Botswana Mining Review Comprehensive Coverage of the Progress and Achievements in the Mining Sector
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The race to modernise Botswana’s mining workforce is moving underground, with industry and Government placing advanced mechanised mining technology at the centre of vocational training and future workforce development.
The Ministry of Higher Education and MMG Khoemacau signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) in Gaborone yesterday, paving the way for the establishment of a Centre of Mining Excellence dedicated to developing highly skilled professionals for Botswana’s evolving mining industry. The agreement seeks to bring industry technology, expertise and practical operating experience into Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), narrowing the gap between classroom instruction and the technical requirements of modern mining operations.
Minister of Minerals and Energy, Bogolo Kenewendo, described the collaboration as a shift from discussion to implementation, stressing that Government and industry must work together to ensure Botswana derives greater value from its mineral wealth and its people. “Our ambition must be to build Botswana’s capacity to extract value from our minerals and to extract value from Batswana themselves. Now, the real work begins,” affirmed Kenewendo.
The partnership will expand work-based learning, strengthen curriculum alignment and create opportunities for mining operations to serve as practical training environments. Kenewendo said placing skills at the centre of the sector’s next phase could also help attract further investment and stimulate the emergence of new industries and opportunities. She added, “As we place skills at the centre of the mining sector’s next phase, we expect this will attract further investment into Botswana’s mining ecosystem. Let this moment mark the start of building new skills, new industries, new opportunities and a new generation of Batswana ready to lead in mining locally and across the continent.”
The shift towards more mechanised and technologically advanced mining is raising demand for technicians and other specialists who can work confidently with sophisticated equipment and systems. The new Centre of Mining Excellence is intended to respond to that demand by bringing industry requirements closer to vocational education. Minister of Higher Education, Prince Maele, said the MoA provides a practical bridge between academic theory and workplace realities, giving students access to MMG Khoemacau’s technology, facilities and expertise, alongside mentorship and clearer pathways into employment.
“A mine extracts minerals from the earth. A school extracts something even more precious, the talent, imagination and potential of a nation’s children,” noted Maele. The value of the partnership extends beyond producing graduates for the country’s mining sector. A stronger pipeline of technically capable workers can improve local participation, support productivity and reduce the distance between mining investment and the domestic capabilities required to sustain it.
It also places skills development more firmly within Botswana’s broader economic diversification agenda. As the country seeks to capture greater value from its mineral resources, developing the human capital required to operate, maintain and advance mining technology will be critical to ensuring that more of that value remains within the economy. The Centre of Mining Excellence therefore offers a model in which mining companies do more than recruit from the skills market as they help shape it, ensuring that the next generation of Batswana enters the industry equipped for the increasingly technology-driven realities of modern mining.
