Focus of national strategy

Highlight activities aimed at the poor and linkages to the environment

Background

Poverty remains an issue of concern to the Government, as it is a multidimensional problem. The eradication of poverty and hunger, greater equity in income distribution, and human resources development remain major challenges for the Government. The long-term objective of enabling all people to achieve sustainable livelihoods should provide an integrating factor that allows policies to address issues of development, sustainable resource management and poverty eradication simultaneously. This chapter addresses the following programme areas:

a) To provide all persons urgently with the opportunity to earn a sustainable livelihood;

b) To implement policies and strategies that promote adequate levels of funding and focus on integrated human development policies, including income generation, increased local control of resources, local institutional-strengthening and capacity-building, and greater involvement of NGOs and local levels of government, as delivery mechanisms;

c) To develop integrated strategies and programmes for sound and sustainable management of the environment, resource mobilization, poverty eradication and alleviation, employment and income generation, for all poverty-stricken areas

Poverty Issues

Since the inception of the first National Development Plan (1968-1973), the Government of Botswana has directed its development efforts to raising the standards of living of Botswana. In line with this objective, the alleviation of poverty and the provision of basic infrastructure and social services have been the fundamental purposes of development policy. Thus, development plans have been guided by the objectives of sustained development, rapid economic growth, economic independence, and social justice.

The Government of Botswana has put in place many policies and programmes aimed at poverty alleviation, which are implemented by the different sectors at the national and district levels. Specific programmes aimed at enabling the poor to achieve sustainable livelihoods by improving access to productive resources include targeted schemes, such as the Financial Assistance Policy for income generating projects which create employment; the Arable Land Development Programme, which assists resource-poor farmers to produce at subsistence levels and raise income; and the Labour Intensive Public Works programmes to reduce unemployment. Social protection and emergency related schemes, such as the Drought Relief Programme and the Old Age Pension Scheme, are implemented to complement efforts to ensure sustainable livelihoods.

Government Policy is to provide an enabling environment conducive to the growth of the private sector in the urban and rural areas in order to enhance participation. Furthermore, the Government is vigorously pursuing a policy of economic diversification. To further empower the people, a deliberate policy on Human Resources Development has been developed to ensure access to the acquisition of skills that are in demand in the economy. It is realized that government policies have to be matched by timely implementation if they are to be of benefit to the country. Rapid implementation of policies and the creation of an environment conducive to business expansion is emphasized. Over time, policies and programmes are reviewed and evaluated with the goal of improving implementation.

The Government has undertaken an assessment of past and ongoing poverty alleviation programmes and strategies to evaluate the extent to which these have, or have not, had the desired impact. The indications are that some of the programmes have been generally favourable for generating additional employment, and that existing infrastructure and services, particularly for the provision of social services, need to be reoriented to be used and operated more effectively. The Government continues to make provisions for poverty alleviation programmes in the budgeting process. Programmes targeted at the poor and vulnerable are being implemented through various sector initiatives, such as agricultural programmes, and small business development for income generation and employment creation. In all these efforts, the Government provides initial startup capital to developers.

Future Challenges

Future challenges facing this country are many and complex. In order for the standards of living of people to improve over the coming years, real economic growth must be achieved and the rate of population growth must decline. Some of these challenges include:

- to continue policies for increased productivity;
- to continue policies that maintain macroeconomic stability for effective decision making about investment programmes;
- to provide a conducive environment for income generation and employment creation; and
- to implement policies that influence the demographics of the country.

National policy objectives/focus

National targets

Background

Economic development is for the people who, in turn, are its main agents. On the other hand, the environment will be protected by people who have a stake in its protection. Production is based on natural and human resources. Each sector of the economy utilizes land, water, energy and human resources in the production process. Infrastructure and Government systems facilitate the delivery of services and final products to the population for consumption. This process of production and consumption has to be directed properly so as to maximize welfare and minimize costs, including environmental costs, and to avoid degradation of the environment.

Background

This chapter contains the following programme areas and objectives:

a) Developing and disseminating knowledge concerning the links between demographic trends and factors and sustainable development;

b) Formulating integrated national policies for environment and development, taking into account demographic trends and factors;

c) Implementing integrated, environment and development programmes at the local level, taking into account demographic trends and factors.

