By Staff Writer
There is a palpable sense of relief sweeping through Botswana’s medical corridors this week. Following months of acute strain, the health sector is showing robust signs of life, driven by a two-pronged offensive led by President Duma Gideon Boko and his Health Minister, Dr. Stephen Modise.
The message from the top is clear: the crisis is ending, and the recovery is being built on the twin pillars of radical structural reform and deep community consultation.
Dining with the Custodians of Culture
The tone for this new chapter was set last night, not in a sterile boardroom, but at an appreciation dinner hosted by President Boko for the members of Ntlo ya Dikgosi. In a move that underscored the administration’s strategy of #FixingItTogether, the President engaged directly with the traditional leadership, recognising that any true healing of the nation must involve its community custodians.
Addressing the Dikgosi, President Boko framed the health reforms not merely as administrative tweaks, but as a moral imperative to safeguard the welfare of Batswana. He briefed the chiefs on the “decisive public health reforms” currently underway, seeking their partnership in communicating these changes to the villages and wards they oversee.
The President expressed profound gratitude for the “warm reception and constructive engagement” from Kgosi Malope II and the entire house. This alignment between the State House and the Kgotla is seen as vital for the rollout of mobile clinics to remote areas like Gumare and Bobonong, ensuring that the “constructive engagement” translates into practical solutions that actually improve lives.
Breaking the Glass Ceiling at SKMTH
While the President cemented the social contract with the Dikgosi, Health Minister Dr. Stephen Modise unveiled the mechanics of the recovery. In a historic policy shift, the government has announced that the Sir Ketumile Masire Teaching Hospital (SKMTH) will transition from a private entity into a fully-fledged public health institution.
“The impossible just happened,” is how some observers described the move. The transition begins immediately in a phased approach, with the facility slated to be fully operational as a public entity by April 1, 2026.
This is an immediate pressure valve for the besieged Princess Marina Hospital. Effective immediately, a massive raft of outpatient departments—including Cardiology, Nephrology, Oncology, and Paediatric Neurology—are relocating to SKMTH. For patients who have spent years navigating the overcrowded halls of Marina, the opening of SKMTH’s doors represents a restoration of dignity.
From 17% to 60%: The Supply Chain Revives
Perhaps the most quantifiable victory in this “mend” is the rapid restocking of the national pharmacy. In August 2025, when the State of Public Health Emergency was declared, the country’s medicine availability had flatlined at a catastrophic 17%.
Today, the picture is starkly different. Minister Modise confirmed that as of the end of January 2026, medicine availability has surged to 60% and is continuing to rise.
As the mobile X-ray clinics roll out to Pandamatenga and the wards at SKMTH fill with public patients, the narrative has shifted. Through the combined will of the Presidency, the Ministry, and the Dikgosi, the diagnosis for Botswana’s health sector has been upgraded from “critical” to “stable and improving.”
