debswana Employee Entrepreneurship Development (EED) programme.
The initiative, which is part of the company’s Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development Programme (EEDP), aims at promoting entrepreneurship and accelerating citizen economic growth through transitioning employees into entrepreneurs.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony, Jwaneng Mine acting general manager, Mr Kgolagano Banabotlhe said through the One Dream One Team (ODOT) strategy, Debswana was committed to empowering communities by creating opportunities for Batswana through outsourcing and privatising some of its business processes.
Additionally, he said the company was intentional about driving transformation and innovation through initiatives such as EEDP which were intended to expedite Botswana’s entrepreneurship growth.
“Through the ODOT 2024 Strategy under the Citizen Economic Empowerment Programme, Debswana is committed to creating opportunities for Batswana by transforming some of its business processes, such as through outsourcing and privatisation.
It is through these initiatives that this company intends to significantly contribute to the communities of Botswana and make life brilliant for all Batswana,” he said.
Consequently, he noted that transitioning Debswana employees into entrepreneurs was intended to create a well-supported database of start-up entrepreneurs.
Mr Banabotlhe commended graduates for their commitment and endurance throughout the programme, which he said would go a long way in transforming their workplace, business environment and the community at large.
“Through yourselves, Jwaneng and Botswana’s economic diversification aspirations are well within reach.
The EED is built from blocks of world class entrepreneurship knowledge, mindset methodologies, coaching and mentoring,” he noted.
Additionally, Mr Banabotlhe implored graduates to implement skills they acquired to create employment for fellow citizens and for effective service provision.
He also urged them to broaden their horizon and position their products and services to compete in the global market.
Jwaneng Mine training manager, Mr Arnold Matlhodi said despite challenges, the training was successful owing to the commitment and support deployed by the training staff.
“I must point out that the journey had some challenges for learners as some have been out of the learning environment for several years.
However, the learning objectives were successfully achieved through commitment, willingness, drive and continuous support from the training centre staff, who played a significant part in the success of the programme,” he said.
Mr Matlhodi said he was optimistic that following extensive assessment, graduates were capacitated to run successful and profitable businesses.
For his part, Jwaneng Mine Union chairperson, Mr Tshepo Serame urged graduates to change mindset for the programme to have a positive impact on their lives.
He said the initiative was tailor-made for the best interests of the employees, hence it was important to embrace it.
He also encouraged them to collaborate and position themselves for opportunities that may arise from Jwaneng Mine.
“As we all know, moroto wa o esi ga o ele,” he said.
One of the graduates, Mr Henry Molefakgotla thanked Debswana for capacitating them with skills on maintaining profitable businesses.
He said the SWOT analysis was one of the eye-opening concepts of their training, which they intended to apply to real life situations.
“This is a reward we are taking into the future,” he said.
The training, a collaborative effort between Debswana, Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) and NeuroLeadership Institute (NLI), was undertaken through the theme; Motho o Kgona go Rutiwa Bogwebi.
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