They started from humble beginnings in Gaborone Main-Mall as NIIT which was an IT focused college in 1997 and have have since produced over 10,000 graduates who work in various sectors of the economy.
As part of their silver jubilee celebration, Botho University (BU) will host a number of activities throughout the year to commemorate the 25 year milestone. To kickstart the celebrations the school recently hosted a media reception at their Gaborone main campus.
At the media reception, Vice-Chancellor Dr Sheela Raja Ram highlighted that this celebration is testament to their growth as a learning institution. She recounted that they started from humble beginnings in Gaborone Main-Mall as NIIT which was an IT focused college and now they have transformed into a full-fledged multi-disciplinary University. Since their inception in 1997 they have produced over 10,000 graduates who work in various sectors of the economy.
Ram pledged to increase their footprint in other African countries as they are already in four countries and excited to expand their reach to Ghana soon. She emphasized the importance of virtual teaching and the convenience technology. “Innovation has always been part of our DNA and we thrive by putting it into good use to deliver high quality education. That is why we are currently involved in a project called Digitalization for tertiary institutions (D4 Tech) with IFC and Deloitte as part of our digital transformation agenda to continue to produce industry ready graduates by offering industry relevant courses,” she said.
She stressed that employability is at the core of their mandate and they recently organised a successful virtual employability fair to give their students the necessary platform to meet their future employers and to unlock opportunities for both work and entrepreneurship. In addition Ram acknowledged the many partnerships they forged to mark this huge achievement through foreign exchange programmes, student internship, work-integrated learning and others. Also The BU Community Initiative was launched to formalize all the community services entrenched in BU’s roots. This Initiative will support student scholarships, graduate entrepreneurial support, community development projects and research projects to address community development.
As the 25th anniversary celebrations activities continue , BU also hosted a staff and student celebration event which was broadcast virtually for staff in other campuses in Lesotho, Namibia and Eswatini. During this fun-filled celebration staff members who have been with BU for long shared their journey of joining BU from its early start and how it has transformed them personally and professionally. Other activities to follow include; Golf Day (proceeds will go to charity), 25th Anniversary Exhibits & Open day, Cultural day, Staff games with selected community teams, including BU senior citizens (50 years and above), LINKZ ICT challenge, Fitness day, Targeted training for selected SMMEs run by women, a high-level event involving dignitaries from other countries where BU has a presence.