Africa-Press – Botswana. Legislators have expressed support for the motion calling for adoption of the National Productivity and Competitiveness Policy.
The motion seeks to drive economic growth and transformation by enhancing productivity and competitiveness across all sectors.
Debating the motion on Wednesday, Mahalapye West MP Mr David Tshere said the policy was a great initiative as it showed government’s commitment to improving the levels of productivity and competitiveness.
Mr Tshere said the policy would help to instill a mindset change by sensitising the nation on issues of productivity and competitiveness. “It will ensure that there are measurable outputs in place, in terms of how much workload an average person can perform, as a way of guarding against low productivity and competitiveness levels,” he said.
Maun East MP, Mr Goretetse Kekgonegile said there was need for government to ensure there was increased levels of productivity and competitiveness by merging some State-Owned Enterprises, with similar mandates, for better role clarity and improved quality of service delivery.
“It is true the country’s levels of productivity and competitiveness have decreased and this is also due to government’s red tape, as well as excessive and unnecessary bureaucratic processes and procedures that needs to be guarded against,” he said.
He called upon government to capacitate the already existing Department of Productivity and Competitiveness to effectively drive and implementation the policy.
If not discouraged, he said issues of cadre deployment and nepotism also affected productivity, competitiveness and motivation in the workplace. He therefore, called for realignment of policies and paradigm shift, as well as stakeholder collaboration to ensure achievement of higher levels of productivity and competitiveness. Selebi Phikwe East MP, Mr Kgoberego Nkawana also supported the motion, saying once the policy was adopted, it should compel employers to clearly spell out workers roles in the employment contracts to avoid exploitation, which could also lead to low productivity, due to overworked and demotivated workforce.
Mr Nkawana also emphasised that the policy should ensure there was mutual respect between employers and employees, adding that when one felt valued and respected, they become more motivated and productive. Given the advent of new technologies, he said the policy should also ensure that employees were adequately paid and skilled for effective execution of their roles at work. By doing so, Mr Nkawana said this would also assist in improving levels of productivity and competitiveness in workplaces.
For More News And Analysis About Botswana Follow Africa-Press