In addition to the programme areas, the following objectives are outlined:

a) To incorporate demographic trends and factors into the global analysis of environment and development issues;

b) To develop a better understanding of the relationships among demographic dynamics, technology, cultural behaviour, natural resources and life support systems;

c) To assess human vulnerability in ecologically sensitive areas and centres of population to determine the priorities for action at all levels taking full account of community

defined needs.

Population Situation

Demographic dynamics of mortality, fertility and migration have an interrelationship with sustainable development. Population and development issues are evidenced in the ramifications of the high population growth rate resulting from high fertility. Other concerns are the marked increase in teenage and unplanned pregnancies, high maternal mortality, uneven population distribution, and a deterioration in the environment. The growth of our population and production combined with unsustainable consumption patterns places severe pressure on the life-supporting capacities of the country. Botswana has a small but rapidly growing population which has more than doubled in size in twenty five years. Between 1971 and 1996, the population increased from 584,644 to 1,495,993. The age structure of the population is youthful, with children under the age of 15 constituting 40.4 percent of the total population in 1996. Consequently, the proportion of the population in the age group 15 - 64 increased from 46.9 percent in 1971 to 56.6 percent in 1996, while the proportion of the elderly (65 + years) decreased from 5.6 percent in 1971 to 3.1 percent in 1996. The proportion of females in the total population has consistently been higher than that of males, although it declined from 54.3 percent in 1971 to 52.2 percent in 1991, and to 51.9 percent in 1996. In both urban and rural areas females predominate, accounting for about 50 percent in the same years.

In terms of indicators, Botswana has achieved remarkable reductions in mortality levels during the 1970s to the 1990s. The crude death rate fell from 13.7 per thousand in 1971 to 11.5 in 1991, and was projected to fall below 10 in 1996, while the infant mortality rate dropped from 97.1 to a projected 41 per thousand live births in 1996. Consequently, life expectancy at birth rose from 55.5 in 1971 to 66 years in 1996. Life expectancy at birth in rural areas rose from 54.9 years to 62.3 years, whilst that of urban areas rose from 54.9 years to 62.3 between 1981 and 1991. The rural areas experienced high gains in life expectancy at birth compared to the urban areas. This was due to increasing social equity and access to health services. On average women outlived men by about 7 years in 1981 and 3.8 years in 1991. However, maternal mortality remained at a high level, ranging from 200 - 300 per 100,000 in 1991.

Access to health services has been enhanced, with populations served being within 15 km of a health facility, increasing from 80 percent in 1985 to 85 percent in 1991. However, per capita health expenditure has increased significantly during the period partly due to the sparse population distribution. The goal to provide adequate health care for all is likely to be made more difficult by the prevailing high fertility and attendant young structure of the population coupled with the recent surge in the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Means of Implementation

The Government considers population issues and their economic and social ramifications as priority areas for planning and policy making. During the National Development Plan 8, financial allocations have been made towards population and development programmes. The implementation of these programmes is, however, an ongoing activity carried out through several sectors, such as education, health, housing, agriculture, and so forth. The centerpiece of the Government's development efforts, since the inception of the First National Development Plan (1968 - 1973), remain that of raising the standards of living of the people of Botswana. In line with this, development plans have been guided by the objectives of sustainable development, rapid economic growth, economic independence, and social justice.

In striving to achieve these objectives, the Government has recognized the fundamental inter-relationship between population and development, especially the close and continuous interaction between population growth, on the one hand, and the growth of the economy, poverty alleviation, human resources development, gender equality and empowerment, environmental conservation and sustainable development, on the other. As a consequence, institutional arrangements are established to address these issues effectively. A Parliamentary Sub-Committee on Population and Development, and a National Council on Population and Development together with its Secretariat are in place.

Consideration of the linkages between population and development is crucial in the formulation of development policies, programmes and projects, especially as people are both agents as well as beneficiaries of development. A population policy together with an implementation plan of action have been developed. The population policy, which will provide a clearly defined framework for the integration of population factors into development planning at all levels and strengthen the direction, cohesion and coordination of the many intervention efforts undertaken by government, non-governmental organizations and the private sector in the area of population and development, will be presented to Parliament in July 1997 for consideration and adoption. The national population policy recognizes the fundamental human rights and freedoms of the individual, as enshrined in the Botswana Constitution. In addition, the Government is currently in the process of developing a national population information, education and communication strategy to enhance implementation of the policy.

