Botswana President Urges Citizens to Discard Outdated Practices

By Xinhua 

July 22, 2023

President Mokgweetsi Masisi of Botswana has called on the citizens to adopt a new mindset that empowers one to adapt, innovate and be productive, as the country seeks to overcome economic obstacles.

“We must be willing to discard outdated practices, challenge our biases and open our minds to new possibilities of doing things that enhance the quality and standards of our lives,” Masisi said Thursday at the official launch of the National Mindset Change Campaign at Zutshwa village, some 800 km west of Gaborone, capital of Botswana.

The campaign is geared to greater individual self-discipline, self-drive, self-worth and self-value addition, as Botswana seeks its citizenry to join hands and work together toward achieving economic prosperity.

To break away from the past, Masisi said, Botswanans must acknowledge and recognize that the fourth industrial revolution and advances in knowledge and technologies make a world of unprecedented change and complexity.

Transforming from the industrial age to the information age requires tremendous changes to take place in the society’s structure and the way citizens act and behave, he said.

Although a strong foundation for economic growth and social development has been built since independence in 1966, Masisi said, it has since been recognized that true progress is not just measured by economic growth but also the strength of character of the people.