11/10/11
The People’s Ministry and the ministries of Infrastructure Science & Technology, Lands and Housing, Minerals, Energy and Water Resources and Transport & Communication joined hands in co-hosting the fourth Construction Pitso in Gaborone yesterday. This marked a profound milestone in as far as performance of the construction industry is concerned in Botswana.
Objective of the Pitso - To facilitate the building of a mutual understanding and confidence
The Pitso which attracted hordes of influential decision-makers from Government and parastatal entities and distinguished experts from the construction industry converged primarily to discuss pertinent issues relating to construction in Botswana.
“The other objective of the Pitso was to facilitate the building of a mutual understanding and confidence as well as the sharing of experiences for the benefit of the country, said Mr. Jefferson Siamisang, Acting PS at the Ministry of Infrastructure, Science and Technology in his welcome remarks. The collaboration, which chose the theme; Constructing the Economy through Strategic Partnership, could not be overemphasized. “It should be noted that the co-host are ministries which are also involved in various construction activities” noted Mr. Siamisang.
According to Mr. Siamisang, “the Ministry of Local Government has a critical mandate through its local authorities of making sure provision of basic physical and social infrastructure such as rural water provision, primary health care, education and roads are met".
When officially opening the event, the Minister of Infrastructure, Science & technology, Honourable Johnnie Swartz expressed gratitude regarding this year’s Pitso saying “It ushers in a new era where all government ministries engaged in some form of construction activities work together with their stakeholders to address issues of mutual interest.“
Hon. Swartz further availed that his ministry and the co-hosts draw from the same pool of consultants, contractors and other service providers in the market and therefore share the same interests and challenges in the industry. Furthermore, Hon. Swartz called on project managers, consultants and contractors to do a thorough planning for all projects to curb high escalation of prices as a result of poor planning. He decried a lot of projects that are completed without provision of requisite support services that end up being white elephants.
In conclusion the Minister implored the participants to rigorously discuss the pertinent issues and come up with workable or actionable recommendations that will benefit the country constructively in the construction industry.