Future Challenges

The main challenge is to ensure a balance between economic growth, environmental conservation, and the rate of population growth, and to enhance the quality of life of the people through the various social and economic programmes. The young age structure of the population will continue to persist for several years due mainly to past high fertility levels and the rapidly improving chances of survival, particularly for infants and children. The future outlook for development shows that the high population growth phenomenon and associated high dependency burden will put considerable pressure on households, communities and the Government. It will also put considerable pressure on the nation's fragile ecosystem, threaten the Government's ability to continue to improve the delivery of services, and compromise its ability to create and sustain employment. Reduction of population growth will enable the Government to promote growth, to diversify the economy, and to enhance the nations' physical and human capital with a view to alleviating poverty. Despite all these challenges, the HIV/AIDS epidemic remains the main concern for future productivity, employment, and the improvement of the standards of living of people.

Background

Health and development are intimately interconnected. Both insufficient development, leading to poverty, and inappropriate development resulting in over consumption, coupled with an expanding world population, can result in severe environmental health problems in both developing and developed nations. Action items under Agenda 21 address the primary health needs of the population, since they are crucial to the achievement of the goals of sustainable development and primary environmental care.

The programme areas of this chapter are as follows:

a) Meeting primary health care needs, particularly in rural areas;

b) Control of communicable diseases;

c) Protecting vulnerable groups;

d) Meeting the urban health challenge; and

e) Reducing health risks from environmental pollution hazards.

Health Situation

The Health Sector in Botswana has expanded significantly since the 1970s in terms of infrastructure and associated requirements for trained manpower. The challenge faced by the health sector is to elaborate a clinical and public health package that the Government can offer to all its citizens, and also to provide discretionary services which, as a cost recovery measure, may not be totally free of charge. Within the health care sector, the main objectives are financial and system sustainability. The Government's aim is for the health sector to generate sufficient resources to enable continued and improved provision of health care for a growing population. At the same time, the Government aims at sustainability within the health sector for effective functioning over time. Sustainability is central to the planning of Botswana's health system because of the limited resources available for Government budget, including health.

A. Primary Health Care

Botswana has made significant investments in health infrastructure and services since its independence. The country has made a commitment to provide for basic health services. The strategy places emphasis on health infrastructure as well as district health services provision. By 1997, 90% of the population was within a 15 km radius of a health facility in the more densely populated eastern portion of the country, while in the rest the country 66% of the population was within 8 km of a health facility. Variations exist between facilities in terms of distances compared to the more vastly populated eastern part of the country.

B. Health Interventions

Programmes and strategies have been put in place to monitor progress and setbacks and to evaluate their effectiveness, and they continue to be followed up, monitored, evaluated and re-planned on an ongoing basis. These include, amongst others, improved curative health services, health manpower development, and technical support services, such as pharmaceutical, X-rays and laboratory services, and integrated primary health care services.

Health Services, despite the user contribution, are heavily subsidized in an attempt to improve the overall quality of life of the people. Primary Health care programmes that are in place include, amongst others:

- Epidemiology and Disease Control Services;

- Occupational Health Services;

- Environmental Health Services;

- Food Sciences Laboratory Services;

- Expanded Programme on immunization;

- Food and Nutrition;

- Health education Services;

- HIV/AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases;

- Oral Health Services; and

- Rehabilitation for Persons with Disabilities, as well as Curative Services.

Available health indicators show remarkable improvements in the health status of people country-wide.

a) Malnutrition rates for under-five year old children have declined from an average of 28%-30%, during the early 1980s, to 15%-16% nation-wide by the 1990s, with the advent of generalized supplementary feeding during the extended drought;

b) Infant mortality rates have declined from 110 per 1000 live births in 1970, to 92 per 1000 live births in 1971, and 41 per 1000 live births in 1996.

c) Life expectancy at birth increased from 56 years in 1971 to an average of 62 years in 1991; and

d) Maternal mortality remained high at 200-300 per 100,000 live births in 1991.

