01 Oct 2019

Three political parties battling for the Selebi Phikwe West parliamentary seat have mixed reactions over the Selebi Phikwe Economic Diversification Unit (SPEDU) mandate, an organisation tasked with driving economic diversification in Selebi Phikwe region.

Selebi Phikwe West constituency is contested by Mr Maxwell Mosinyi of Alliance for Progressives (AP), Mr Allen Lekwapa of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) and Mr Dithapelo Keorapetse of Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC). 

The Umbrella for Democratic Change’s Mr Dithapelo Keorapetse told residents of Selebi Phikwe during the Radio Botswana debates in Selebi Phikwe on September 27 that once voted into power, his party would not only open BCL mine, but would also review the mandate of SPEDU.

Mr Keorapetse said that  SPEDU mandate of facilitation was limited, hence needed to be broadened to enable the organisation to create more employment opportunities for Selebi Phikwe residents.

He said the idea was to turn SPEDU into a fully-fledged investment arm with special focus on Selebi Phikwe town only.

SPEDU covers five constituencies namely Selebi Phikwe East and West, Bobonong, Mmadinare and Lerala/Maunatlala.

He said even though SPEDU has been established 10 years ago, it has failed to diversify the economy of Selebi Phikwe, resulting in high unemployment rate since the closure of the BCL mine, which was the main economic backbone of the copper mining town as there was nothing to fall back on. 

He said the BDP government closed the mine with the misconception that it ran at a loss without considering that BCL mine contributed 2.4 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product, paid salaries to employees and paid water and power bills to water utilities and Botswana power corporations without fail. 

He said the reasons put forward by the government to close the BCL mine were invalid and robbed Selebi Phikwe residents of their jobs.

The sentiments were shared by AP’s Mr Mosinyi, who added that SPEDU had failed to attract investors and create employment in Selebi Phikwe.

He said a lot of companies closed down after the BCL mine closure, leaving Selebi Phikwe residents in poverty.

He said factory shells that were occupied by those companies were still lying idle therefore SPEDU failed to deliver on its mandate.

Mr Mosinyi also added that infrastructure such as Selebi Phikwe airport are white elephants, adding that the BCL houses were also lying idle and getting dilapidated.

He said the government’s decision to have more activities taking place in Selebi Phikwe had not borne any fruit as those they only offered temporary employment opportunities and had no bearing on the lives of Selebi Phikwe residents. 

He said activities such as the Toyota Desert Race held in Selebi Phikwe in June had not benefited the people of Selebi Phikwe, adding that Selebi Phikwe residents need permanent jobs to sustain their families.

The BDP’s Mr Lekwapa reiterated that his party under the new leadership of President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi had renewed hope for Batswana.

He said the BDP was a visionary party that had the interests of the nation at heart, hence the establishment of SPEDU to help diversify the economy of Selebi Phikwe.

He said the government was aware that minerals were not finite, hence the establishment of SPEDU to facilitate projects in Selebi Phikwe that would sustain the town in the event that the mine shut down.

He said through the revitalisation strategy, SPEDU managed to create about 1 566 jobs with seven citizen owned companies setting base in Selebi Phikwe.

Mr Lekwapa further added that SPEDU was yet to create a total of 6 856 jobs by 2020 as per the revitalisation strategy.

He said SPEDU had serviced industrial plots to attract investors to set up in Selebi Phikwe, adding that the government also introduced incentives to attract investors to invest in Selebi Phikwe, which included a five per cent tax for the first five years of operation and 10 per cent in subsequent years.

Among the introduced incentives is also a 30 per cent Direct Government Take-Off where first preference of government’s procurement will be given to the SPEDU region provided quality, quantity and price requirements are met, he said. Mr Lekwapa said SPEDU mandate therefore remained relevant and did not need to be broadened. ENDS