STATEMENT H.E. TSWELOPELE CORNELIA MOREMI AMBASSADOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF BOTSWANA TO THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY

Transcription

1 REPUBLIC OF BOTSWANA STATEMENT By H.E. TSWELOPELE CORNELIA MOREMI AMBASSADOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF BOTSWANA TO THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY ON THE OCCASION OF THE 49 TH ANNIVERSARY OF BOTSWANA S INDEPENDENCE 29 SEPTEMBER

2 Your Excellency Dean of the Diplomatic Corps Your Excellencies and members of the Diplomatic Corps Members of the Bundestag Senior Representatives of the Federal Government Honorary Consul of Botswana Ladies and Gentlemen It is a great honour for me to welcome you to this function to celebrate Botswana s 49th National Day of Independence which takes place on 30 th September. On this special day, we remember with deep sense of pride the enormous contribution made by our founding leaders and indeed the contribution of every Motswana to shape our destiny. It is through our collective efforts of building a peaceful, free, and democratic society that has shaped the present day Botswana. We also know that we have not reached the end of the journey. The country faces several challenges which require the ongoing commitment of all Batswana working together with our friends, and our cooperating partners to realise a better life for our citizens. Your Excellencies Distinguished Guests, In my inaugural speech last year marking our 48 th national day of Independence I focused on the historical background, highlighted the 2

3 achievements we have made and the challenges confronting us. Today I would like to use this occasion to highlight some the developments in the bilateral relations between the Republic of Botswana and the Federal Republic of Germany. The Republic of Botswana and the Federal Republic of Germany continue to enjoy excellent cordial relations as reflected by continued interaction at political leadership level. In June this year, a delegation from the German Federal Parliament (Bundestag) visited Botswana where they met with Botswana political leadership in Government and at Parliamentary level. This visit further cemented the strong foundation between our two institutions. In January this year, we were privileged to receive our Former President His Excellency Sir Quett Ketumile Joni Masire who had several useful exchanges including with the Former President of the Federal Republic of Germany H.E. Prof. Dr. Horst Köhler. At the same time, the Botswana Minister of Agriculture attended the Summit of the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA). In March this year the Minister of Environment Wildlife and Tourism visited Berlin and led the Botswana delegation to the annual ITB accompanied by 28 exhibitors. These visits laid the foundation for further collaboration. Despite these positive developments, we believe there is still need to increase high level contacts to build better understanding between our peoples. 3

4 Your Excellencies In the education sector, cooperation between Botswana and Germany has focused on technical and vocational training. In this respect I am happy to note that our two countries have recently agreed to extend the Cooperation Agreement for a further three years until To further strengthen this support in this area, recently a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Ministry of Education and Skills Development and the German Engineering Association (VDMA) where VDMA will provide opportunities for industrial attachments for students and lecturers in Germany and conduct seminars on the latest mining technology for the Botswana Chamber of Mines. This move will see Batswana being attached to German Engineering Companies. In addition Botswana is exploring possible collaboration between the University of Botswana and some Universities in Germany, to support the Faculty of Medicine and to benchmark on best governance practises for our newly built University Teaching Hospital. Furthermore some Batswana Students recently completed their post graduate training in Taxation here in Berlin. In June this year, Botswana was honored when a young Motswana scientist was among the first African scientists nominated to participate in the annual Lindau Nobel Laureates Meeting where the young scientists engaged in 4

5 discussions and informal exchanges with the Nobel Laureates to mentor them. In this respect we acknowledge with appreciation the opportunity afforded to us by the Office of the Former Federal President H.E. Prof. Dr. Horst Köhler to take part in this noble initiative. On the cultural exchange, Botswana enjoys support from the German Government through sponsorship of cultural events, and short term training of soccer coaches. In September 2014, a group of high school students from Gaborone visited a high school in Stuttgart-Herrenberg on a Cultural Exchange excursion. This ongoing arrangement allows the two groups of students to learn each other s culture. Similarly in October 2014, a group of Botswana Musicians toured Frankfurt for a series of musical performances. At a different level in November this year, Botswana will for the first time participate in the annual Bazaar Berlin, where our arts and crafts will be showcased and sold. We are optimistic that this opportunity will open up the German market for our products. Excellencies Ladies and Gentlemen As I briefed you last year, unemployment especially among the youth remains a major challenge. It is in this regard that one of the major objectives for Botswana Embassy is to promote Botswana as a viable investment destination for the German companies. Currently German direct investment in 5

6 Botswana is very modest. I therefore hope we can continue to work together with relevant stakeholders to profile opportunities available in Botswana with a view to promote business to business interaction. The Government Botswana has put in place investor friendly policies to attract Foreign Direct Investment. These policies are further complemented by the positive ratings given by the various international institutions in terms of transparency, doing business etc. In this respect, in November this year, De Beers (the Mining conglomerate) will celebrate the second anniversary of its sales operations in Gaborone Botswana following the Company s historic relocation from London after more than 80 years of operating there. The relocation of De Beers to Botswana has catapulted the country from being among the world s top two leading producers of rough diamonds to an emerging centre for rough diamond trading, cutting and polishing. As a result Dealers from all over the world now converge in Gaborone every 5-6 weeks to buy rough diamonds. This relocation has contributed positively to infrastructure development, employment creation and improving the visibility of Botswana as one of the largest diamond producers. We hope that the example set by De Beers can inspire other potential investors in Germany to explore opportunities in Botswana. 6

7 Excellencies Ladies and Gentlemen In conclusion as one of the founding member states for the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Botswana is a strong supporter of regional integration. In August this year Botswana assumed the rotating chairmanship of SADC. A major priority for Botswana s chairmanship will be the implementation of the SADC Industrialisation Strategy which was adopted by the Heads of State and Governments in April this year. This Strategy is premised on beneficiation of the region s natural resources to create a better life for our people. However as we focus on the implementation of the strategy, one of the major challenges will be regional infrastructure development as key for economic integration. We hope our German partners will be there to support the region in its quest to overcome this challenge. Finally and on a lighter note, fifteen years ago, Botswana was not a primary tourism destination for German tourists. Today as a result of sustained marketing, Germany is number one source of tourist s arrivals for Botswana. We hope to continue building on this success as we believe Botswana offers an attractive product premised on sustainability and protection of our environment. As I draw to a close I wish to inform you that one commodity that is imbedded in our country s DNA 7

8 and which has played a key role in Botswana s development is beef. In comparison to other countries, Botswana is a small beef producer. However Botswana beef is well known for its good taste. I am happy to inform you that you will have the opportunity to sample Botswana beef today. Beyond today, Botswana beef is available in Berlin. I therefore invite you to celebrate with us and enjoy some of our Tswana dishes including the beef. On this note may I now kindly request you to join me in drinking a toast to the continued good health and prosperity of His Excellency Lieutenant General Seretse Khama Ian Khama, President of the Republic of Botswana, His Excellency Mr. Joachim Gauck, President of the Federal Republic of Germany and to international peace and security! Guten Appetit Pula 8