The rapid expansion in the delivery of health services, coupled with rapid population growth rates, have translated into shortages of resources, especially trained health manpower and transportation. The HIV/AIDS epidemic and related diseases, such as tuberculosis are, however, threatening to negatively affect and/or even reverse the achievements that have been made in the health sector. Diseases such as malaria, which were previously unknown to be severe in Botswana are now not only worsening but are also showing signs of resistance to drugs. In addition, some of the non-malarious areas are experiencing serious malaria outbreaks of late.

Major Goals of the Health Sector as set according to Agenda 21

a) By the year 1995, Botswana had aimed at reducing deaths due to measles by 95% and reduced measles by 90%, a target that has been achieved.

b) Eradicate Poliomylitis by the year 2000. The national Polio immunization days have been launched whereby polio supplementary immunization activities are undertaken country-wide. The country has been reporting zero polio cases for the last five years. A disease surveillance system capable of detecting cases of acute flaccid paralysis is also in place. In addition, Botswana has, for the past 12 years, maintained an oral polio vaccine III coverage which allowed the country to eradicate poliomylitis this year, 3 years prior to the established target.

Strategies to eliminate measles and neonatal diseases have been planned and are to run concurrently with polio eradication activities. Health Education activities including community sensitization, mobilization, participation, involvement and motivation to address health problems are being carried out.

The Government provides portable drinking water coverage throughout the country to rural and major villages, and water hygiene programmes and sanitation disposal (including excreta) are in place but need strengthening. The safe water coverage is over 70%.

Childhood diarrhea diseases and the number of deaths resulting from diarrhea diseases, as well as acute respiratory infections are being affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic despite the measures in place to address them. Presently, with the HIV/AIDS epidemic, Botswana is experiencing a serious resurgence of tuberculosis, which remains the number one killer disease despite intensified interventions to address the problem. This is mainly due to the HIV/AIDS co-infection with PTB and experienced drug resistance.

In consonance with Agenda 21, the Government remains committed to effectively address environmental health issues and other related concerns. As a consequence, it has embarked upon the following strategies:

i) A detailed and comprehensive study was undertaken on the management of medical waste in Botswana in 1995, as part of the "Waste Management Project". The study produced a reference resource document for the development and implementation of policies and guidelines for the disposal of medical waste in Botswana. The report also contains a code of practice which forms the basis for medical waste management and against which performance of our waste management practices can be evaluated as a means of an audit.

ii) The effective implementation of the code of practice for waste management depends fundamentally on three factors:

a) Detailed knowledge and understanding of the code of practice by all hospital staff;

b) A commitment to ensure that the precepts contained within the code of practice are followed meticulously at all stages in the management chain. This includes the requirement for effective supervision at all levels.

iii) Effective stock control of all consumable items for correct waste management. In other words, it is mandatory that plastic bags, sharps disposal containers, waste bins etc, are always in supply. In addition, it is necessary that the appropriate equipment for handling waste, such as trolleys for transporting waste within the hospital and incinerators are always functioning efficiently.

The implementation of the code of practice has already commenced through addresses to the hospital staff, and by mounting a series of workshops to introduce and sensitize staff on concepts of effective medical waste management and its importance. This enhances the safety of those within the hospitals and the public at large.

A training programme will be developed to ensure that all staff has been adequately instructed. Emphasis will be placed on the importance of segregating the clinical wastes from the domestic waste, and the use of appropriately labelled and colour coded containers and plastic bags to ensure that this is done properly.

Future Challenges

The challenge in the health sector remains that of containing the effects of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, together with other associated illnesses, and to sustain what has been achieved in the past given the current resource availability. For the Government some of the heavy investment undertaken in human capital development will be lost through AIDS and there may be negative effects on savings and investment, thus jeopardizing Sustainable Economic Diversification. Providing for the care of the sick and orphans, and maintaining a fair balance in resource allocation between curative and preventative health care, will be a major development challenge to be addressed in the future. There is a need to mobilize additional resources to implement the planned programmes in the health sector.

There are eight programme areas to be covered in this chapter. In this context, a recommendation has been made that countries set priorities in accordance with their National Plans and objectives, taking into account their social and cultural capabilities. It has also been recommended that countries make provisions to monitor the impact of the strategies on marginalised and disenfranchised groups, with particular reference to the needs of women.

