( Source: Ministry of Education, 2009)

Table 2 shows that the total enrolment for girls for forms 1 to 6 represented 52.3% of the total students enrolled.

Table 2

Secondary school enrolment by sex and form in 2008

Form	Male	Female	Total
1	19 741	20 673	40 414
2	19 831	21 224	41 055
3	18 486	20 054	38 540
4	10 759	12 784	23 543
5	10 779	12 365	23 144
Special education	64	68	132
Total	79 660	87 168	166 928
Percentage	47.7	52.3	100

(Source: Ministry of Education, 2009)

Distance education

Table 3

Number of students enrolled in distance education programme

Programme	Gender	2005	2006	2007	2008
Junior certificate of education	Male	523	276	526	395
Female	944	556	662	557
Total	1 467	832	1 188	952
Botswana Government certificate of secondary education	Male	1 264	1 235	1 038	1 354
Female	2 693	2 348	1 892	2 815
Total	3 957	3 583	2 930	4 169

( Source: BOCODOL, 2009 )

Table 3 above shows the enrolment for Junior Certificate and Botswana Government certificate of secondary education for the years from 2005 to 2008. The data show that more women have benefited from the distance education programme compared with men. The same trend is observed in the enrolment in non-formal education, in which more women than men enr ol on a yearly basis (see table  4).

Table 4

Enrolment by year and gender in non-formal education

Gender	2005	2006	2007	2008
Male	3 880	3 771	3 462	2 975
Female	6 814	7 268	7 297	5 445
Total	10 694	11 039	10 759	8 428

(Source: Ministry of Education, 2009)

Comment 19

Please provide data on the rate of teenage pregnancy in Botswana and the impact of teenage pregnancy on the education of girls.

Table 5

Total number of dropou ts in secondary schools

Gender	2005	2006	2007	Total
Male	1 535	3	1 266	2 804
Female	2 628	1 049	2 248	5 925
Total	4 163	1 052	3 514	8 729
% female	63	99.7	64

A large proportion of secondary school dropouts consists of females as observed in table 5. A possible factor could be that the girls dropped out of school as a result of pregnancy.

Indicate if the Diphalana Continuing Education Project, which was initiated as a pilot to assess the effectiveness and relevance of the readmission policy, has been renewed, and describe any other measures taken to strengthen the activities providing pregnant girls with ongoing access to education (before and after giving birth).

Recommendations from the Diphalana Continuing Education Project, which was initiated as a pilot to assess the relevance of readmission of girls into schools after pregnancy, were implemented, and policy guidelines were developed which are functional. The guidelines cover the following:

Prima ry education

Pupils under 12 years of age will be withdrawn from school, and for those aged 12 and above, consideration will be made provided that there is written parental consent and a medical certificate

Pupils will be allowed six months ’ maternity leave, and they will return to school the following academic year

On her return, the pupil will be required to produce a fitness certificate from a medical doctor

On her return from maternity leave, the availability of space (including the school from which the pupil dropped out) will determine where the pupil will be enrolled

All externally placed pupils have to abide by the pregnancy policy stipulated in the sponsorship contract

Secondary education

No student will be withdrawn from school on account of pregnancy unless there is written parental consent or they are medically unfit to attend school

In the event a student is discovered to be pregnant in an examination year, special arrangements should be made to enable the candidate to sit for the examination

A student who (impregnated another) will be allowed to continue with classes

The student is obliged to adhere to the doctor ’ s advice, and parents are required to monitor regular attendance of prenatal care

After delivery, and on condition that the doctor has certified that the student is fit, the student will return to school only after a mandatory confinement period (4 weeks, except during examination time, where the certificate of fitness will suffice)

The school should provide academic and counselling support for the student involved in the pregnancy. The schoolteacher, through guidance and counseling, ought to ensure that the pregnant student has received homework assignments for the days she will be on maternity leave, and parents should be responsible for collecting learning materials

An externally placed student who becomes pregnant must immediately inform the office of the education attaché so that preparations for her return home (to Botswana) to deliver can be made, and such a student will go back to school to continue her studies only after a doctor has certified that she is fit to do so

All externally placed students have to abide by the pregnancy policy stipulated in the sponsorship agreement.

