Meaningful economic transformation under Masisi?

While the World Bank reports that there was considerable income growth in rural Botswana, leading to an 87% decrease in poverty, it is a fact that inequality, unemployment and poverty in Botswana are largely artificial.
A report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) posits that government, over the last 40 years, established appropriate policies and initiatives for industrial development and entrepreneurship.
“It has also stepped up efforts aimed at addressing various challenges investors and entrepreneurs face by pursuing measures aimed at reducing the cost of doing business and increasing competitiveness, as well as enhancing skills development,” it argues.
However, with this being said, government policies have not translated to an industrial flourish of the scale that can dramatically secure Batswana’s long-term economic future. Despite several attempts by government to shore up ‘economic diversification’, policies implemented, long or short term- have not spawned a diversity of industries on a large scale and this is largely because government takes a distant, formalistic role instead of an ‘activist role’.
Ethiopia’s Growth and Transformation Plan covering 2010-2015 has been praised by economists for its ‘bravery’, specifically for prioritizing industries around resource availability, labour intensity, linkages to agriculture, export potential and relatively low technological entry barriers. The policy saw a strengthening of the apparel, textiles, agro-processing, meat processing, leather and leather products, and construction industries- industries that are next to non-existent on a large scale in Botswana despite their great potential.
Botswana’s new president Mokgweetsi Masisi needs to closely study development policy implementation failures of his predecessors and honestly engage proven experts with the necessary technical expertise to diagnose the shortfalls that have constantly hampered a meaningful industrial boom in the country over the last few decades.
For this to work, Masisi will need to forget political theatre for a while, especially the “populist” short-term policies for which the Botswana Democratic Party has been criticized by economic experts who say only serve political interest instead of the country’s long term economic sustainability and transformation. The biggest problem with Botswana’s economy is that it is susceptible to events in the South African and global economies. This vulnerability shows itself in the global minerals and metals markets in which Botswana sells her diamonds, copper, gold and other minerals the country is known to be overly reliant on.
Instead of being “scared” by youth unemployment, Masisi needs to critically look at the mechanics of the country’s economy and develop an integrated approach of managing it so that all sectors of the economy are not only complimentary but have an effect for the quality of life of every Motswana at many meaningful (not just symbolic) levels.
A meaningful economy is not only diversified, but provides a myriad of cutting edge services, adopts the world’s leading technologies and above all grows prosperity for ordinary citizens, thereby bridging the inequality gap which breeds a disgruntled and unproductive society.
If Masisi is really serious about turning the country’s economy around, he must overhaul the education system at all levels and link it to a solid and transformative economic agenda- which will at the onset cut the staggering wastage of tax payer funds, often with little return on investment.