The eight programme areas include:

(a) Providing adequate shelter for all;

(b) Improving human settlements management;

(c) Promoting sustainable land use planning and management;

(d) Promoting integrated provision of environmental infrastructure, namely water, sanitation, drainage and solid waste management;

(e) Promoting sustainable energy and transport systems in human settlements;

(f) Promoting human settlements planning and management in disaster prone areas;

(g) Promoting human resources development and capacity building for human settlements development.

The objectives of this report are as follow:

(a) To give a synopsis of progress achieved so far by way of implementation of the various programme areas of the chapter;

(b) To give a run-down of on-going activities;

(c) To give a run-down of planned activities; and

(d) To indicate problems encountered in the implementation process.

Although Agenda 21 is recent and emanates from the 1992 Conference on Environment and Development, it is important to note that implementation of some of the activities reflected on the Agenda pre-date the Rio conference.

Implementation of Various Programme Areas

Provision of Adequate Shelter for All

As per Agenda 21, the objective of this programme activity is to achieve shelter for rapidly growing populations and for the currently deprived urban and rural poor, through an enabling approach to shelter development and improvement that is environmentally sound. Various activities have been undertaken in Botswana to ensure that the majority of the population have access to shelter which is in line with this activity objective.

The Government published the National Policy on Housing in 1981. The long term objective of this policy is "to ensure safe and sanitary housing for everyone". To achieve this objective, the Government instituted a number of programmes to facilitate the process of shelter delivery. These include but are not necessarily limited to the following:

The Self Help Housing Agency (SHHA) Programme: This programme was introduced in 1973 to assist the low income urban households to develop their own houses. Under this scheme, the Government provides basic services such as earth engineered roads, communal water stand pipes, and a pit-latrine to each plot. At the inception of this programme applicants with an income range of between P800 and P7,000 were provided with free serviced plots on a first-come first-served basis. Plot holders were given tenurial security through a Certificate of Rights (COR). To assist plot holders to develop houses, a building material loan (BML) of P1,200 was provided upon request.

The SHHA Programme has also been used in upgrading the squatter settlements of Naledi in Gaborone and Peleng in Lobatse which existed prior to its inception.

Shelter provision in rural areas has been on individuals initiatives. In those areas, the most important pre-requisite for housing development which is access to land has not really been a disturbing issue due to the fact that all male and female citizens who are of age are allocated tribal land for free. In an effort to facilitate shelter provision in

rural areas, the government intends to introduce a rural housing programme.

Land Servicing Programme: Shortage of serviced land has been identified as one of the major constraints to urban housing development. As such, a major land servicing programme, the Accelerated Lard Servicing Programme (ALSP), was introduced in 1987 at an estimated cost of P500 + million. The objective of the programme was to service land for all use classes, such as residential, commercial and industrial, in all urban areas. The plots are provided on a cost recovery basis, and the involvement of the private sector in land development was seen as one of the most important factors.

Capacity Building in Shelter Provision: The Government has established a Housing Department in order to give housing the attention it deserves, especially in view of the fact that shelter constitutes one of the basic human needs. This Department is charged with the responsibility of promoting housing development and improvement through policy initiatives that create an enabling environment for shelter provision. Apart from the government, various other institutions are involved in the provision of shelter. These include the Botswana Housing Corporation which is involved in the provision of houses for rental and sale in towns and some of the urban villages. Financial institutions, such as Commercial Banks, the Botswana Building Society, among others, as well as the government are providing the necessary financial resources to members of the public to build houses.

Improving Human Settlements Management: As per Agenda 21, the objective of this programme area is to "ensure sustainable management of all urban settlements, particularly in developing countries, in order to enhance their ability to improve the living conditions of residents, especially the marginalized and disenfranchised, thereby contributing to the achievement of national economic development goals". A number of activities have been suggested to facilitate the achievements of this objective. Some of these activities have already been or are being implemented in one way or the other in Botswana.

National Settlement Policy (NSP): The policy was introduced during the NDP5 (1979 - 1985) to counteract the then prevailing bias of investment to towns, especially Gaborone. The main concern was the fact that the inordinate growth of Gaborone threatened the balance of development in the country to the detriment of other major centres which also needed to be stimulated to enhance their development potential. The overall goal of the NSP is to provide a framework for guiding the distribution of investment in a way that reflects settlement size, population, economic potential, level of infrastructure, and the role of settlements as service centres. The NSP encourages the development of settlements in terms of:

(i) Provision of adequate and up to standard infrastructure and services;

(ii) Generation of employment; and

(iii) Improvement of housing conditions.