Article 11

Comment 20

Provide information on steps taken, including temporary special measures to enhance article 11 of the Convention, which stipulates that States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the field of employment in order to ensure, on a basis of equality of men and w omen, the same rights.

In 1997, the Government commissioned a study on Laws Affecting the Status of Women in Botswana . This study aimed at providing the basis for law and policy reviews to ensure Botswana ’ s compliance with Convention and the standards set therein. Several workshops were held after the submission of the report in September 1998 to disseminate the results to stakeholders. The report has informed the review of several statutes, including the Employment Act. The act ensures equality of men and women in the employm ent sector. The Act states that

“ There is no law stating categorically that there is to be no gender-based discrimination in the recruitment procedures of employers. ”

Before the amendment of the Act, the following sections discriminated against women:

Section 115 prohibited the employment of females underground in a mine, but it has now been deleted

Section 116 prohibited the employment of females in industrial or agricultural undertakings at night without their expressed consent, but the provision has now been deleted from the Act.

Comment 21

Please provide statistical information, disaggregated by sex and showing trends overtime , detailing women ’ s overall participation in the public and private sectors. Please include information on the wage gap between men and women for work of equal value.

Between March 2007 and March 2008, all sectors of formal employment increased by 7.1% from 301,978 persons during March 2007 to 323,411 in March 2008. Private sector employment constituted 54.4% of total employment. Central government and local government employment contributed 32.9% and 8.4%, respectively. Parastatal employment constituted only 4.4% of the total employment during this period. Males and females are recruited on the basis of merit and are also promoted based on performance. Tables 6 and 7 show the average earnings of paid employees by industry, citizenship and sex in 2007 and 2008.

Table 6

Estimated monthly average earnings of paid employees by industry, citizenship and sex in March 2007

Industry	Citizens	Non-citizens	All employees
	Male	Female	Total	Male	Female	Total	Male	Female	Total
Agriculture Mining and quarrying Manufacturing Water and electricity Construction Wholesale and retail Hotels and restaurants Transport & communication Financial intermediaries Real estate Education Health and social work Other community service Private and parastatal Private Parastatal Central government Local government	770 6 814 1 756 9 139 1 776 1 970 1 712 5 431 8 073 4 607 5 909 3 752 2 385 3 328 2 863 8 204 3 760 3 455	734 8 308 969 9 147 1 862 1 517 1 189 4 799 6 668 5 130 4 115 3 169 1 531 2 414 2 038 6 968 4 104 3 105	756 7 013 1 350 9 141 1 789 1 744 1 384 5 222 7 196 4 769 4 873 3 299 1 967 2 942 2 512 7 722 3 928 3 294	1 462 23 994 6 025 33 747 7 490 6 322 4 396 6 111 44 059 20 414 10 505 9 245 2 802 9 167 8 639 22 774 5 175 9 730	2 441 15 808 4 215 16 177 10 968 4 750 4 238 7 628 20 184 12 173 6 460 8 248 3 740 6 433 6 152 16 337 6 177 6 581	1 651 32 044 5 654 32 911 7 601 6 065 4 335 6 215 39 532 19 020 8 551 8 815 3 141 8 894 8 426 21 686 5 479 8 364	890 7 635 2 201 9 352 2 386 2 499 1 928 5 537 9 884 6 310 7 359 5 879 2 425 3 994 3 554 8 969 3 795 3 549	858 8 629 1 058 9 160 2 065 1 603 1 285 4 875 6 768 5 496 4 702 3 787 1 661 2 599 2 237 7 130 4 127 3 152	879 8 193 1 634 9 317 2 342 2 075 1 532 5 339 7 972 6 069 5 901 4 399 2 059 3 458 3 049 8 267 3 956 3 366
All sectors	3 461	3 044	3 275	8 860	6 409	8 584	3 905	3 151	3 596

Table 7

Estimated monthly average earnings of paid employees by industry, citizenship and sex in March 2008

