from ODIRILE TOTENG in Gaborone, Botswana
Botswana Bureau
GABORONE, (CAJ News) – BOTSWANA has committed to leveraging peaceful nuclear science to transform the nation’s health, agriculture and energy sectors.
This represents a major push towards sustainable development and public health.
Minister of Communications and Innovation, David Tshere, outlined a transformative vision backed by robust legislative and structural updates.
He was speaking at the ministry’s headquarters during a welcome ceremony for delegates from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The ministerial address highlighted the critical real-world impacts of Botswana’s long-standing partnership with the IAEA across several core areas.
These include strengthening nuclear safety and security governance, revolutionising healthcare and cancer care, safeguarding food security and livestock productivity, building future-ready human capital and strategic energy and resource planning.
“By aligning these nuclear applications directly with the socio-economic goals of Vision 2036, Botswana is actively turning scientific collaboration into measurable improvements in public health, rural livelihoods and national resilience,” Tshere said.
IAEA is an intergovernmental organisation that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons.
A full member of the IAEA since 2002, Botswana signed its fourth Country Programme Framework (CPF) with the agency in 2022, outlining a medium-term technical cooperation strategy for 2023–2028.
– CAJ News