The thrust of the NSP is to encourage intermediate city development and therefore it has established a three tier settlement hierarchy. These are as follows:

(i) Primary centres which have a population of 20,000+ and a high development potential. These include the four largest towns and eight largest urban villages.

(ii) Secondary centres with a population range of between 10,000 and 19,999.

(iii) Tertiary centres which constitute the remaining settlements with populations ranging from 500 to 9,999.

Other activities which are undertaken with the view of improving human settlement management include the following:

(i) Financial Assistance Policy (FAP): The policy aims at providing financial assistance to investors to establish employment generating activities in both rural and urban areas. The FAP has an inbuilt mechanism of encouraging women to participate in the business sector by giving them a larger grant. Furthermore, the grant given for locating in rural areas is larger than that given for investors locating in towns.

(ii) Industrial Sites and Factory Shells: In an effort to create an enabling environment for employment generation, and in an effort to support small scale business initiatives, local authorities in rural and urban centres have designated industrial sites and factory shells. Some of these are provided with water and electricity. The factory shells are rented out and industrial plots are allocated to investors.

Promoting sustainable Land-Use Planning and Management: The issue of access to land, especially in urban areas, is often a concern. This is further compounded by competing demands of land for industry, commerce, agriculture open spaces, and so forth. Other issues of concern include unsustainable practices, such as encroachment on environmentally sensitive areas. The objective of this programme area, as per Agenda 21, is "to provide for the land requirements of human settlement development through environmentally sound physical planning and land use so as to ensure access to land to all households and, where appropriate, the encouragement of community and collectively owned and managed land".

It is the policy of the Government that all citizens should have easy and equal access to land. In order to realize this, three land tenure systems have been put in place. These are tribal lands, state lands and freehold lands.

a) Tribal Land: (communal land) comprise about 71 % of the total land area of the country and is allocated freely to citizens for residential, commercial, industrial, civic and community uses. Tribal land can be granted either under customary land right or common law lease. The administration and allocation of tribal land is the responsibility of land boards. Tribal land is administered through the Tribal Land Act.

b) State Land: Comprises 23% of the total land area of the country and includes National Parks, Game Forest reserves and leasehold ranches. Until 1993, state land could be allocated under the Certificate of Right (COR) and the Fixed Period State Grant (FPSG). The CORs were introduced during the inception of the SHHA programme in order to facilitate access to land by urban low income groups. COR titles are administered by town councils. The FPSG is applied to urban plots which are fully serviced on either a 99 year lease, for residential, and 50 years for commercial/industrial. State land is administered through the State Land Act.

c) Freehold land: Comprises about 6% of the total land area of the country. The government no longer allocates land under the freehold system. Freehold land is held indefinitely. Currently some of the freehold land is being bought by the government and converted to either state land or tribal land. Furthermore, some of the freehold land is subdivided and sold to other people or subdivided for township development (e.g. Phakalane).

(i) Preparation of District Land Use Plans - land use planning is not a new phenomenon in Botswana. Past experiences and records indicate that the traditional chiefs who had authority on land have always done some form of land use planning. Formal land use planning in Botswana started with the implementation of the Tribal Grazing Land Policy, in 1975, when some areas were zoned for wildlife use, others became reserved areas, while other areas continued to be for communal use. Land use planning is done on the basis of assessed needs for various land use types, socio-economic impacts, resource endowment and use, as well as environmental impact. This is a necessary step towards sustainable land and natural resource management. Various legislation and policies come into play during the preparation of the integrated land use plan. Some of which are the Tourism Policy (1990), Wildlife Conservation and National Parks Act (1992), National Policy on Agricultural Development (1991) and many others which have a bearing on land.

