9 July 2009
editorial
Ideally this country should now be on National Development Plan-10 as of April 2009. But this has not been possible due to serious budgetary constraints experienced in the last part of NDP-9. Added to that some major development projects could not be delivered at the end of the last development plan.
At a time when we were giving up that this country might be on an unprecedented course of running without a development plan or with a development plan that is out of date, a draft NDP has finally been presented to Parliament.
As expected NDP-10 comes amid a tumultuous period of economic recession. Botswana, like many mineral led economies, faces a difficult period with dwindling revenue from the mining sector. Many new projects will have to be shelved or have to be refinanced through financing methods like Public Private Partnerships instead of the conventional way of funding almost everything from government coffers.
To demonstrate that indeed we are in a recession, gross domestic product (GDP) fell by up to 10 percent in the final financial year of the last NDP-9).
Given the harrowing economic times that await us, NDP-10 has to be different to help mitigate the harsh effects of recession. But listening to the Finance Minister's speech when presenting the draft NDP-10 in Parliament, it looks like much forward planning has gone into this development plan.
We are particularly elated that a deliberate effort has been made to ensure that the plan is in line with the values and pillars of Vision 2016. This type of approach should be helpful to ensure that our economic growth cannot be out of a vacuum but should be carried out within the context of what developments are desired or are consistent with our vision.
According to the minister, NDP-10 has been structured in a way that it embraces an Integrated Result Based Management (IRBM).
This approach, we understand, puts emphasis on programmes as opposed to projects, and emphasises outcomes as opposed to outputs.
An approach that puts the accent on outcomes is much more focused on results and tends to be effective.
No one needs to be reminded that when resources are meagre there is need to be more conservative in their use and NDP is a stark reminder that we have to be restrained and sparing. We believe this plan will help the nation weather the storm.
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