With 100-million people in the Southern African Development Community living in abject poverty, it is the moral, social, economic and social imperative of every citizen in the region to take action.
This was the clear message from Lieutenant General Mompati Merafhe, vice-president of Botswana, during the launch of the call for nominations for the 2010 Drivers of Change Awards in Gaborone recently.
The Botswana government, Merafhe told the assembled dignitaries and leaders of civil society, has come up with intervention strategies to eradicate poverty.
‘Note I say eradicate poverty, not reduce it, because as a government we believe that no amount of poverty is tolerable.” He said it was regrettable to note that no nominations had been received from his country since the start of the awards.
‘This is surprising because Botswana has done a lot to eradicate poverty. ‘I am mindful of the fact that we are still far from reaching the Millennium Development Goals as far as fighting poverty is concerned, but we need to work hard to improve the quality of life of our people.”
Merafhe had been invited to present the keynote address at the event by the Southern Africa Trust, which hosts the Drivers of Change Awards in partnership with the Mail & Guardian‘s Investing in the Future Awards.
Now in its fifth year, the Drivers of Change Awards recognise outstanding and innovative individuals, civil society groups, business and government agencies working to overcome poverty in the Southern African Development Community region.
‘This partnership is a sterling example of how two organisations can successfully come together with a common purpose of raising [the] voices of the poor in public policy development,” said Merafhe.
Merafhe’s comments echoed those of Southern Africa Trust executive director Neville Gabriel.
Welcoming guests to the event earlier in the evening, Gabriel said the trust had gone to Gaborone in search of individuals and organisations that embody the philosophies of the awards.
‘The past four years of the awards have been a very rewarding journey. Rewarding in the sense that the drivers of change that have been recognised have all demonstrated a new kind of leadership in our collective efforts to overcome poverty in Southern Africa — a leadership characterised by visionary innovation, partnerships with others and practical results.
‘Future generations are at risk of walking the path of poverty and inequality like this generation,” said Gabriel.
‘It is our historic task to act together now to change that legacy. We must better coordinate our efforts against poverty and find new models and strategies that work more effectively to overcome poverty. That means everyone in our region has a role to play.”