Industry	Citizens	Non-citizens	All Employees	Sep-07	Mar-07
	Male	Female	Total	Male	Female	Total	Male	Female	Total
Agriculture Mining and quarrying Manufacturing Water and electricity Construction Wholesale and retail Hotels and restaurants Transport & communication Financial intermediaries Real estate Education Health and social work Other community service Private and parastatal Private Parastatal Central government Local government	758 6 957 2 011 7 263 1 428 2 216 1 343 4 805 10 624 4 775 6773 5 350 2 870 3 358 2 860 9 094 4 064 3 248	696 8 208 1 215 10 482 1 680 1 629 1 055 5 413 8 485 6 614 5 308 4 129 1 706 2 867 2 396 8 593 4 663 3 111	735 7 113 1 617 7 943 1 456 1 940 1 171 4 973 9 245 5 368 5 933 4 526 2 144 3 158 2 671 8 896 4 322 3 183	3 773 30 690 7 549 37 148 4 071 6 951 6 121 10 028 25 853 17 666 11 197 11 032 6 751 9 355 8 776 23 038 10 180 13 006	5 737 16 929 5 379 - 3 105 5 911 6 500 4 037 21 514 8 199 8 724 7 969 4 678 7 238 6 796 22 148 7 817 8 480	4 178 29 339 7 109 37 148 3 945 6 805 6 255 9 311 24 927 16 444 10 147 9 427 5 689 8 882 8 330 22 883 9 506 11 158	1 065 7 948 2 565 7 412 1 776 2 665 1 567 5 185 12 435 5 680 8 282 6 894 3 205 3 956 3 473 9 837 4 174 3 412	928 8 489 1 332 10 482 1 896 237 1 152 3 111 8 145 6 650 6 118 4 764 1 874 2 532 2 029 8 834 4 693 3 180	1 015 8 015 1 978 8 057 1 790 2 235 4 632 1 322 9 775 5 982 7 119 5 523 2 385 3 553 3 074 9 449 4 396 3 302	689 7 944 2 174 7 769 1 808 2 822 1 593 6 045 8 704 4 896 6 667 5 980 1 953 3 659 3 212 8 981 4 443 3 291	879 8 193 1 634 9 137 2 342 2 075 1 532 5 339 7 972 6 069 5 901 4 399 2 059 3 458 3 049 8 267 3 956 3 366
All sectors	3 587	3 518	3 558	9 493	7 352	8 993	3 985	3 333	3 809	3 858	3 5 96

Comment 22

Please provide information on women ’ s participation in the informal sector, including the number of women in the informal economy, in comparison with men and compared with women employed in the formal economy, as well as the sectors of the informal economy that have the largest share of women.

The 2007 informal sector survey estimated the total number of informal businesses as 40,306, of which 67.6% were owned by females and 32.4% by males. The majority of the businesses were found in the wholesale and retail trade, followed by real estate with 39%, manufacturing, hotels and restaurants with 20.7%, 11.3% and 10.3%, respectively. Table 8 shows the participation of women and men in informal businesses.

Table 8

Business in the informal sector by industry and sex, in 2007

Industry	Male	Female	Total	Percentage
Agriculture	501	581	1 082	2.7
Manufacturing	1 223	3 320	4 543	11.3
Water and electricity	65	-	65	0.2
Construction	1 293	74	1 367	3.4
Wholesale and retail	3 388	12 583	15 971	39.6
Hotels and restaurants	678	3 460	4 138	10.3
Transport& communication	1 294	1 352	2 646	6.6
Financial intermediaries	37	100	137	0.3
Real estate	3 573	4 773	8 346	20.7
Education	10	67	77	0.2
Health and social work	306	135	441	1.1
Other community service	701	792	1 493	3.7
Total	13 069	27 237	40 306	100.0

Article 12

Comment 23

Please provide information on whether programmes to combat HIV/AIDS integrate a gender perspective, including the availability of antiretroviral medication to prevent mother-to-chi ld transmission of HIV.

Women are more vulnerable than men to HIV/AIDS infection. Interventions to address the HIV/AIDS pandemic are spearheaded by the Government, which has declared war on and invested heavily in combating its prevalence at all levels. The war against HIV/AIDS covers prevention through condom use by both males and females and management programmes for sexually transmitted infections. The mother-to-child transmission prevention programme has been made available in all public health facilities. Antiretroviral medication is also available free of charge to all through public health services. By the end of July 2009, 105,286 patients were in treatment in the public sector, of which 61.8% were females. About 6.8% of the patients were children.

