𝗕𝗢𝗙𝗘𝗣𝗨𝗦𝗨 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱/𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗕𝗨𝗗𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗖𝗛 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦

The new administration will present for the first time since its appointment last year October, a budget for 2025/2026 financial year. The Minister of Finance, who is also the Vice President of Botswana, will put the public in confidence about the state of the country’s finances, which had been a subject of discussion since the assumption of power last year. A prominent discussion had been around the health and strength of the economy since the decline in diamond sales, foreign reserves, including an agonising depletion of the investment account.

In light of the foregoing, government has embarked on a couple of consultative gestures being the Budget Talk with local authorities and the Budget Talk with general stakeholders. Constantly during these convocations, the Ministry presented the Budget Strategy Paper (BSP), outlining the government’s fiscal plan for the coming financial year. Through this paper government presented several policy positions, including the budget highlights for the previous financial years and the current budget performance. Most importantly, amongst the several pronouncements, a deficit of P11.4 billion in the 2025/2026 financial year was projected. As a consequence, two key priorities were repeatedly mentioned, i.e the need to rebuild fiscal buffers to enable the country’s resilience against future economic shocks and to strengthen local revenue mobilisation.

Furthermore, an overarching suggestion from the BSP pointed to fiscal austerity. In terms of expenditure, an endeavour to prioritise efficiency was hinted, under which the following were highlighted; reducing spending and prioritising saving, cutting down on the public sector wage bill and rationalising state-owned enterprises, zero based budgeting and efficient public spending. In terms of revenue mobilisation, the Minister constantly hinted the reduction of reliance on mineral revenue, introduction of new ways to stimulate growth, exploration of new sources of income, closing revenue leakages and simplifying the tax legislation to improve collection.

It is against this backdrop, that the federation presents issues expected to be covered by the budget speech. The federation commends the Ministry for hosting the Budget Talks organised to discuss the fiscal environment within which the country operates. If properly and timeously implemented, this may bring the general population closer to the public budgeting mechanisms and leverage a participatory budgeting system, where more categories of people are included in the process of allocating state funds. We recommend such discussions should be preceded by a robust public education process on budgetary processes to enable meaningful participation by members of the public.

It is important to note the federation’s main interest – to advocate for protection of the interest of the working class in the political economy. Having assumed state power recently, the new administration faces a plethora of issues that have lingered from previous administrations.

However, the mandate acquired through elections has to be fulfilled to the full expectations of stakeholders across the political spectrum. We therefore express the following expectations, knowingly that there are other competing needs of the nation;

𝟏. 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥

The first attention we give to the BSP is government’s intension to cut down the public sector wage bill. This is based on the government’s willingness to embark on a private sector led economic development path. It comes out that the wage bill, which is purportedly larger relative to those of similar economies, is overly inflated and creates fiscal policy complications. It also comes at the advice of international financial institution- the International Monetary Fund (IMF) whom in the past had suggested a number of public sector reforms such as privatisation, outsourcing and inadvertently a reduction of the size of the public service.[1] The World Bank has shown that in emerging economies, public sector wage bill could be mitigated by amongst other things, budgeting per person as opposed to budgeting per position, elimination of ghost employees to stop leakages, addressing wage bill arrears by timeous compensation of employees.

[2] In the past, the government undertook interventions such as freezing public sector recruitment and outsourcing of cleaning, landscaping, security services amongst others. However, the issue of public sector wage bill still persists. We expect the Minister to explain this matter further, to outline the measures to be taken to ensure a properly functional pay structure that doesn’t raise issues of an inflated wage bill, in line with the President’s maiden State of the Nation Address (SONA), where he promised an entire audit of systems for efficiency.

𝟐. 𝐉𝐨𝐛 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

In the previous administration, efforts to stimulate private sector led economic growth have been problematic owing to, amongst other things, over reliance on a capital intensive extractive mineral industry and feeble private sector mobilisation. The country has however, over the years, sustained a stable macroeconomic policy environment, and growth rate that amassed international admiration amongst emerging economies. Despite these, social indicators such as unemployment, inequalities, poverty, crime, and the like have been prevalent. Further, such economy has led to inequitable sharing of the benefits of growth, demonstrated by underdevelopment of rural areas and steep socioeconomic conditions.These disparities have been attributed to failure by the economy to generate new employment avenues through private sector investment.

The nation needs assurance that a turnaround strategy to create a conducive environment for private sector exists under the new regime that will create job opportunities. Concerns over high rates of unemployment rates spell a terrible fate for the youth who are trained on various specialities such as pharmacy, teaching, nursing etc but are roaming the streets. This expected explanation derives from government’s promise to create a hundred thousand jobs in the first year in office.

𝟑. 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐯𝐬 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐮𝐦 𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲

Relatedly, the federation expects clarification recounting to the issue of minimum wage. The understanding is that there has not been a shift in national policies regulating minimum payments both in the public and the private sector. However, government through various mouthpieces have been pushing for a P4000. 00 living wage. Despite this, government has not committed anywhere that it will either cause for the improvement of the lowest salary scale in the public service to match the desired living wage. This should be done through changes in the minimum wage schemes, and government has to lead by example to implement it.

We also expect that as government policy, the proposed living wage should be informed by some empirical study that points to that figure as a national living wage rate.

On the same note, we observe a policy contradiction between the pronouncement of the proposed austerity measures in the BSP and the ideal increment of the minimum wage. If government desires to reduce public sector wage bill, how does it endeavour an increment of public sector wages within the same policy framework? Government should therefore come out clearly to explain the sort of reforms that will both aid an increase of wages, whilst cutting down public spending on wages. Further to this note, such reforms are expected to stabilize and or to encourage employment as the basis for human dignity and livelihood.

