Ephraim Keoreng
26 November 2008
Government spokesperson, Dr Jeff Ramsay has said there is no problem with President Ian Khama serving as an active board member of an organisation. Khama sits on the board of Conservation International. He attended a meeting of Conservation International in the United States at a time when the SADC summit on Zimbabwe was going on in South Africa.
Ramsay said the Constitution does not bar the head of state from serving as a board member of any organisation. He said it should be noted that Conservation International is a NGO. "So there is no conflict of interest," he said. He added that Khama has been a board member of the organisation since his days in the army.
Ramsay said the president did not boycott the SADC meeting in South Africa because plans for the US trip had long been made before the SADC summit. He said that though the SADC summit was convened at short notice, Botswana sent representatives. "The meeting was called at short notice and some countries were not able to attend. They sent representatives. We were actively represented by the vice president Mompati Merafhe," he said.
He said the president attended the Conservation International meeting in his personal capacity. He added that Khama is not the first president in Botswana to sit on the board of an NGO. He said Khama's predecessor, Festus Mogae sat on the board of the NGO, Global Coalition for Africa while he was still president. He said the presidents' involvement in these NGOs are good for networking.
"Conservation International seeks to come up with pragmatic solutions to problems including those in Africa. While there (at Conservation International board) he networks with people from different industries. He was sitting in the same room with industrial leaders. I think it is a prestigious group that he belongs to. Frameworks like these are opportunities for the country, but one would want to limit them," Ramsay said.
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