The impact of the multiple interventions is reflected in improvements reported in the sentinel surveillance studies for 2005 and 2006. The prevalence among pregnant mothers between 15 and 49 years of age has declined from 37.4% in 2002 to 32.4% in 2006.

The male involvement component seeks to aim at increasing the involvement of males in sexual and reproductive health matters and to contribute to the reduction in the transmission of HIV/AIDS and the prevention of gender-based violence. The programme strategy is designed to respond to male/female vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems, particularly in the light of HIV/AIDS. The vulnerabilities are perceived in three dimensions; personal, programmatic and societal.

Comment 24

Please provide information on maternal mortality as well as on the laws in place in regard to abortion, on the extent to which women may be resorting to clandestine abortions and how many such women die as a result, and on the contraceptive prevalence rate and its availability. Please provide this information as well as information on the availability and accessibility of comprehensive sex education and family planning services in Botswana .

The causes of maternal mortality and morbidity include, among others, haemorrhage, eclampsia and abortion. Unsafe abortion also contributes to maternal mortality. In 2007, 14% of maternal deaths resulted from unsafe abortion.

According to the Penal Code Article 160:

Any person who, with intent to procure a miscarriage of a woman, whether she is or is not with child, unlawfully administers to her or causes her to take any poison or other noxious thing, or uses any force of any kind, or uses any other means whatever, is guilty of an offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years.

Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1), it shall not be an offence under this section if a pregnancy is terminated or an abortion is caused within the first 16 weeks of pregnancy, in the following circumstances and under the following conditions:

Where the medical practitioner carrying out the operation is satisfied, by acceptable evidence, that the pregnancy is the result of rape, defilement or incest, and the termination of pregnancy or abortion is requested by the victim, or, where the victim lacks the capacity to make such request, by her next of kin or guardian or the person in loco parentis ; or

Where the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the pregnant woman or injury to her physical or mental health, and such woman consents to the termination of pregnancy or abortion, or, if she lacks the capacity to give such consent, it is given on her behalf by her next kin or guardian or a person in loco parentis ; or

Where established evidence shows that there is substantial risk that, if the child were born, it would suffer from or later develop such serious physical or mental abnormality or disease as to be seriously handicapped, and the pregnant woman consents to the termination of pregnancy or abortion, or, if she lacks the capacity to give such consent, it is given on her behalf by her next of kin or guardian or a person in loco parentis :

Provided that –

The termination of pregnancy or abortion is carried out by a registered medical practitioner in a Government hospital or a registered private hospital, or a clinic approved for the purpose by the Director of Health Services; and

Two medical practitioners have given their opinion, formed in good faith, in writing, in the case of paragraph (b) above, that continuation of the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the pregnant woman or injury to her physical or mental health, or, in the case of paragraph (c) above, that there is substantial risk that if the child were allowed to be born, it would suffer such physical or mental abnormality or disease as to be seriously handicapped.

Woman with child procuring abortion

Any person who, being with child, with intent to procure her miscarriage, unlawfully administers to herself any poison or other noxious thing or uses any force of any kind, or uses any other means whatever, or permits any such thing, or means to be administered to or used on her, is guilty of an offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years.

Family planning programme

The family planning services available and accessible in Botswana are as follows:

Behaviour change communication and information, education and communication at the individual, family, group community and national levels

Health assessment and provision of contraceptive methods

Screening for sexually transmitted infections as per manual for health-care workers

Screening for cancer of the cervix, breast, prostate and testes in accordance with the cancer screening protocol currently in use

Post-natal care, including provision of contraceptives

Infertility assessment, treatment of sexually transmitted infections, HIV testing and cancer screening will also be offered in an integrated approach

Counselling as a component of family planning

Post-abortion care and provision of family planning commodities

The family planning methods available in Botswana are as follows:

Combined oral contraceptives (low and high dose)

Progestogen only pill

Intrauterine contraceptive device

Condoms

Lactational amenorrhoea

Rhythm method

Basal body temperature

Vasectomy

Tubal ligation

Article 13

Comment 25

Please describe what measures are in place to support and alleviate the plight of women in poverty, including rural women, as well as what is being done to facilitate their access to land and credit.