The districts up to now continue to prepare and update their respective integrated land use plans, this happens from time to time as policies and legislation are reviewed. In the preparation of such plans the communities have major inputs with regard to the various land uses. This is in realization of the fact that to have an implementable and sustainable land use plan, the communities should be the ones who decide the uses on a particular type of land. It should be noted, however, that not all districts have such plans. Those that do not, have started some studies, such as the water point survey, which will facilitate the zoning of the land and preparation of the plans. The Tribal Land Act was amended in 1994 to allow the land boards to gazette the land use plans. This will ensure consistency in the use and management of the planned areas.

(ii) Land Inventory - the primary aim of land inventory is to improve record keeping and retrieval of information in Land boards. Various land inventory projects and studies have been carried out in Botswana, but non of these have so far been implemented on a national scale. These include the Maun Pilot Project, the Ramotswa Pilot Scheme, and so forth. However, several implementation problems were encountered mainly as a result of the lack of appropriate staff in the Land boards. In some cases, the cost of the pilot projects was considered to be high. There were also problems of inadequate consultations between and among relevant institutions, resulting in duplication of efforts.

In order to standardize and consolidate all these efforts, the Ministry of Local Government, Lands and Housing instructed the Departments of Surveys and Mapping, Lands and Town and Regional Planning to work in conjunction with Land boards to design and propose for adoption and implementation an adequate and cost effective Land Inventory System.

(iii) Preparation of Settlement Development Pans for Villages and Towns - The Town and Country Planning Act 1977, which is the main legislation guiding physical planning, aims at making provisions for an orderly and progressive development and control of land in both urban and rural areas. The Urban Development Standards (1992), and the Development Control Code (1995) also facilitate the orderly planning of settlements.

Promoting the integrated provision of environmental infrastructure: water, sanitation, drainage and solid-waste management.

Sustainable urban development hinges on the availability of clean water supply and provision of infrastructure for sanitation and waste management. An integrated approach in the provision of environmentally sound infrastructure in human settlements is seen as an investment that fosters sustainable development and that can improve the quality of life, increase productivity, improve health, and reduce the burden of investments in curative medicine and poverty alleviation. As per Agenda 21, the objective of this programme area is "to ensure the provision of adequate environmental infrastructure facilities in all settlements by the year 2025".

i) The National Rural Sanitation Programme: This Programme is geared towards the facilitation of safe and sanitary living conditions in rural areas. Through this programme, individuals in villages are assisted to construct pit latrines by providing free substructures. The contribution of the beneficiary is to develop the superstructure. A major setback of this programme has been the inadequate implementation capacity as well as the inability of some of the beneficiaries to complete the superstructures.

ii) Waste Management Project: Waste disposal, littering, and the indiscriminate dumping and unsightly stockpiling of wastes are issues of great concern in the country. Very often wastes have been crudely dumped in burrow pits or sites which are not properly investigated. The Government has embarked on a waste management project whose main focus is on the prevention and control of water pollution through proper waste management, which includes proper location for waste disposal sites. This project, which is at a fairly advanced stage, is undertaken on the realization that waste disposal if not done properly might pollute the scarce water resources and the environment. The waste management project is at a fairly advanced stage. As part of this project a draft Waste Management Act and guidelines for landfill sites are about to be completed.

Other Activities

There are several other activities which have relevance to the promotion of sustainable Human Settlements development. Some of these include:

(i) The roles played by the Botswana Technology Centre and Rural Industries Innovation Centre in developing energy saving and renewable energy technologies. Some of these technologies include the use of solar power, wind power and biogas. These institutions are also involved in disseminating information on the use of energy saving techniques and energy saving appliances.

(ii) Natural Disaster and Relief Programmes: Due to recurring droughts, the Government has instituted a Drought Relief Programme to assist the worst affected areas with basic relief supplies. The Government has also established a National Disaster Preparedness Committee. This committee is charged with the responsibility of rendering assistance to disaster victims in times of need. There are also similar committees established at the local levels.

Planned Activities

Some of the Planned Activities include: (i) Review of the Housing Policy; (ii) The Finalization of the National Housing Plan; (iii) The Introduction of a Rural Housing Programme; (iv) The completion of the National Settlement Policy; (v) Possibility of introducing some form of cost recovery in some of the urban villages; and (vi) Introduction of the concept of sustainable cities programme.

The achievement of sustainable human settlements development entirely depends on consultations between and participation by the various actors, such as the central government, local authorities, private and parastatal organizations, non-governmental organizations and the public at large.