By: Baleseng Batlotleng

Botswana Heads of Missions converged for a 10-day conference to review the progress made in advancing the country’s national interests and diplomatic relations.

“Our world view has adjusted to the modern times and it is very important to anchor this, but some of the fundamentals remain important such as our commitment to multilateralism. We are still a relatively small country, not just by population size but also by economic size, we are land linked,” he said.

President Masisi said Botswana was reaching out to attain confluence, alignment, solidarity and partnerships guided by intentions of reciprocity which was the conduit of Botswana’s multilateral order.

“Of course, at the center of it is Botswana and her interests, the image you put forward is that of the concept that Botswana is all about in all its manifestations, the cultural, economic, physical, political and our vehemence as a people borne out of the evolution of a nation state,” said President Masisi.

These fundamentals, he said were infused into the country’s international relations as they interacted with other regional and international institutions. 

Dr Masisi mentioned that Botswana was actively engaged in various international organizations, adhering to their values and regulations.

He said he had a strong belief that such institutions helped advance the value proposition Botswana was and most importantly the respect for the sovereign integrity of nation state such as Botswana and those like it. 

“Botswana is duty bound to participate and expand and grow those institutions not only through financial contributions but critical human capital, which is why we found it prudent to deploy our troops to Mozambique and the DRC,” he said.

President Masisi expressed Botswana’s disapproval of those who resort to resolving conflicts with weapons. He appealed to the warring factions to lay down their arms and engage in constructive dialogue rather than warfare.

On the promotion of economic diplomacy, President Masisi urged envoys to seek out opportunities and avenues to serve the interest of the economy at home.

“It could either be through trade and investment, the question is what opportunities are there for Botswana institutions and the critical human capital to invest in and leverage through? What possibility is there to translocate the talent and human capital to come and domicile from where you are accredited to Botswana,” he said.    Dr Masisi said during the NDP 12 government was keen to expand its missions and enhance the capacities of every existing mission in order to broaden its mandate and expectation.