The Government of Botswana has identified poverty as one of the key issues that inhibit women from making a meaningful contribution to the socio-economic development of the country. In order to address this situation, the Women ’ s Affairs Department started an economic empowerment programme that aims to empower women for their advancement in all spheres of development. The programme ’ s objectives are to: alleviate poverty among women through economic empowerment; create employment for women through small enterprises; facilitate the participation of women ’ s groups, NGOs, community-based organizations (CBOs) and women entrepreneurs in all activities that promote, expose and enhance their social and economic status as well as to promote collaboration and networking among women ’ s groups, CBOs, NGOs and entrepreneurs with the view to strengthening market size.

The following n ational policies on economic opportunities have been put in place.

Citizen Entrepreneurship Development Agency: Unlike the Financial Assistance Programme and policies on small, medium-size and micro-enterprise, which had stated a commitment to women ’ s empowerment by identifying women as a target group, the Agency has gone back to the economic strategy of being gender neutral. The requirement is that citizens should have business plans that are “ viable, sustainable, should have the potential to add value to the national economy and should have a market for their products. ”

National Master Plan for Agricultural Development: This is the revised National Food Strategy established by the Government to offer credit for agricultural purposes. Given that most farm producers are women, this programme empowers them.

Livestock Infrastructure Management and Development Programme

The programme started in April 2007, and its objectives are to promote food security through improved productivity of cattle and small livestock; improve livestock management; improve utilization and conservation grazing land; eliminate destitution by providing resources to the poor; and to provide infrastructure for the safe and hygienic processing of poultry products.

Through this programme, poor farmers are assisted in the purchase of small livestock, and in raising t swana chickens and guinea fowl.

Integrated Support Programme for Arable Agriculture Development

The major components of the Integrated Support Programme for Arable Agriculture Development includes cluster fencing, provision of potable water, provision of seeds, provision of fertilizers, facilitation of access to credit and establishment of Agricultural Service Centres. The primary objectives of the programme are to increase grain production and to promote food security at the household and national levels.

Other Programmes: S ome NGOs and CBOs have specific programmes that provide funds, technical skills and education for economic empowerment projects for women (e.g., the Global Fund, Women ’ s Finance House). There are other Government ministries that work with women with a view to empowering them, and these include the Department of Non-formal Education, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Department of Social Services.

Women ’ s Finance House Botswana was established with the vision of economically empowering disadvantaged women and developing their entrepreneurial skills. Its activities include savings mobilization schemes; micro-loans for working capital; and provision of basic training in management and accounting skills.

Young Women ’ s Christian Association was established in 1962. The mission of this Association is to develop women and the youth holistically by providing a forum for them to share skills and experiences through local fund-raising to address their socio-economic and political challenges. Some of the activities are income-generating and employment-creating projects. The Association also runs an adolescent mothers project that aims at readmitting girl children who dropped out of school due to pregnancy so that they could continue with their education. The project also provides some day care services to babies whose mothers are enrolled into the programme.

Botswana Community-Based Organizations. Out of the 42 CBOs registered with BOCOBONET, only five organizations addressing poverty and economic empowerment project were owned by women, while the rest were community projects.

Women ’ s cooperatives/groups :

There are the women ’ s cooperatives that engage in income-generating products, such as marketing of Ilala baskets in Ngamiland; collecting, processing and marketing of various Veld products (for example, processing of Marula fruit, as evidenced by products such as marula jam and face products from marula oil; grapple plant or sengaparile (desert claw) in the Kweneng and Kgalagadi districts; thatching grass and craft marketing country wide; bee keeping; herbal tea production such as mosukojwane); pottery; and salt production. Some of the women ’ s groups, such as the “ Kgetsi ya Tsie ” , have not only increased membership, for example, from 9 people to 1,000, but have also initiated a micro-credit and saving scheme for members. Other groups all over the country are engaged in the growing of vegetables, bakery, pottery, etc.

Community income-generating activities: In addition to women ’ s economic empowerment activities, Most CBOs have engaged in community-based economic projects that have the potential to benefit women, for example, eco-tourism activities, such as the wildlife management quota system in the Ngamiland and Chobe districts, the Nata Sanctuary, community tourism, photographic tourism, agro-forestry, and commercial hunting through joint ventures.

