Vice President Ndaba Gaolathe, who is also the new Minister of Finance has revealed that the country’s financial situation is worse than they had thought but assured the nation that they will do everything they can as the new administration to improve it.
Owing to the situation, Ndaba indicated that he has even consulted with president Duma Boko that they momentarily take voluntary salary cuts for a year until the economic situation improves.
Prior to the election that saw the removal of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) from power there were concerns that government coffers have been depleted leaving the country in an economical disastrous situation.
Addressing the media on Thursday, Ndaba revealed that the situation is worse than they had thought confirming that the public coffers have been depleted.
“Seemo se maswe thata mo sekgwameng sa puso. Seko tlase fela thata jaaka rene resa akanya. Mme re solofela ga itsholelo etla tsoga jaaka re simolotse go bereka,” Ndaba gave an update on the economic situation at the moment.
He noted that the president will deliberate extensively on the economic situation in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) this coming Tuesday. Ndaba added that the address will also come up with solutions that will improve the situation.
The vice president has however assured the nation that as the new government they fully understand what needs to be done going forward. “What we don’t doubt is that government under the leadership of my president, Duma Boko is prepared not only to improve the financial situation but also deliver what we have promised in the new Botswana,” Ndaba assured.
Meanwhile President Boko has also assured that the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) government will deliver its electoral promises (manifesto) including the P4000 minimum living wage.
“We are not backtracking on our promise of P4000 minimum wage and all efforts that we are doing is to make that happen. The question as to how and when will it happen looking at the current situation is the issue that we are working on. We will explain how the situation is in the State of the Nation Address in which we will also share what is it that we will achieve and when. But what we will have achieved or not in that period does not mean that our promises have changed,” assured the president.
Meanwhile, Econsult had earlier this year reported that the country’s drop in revenue and increased spending have led to a rapid depletion of government balances held at the Bank of Botswana (BoB). It revealed that the Government Investment Account(GIA) balance has fallen from P19.1 billion in July 2023 to P5.1 billion in April 2024, a drop of P14 billion in nine months.