𝟒. 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐟𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬

A constant theme throughout the budget speeches has been the issue of leakages that occur through administrative lapses. The expectation is to hear the Minister announcing public sector reforms that will water tighten our budgetary and public accountability systems to enhance efficiency in public finances. These reforms should introduce standards that inhibit the predatory tender culture that seems to thrive on inflating prices of commodities when selling to government. The BURS has also revealed incapacity to fully collect taxation. The BSP has hinted legislative reform to simplify the tax laws and enable collection capacities. Whilst the paper has revealed a deficit budget, it is important to bring the nation in confidence how much opportunity cost is incurred through failure to implement tax laws through collections. On the same note, the government has to reveal political commitment to revamp anticorruption institutions through a significant budget allocation to allow them to operate with the desired independence and efficiency.

𝟓. 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐎𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐄𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐬

Part of the critical components observed of the BSP is the dialogue on parastatals. This debate is not new. It carries from the previous regime and has been announced during the various budget speeches. Little has been achieved so far yet concerns over the subventions allocated to parastatals has been constant. The federation expects the Minister to put the public to confidence about this project, when it is expected to start and which parastatals will be affected, including the result it is expected to yield both in terms of fiscal implications and performance. The federation also expects concrete responses on the clarion call to close leakages due to administrative impropriety and managerial malpractice allegedly experienced in some parastatals.

𝟔. 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬

As the nation awaits this move, it is important to note that proper management measures should be developed to sustain efficient services at local authorities. The country is already experiencing a shortfall in health facilities. Whereas the World Health Organisation (WHO) encourages ‘the highest attainable standard of health’, ‘people-centred health services’, it also encourages the protection of the rights of health care workers, most importantly the right to a decent work environment. The decentralisation of health care services should yield the result of a decent work environment where health care workers are able to handle the density of patients per station. Additionally, the Minister is expected to announce the resourcing and modernisation and transformation of facilities plan for this imperative, including proper management of human resource, ambulances and medical supplies. It would be amiss if the Minister does not address the complications occasioning the brain drain experienced in the health care fraternity. It is commonly acknowledged that cadres who migrate to other countries bemoan poor working conditions, including an under resourced health care system that inhibit the professional abilities of nurses and doctors.

𝟕. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫

The Minister is also expected to brief the nation on the implications of the US Presidential Orders on health care packages from a socioeconomic perspective. This, in our view, will leave a lot of people in the lurch. These people include direct beneficiaries of US based aid, in the form of recipients of aid, patients, communities and other important stakeholders that benefited from years of provision of aid through US Agencies. The withdrawal of such aid will have dire consequences on employment as well, since NGOs, and other agencies will have to retrench staff. This space will have to be occupied by government in the interim, whilst a lasting solution is sought within and amongst alternative development and humanitarian partners. If absorbed by government, some of the skilled manpower who have been operating in the NGO sector with years of experience may be helpful to the public health sector. This Presidential Order by the US government is a clarion call on the government to develop indigenous ideas on various fields to avoid over reliance on foreign aid.

Furthermore, it cannot be denied anymore that health is a security organ which many countries have used and are using as a bio-war to make economical advancement. Our continued reliance on foreign aid and trained specialists can never potentiate our health security. Any biochemical warfare cannot be defeated or apprehended beforehand with the current healthcare state. As a security organ, healthcare should be prioritised and funded like BDF, DIS and report weekly to the President. By adopting this strategic direction, the nation will be safer. Health is not a choice. No one chose to be sick.

𝟖. 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠

It is imperative for the government to facilitate localisation of training health care workers. Health care workers of higher order are in dire shortage and are therefore, provision of high level care remains inadequate, rendering high mortalities for avoidable deaths countrywide. Specialists training of doctors and nurses must be prioritised this financial year for Batswana to realize universal health coverage and for National Health Insurance to be possible.

𝟗. 𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐲 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

In the past decade or so the nation has been grappling with diminished standards of examination results. A significant number of students could not proceed to the next level of basic education. The education system has been designed to bottleneck scores of students who fail the transition from form three to form five. The outcome based education policy introducing a multiple pathways principle was implemented to enhance and cultivate diversity of skills and competencies in learners. Part of the problem however, is that the OBE was rolled out at senior school level. Thus, the opportunity for students to develop and kindle alternative skills from a tender age was marginalised. It is important therefore, for the Minister to explain if funding will be availed for the full implementation of the OBE from pre-school to senior school. Additionally, the Ministry is expected to reveal whether there is a contingency for modernising school infrastructure to support the efficient implementation of OBE. The infrastructure in schools is dilapidated, laboratories and resources to facilitate practical lessons are not fully available. The federation mandates the government to fully capacitate the human resource in schools either through up skilling or retooling for efficient delivery and assessment of the new syllabi. The federation requests that a proper implementation plan be devised to actualise the ends of OBE. Without such a plan, it would be wise to halt it temporarily to allow for its efficient implementation when government is ready to facilitate it fully. Additionally, the new administration should demonstrate political will to resuscitate school sports and extracurricular activities to enable the nurturing of talents at a grassroots level.

𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧

In conclusion, we remain hopeful that the new administration will advance the interests of the working class and Batswana in general. It is important to note that the foregoing are not only the concerns of the workers in the country. There is work to be done to erect the structures of collective bargaining and to enhance social dialogue. There is also an impending labour law review process through which we expect fortification of labour relations in the country.