The Deeds Registry Act 1996

The Act was amended in 1996 to:

Allow women, whether married i n community of property or not, to execute deeds and other documents required or allowed them to be registered in the deeds registry without their husbands ’ consent

Allow for immovable property to be t ransferred or ceded to a woman married in community of property and to allow the woman to form her separate estate, whereby a condition of the bequest or donating it is excluded from the community and marital power.

Ensure that where immovable property not excluded from the community is registered in the name of a spouse married in community of property, neither spouse may, irrespective of when that property was so registered, alone deal with such property unless he/she has the consent in writing of the other spouse or has been authorized by an order of court to deal therewith

The Abolition of Marital Power Act 2004

The Act was promulgated in 2004 and consequently abolished the common law principle of marital power, which positioned the husband as the head of the family with powers over his wife, including legal representation and administration of the wife ’ s property. The abolition of the Act established equal powers of spouses married in community of property to dispose of assets held in joint estate.

The Act made the spouses married out of community of property jointly liable for household necessities, with provision for joint acquisition of other property. It has also abolished the common law principle of unity of matrimonial domicile and allowed married women to acquire a domicile of their choice and replaced the domicile of minor children with the “ place to which the child is most closely connected ” . The act has equally abolished the common law position of the husband as the sole guardian of minor children and replaced it with joint guardianship by both parents.

Miscellaneous Amendments Bill, 2005

A Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill has been drafted to align a number of Acts with the Abolition of Marital Power Act. The bill amends:

the Pensions Acts;

th e Married Persons Property Act;

the Matrimonial Causes Act;

the Administration of Estates Act;

the Deeds Registry Act; and

the Companies Act.

Article 14

Comment 26

Please indicate whether the Rural Development Policy contains a particular focus on rural women so as to enhance their access to education, health, economic opportunities, land ownership and participation in decision-making processes related to development planning, including at the local level.

Access to resources and services is more difficult in rural settings than urban areas. Equally, poverty is more prevalent in rural than urban environments. The Government has put in place programmes to address these problems which impact more negatively on women than men. In 1972, the Rural Development Policy was launched through White Paper Number 1, in 1972. The Rural Development Policy was revised in 2003 and has set out the basic principles guiding rural development in Botswana . Through the Policy, the Government has undertaken to improve services in rural areas and promote employment creation especially for women. In 1975, the Government embarked on the Accelerated Rural Development Programme to provide basic social and development infrastructure across all key sectors of the rural economy.

Comment 27

Please provide information on minority ethnic women, elderly women and women with disabilities on all areas cove red by the Convention.

The number of persons with disabilities is rapidly increasing. The most common type of disability is that involving sight, whereby defects in seeing account for one quarter of total disabilities, and blindness covers one fifth of that total. The differentials in disability between males and females show that the two sexes have similar types of disabilities. The major problem for both is blindness, and the other common forms of disability for both sexes are deafness in one ear and inability to use both legs.

Articles 15 and 16

Comment 28

What is being done to address entrenched customary laws that impair gender equality and to publicize State legislation that protects the rights of women ?

The Government of Botswana continues to undertake progressive legislative reforms to enhance the promotion and protection of women ’ s rights; pursuant to this aim, the Domestic Violence Act No. 10 was passed in 2008. This Act seeks to provide survivors of domestic violence with protection. The Act empowers courts, including customary courts (which have so been empowered by Statutory Instrument) to hear matters under this Act. This Act is a milestone in itself, since it means that individuals (victims of domestic violence) who are subject to customary law can approach the courts to seek an order for their protection.

Furthermore, the Court of Appeal, in the case of Attorney General v. Unity Dow, noted that customs yield to the pre-eminence of the Constitution. As such, any person within Botswana can approach the courts to seek redress of any practice or custom that impairs the principle of equality.

Does Botswana intend to extend the provisions of the Abolition of Marital Power Act, Matrimonial Causes Act and Marriage Act to customary and religious marriages ?

Education on the extension of the Abolition of Marital Power to customary and religious marriages has been made available in order to sensitize the public on its impact on their lives.