Within the project "Fostering international partnerships between companies and/or institutions operating in the energy and environment sectors" (FIPEE), between 27 and 31 August 2021 UNIDO ITPO Italy met with several UN and governmental agencies in Botswana, namely UNDP Botswana, LEA and SPEDU, with the goal of promoting the development of the local private sector.

In this framework, UNIDO ITPO Italy Investment Promotion Expert Mr. Enrico Siepi and Expert on Energy and Environment for Botswana Ms. Onneetse Ndadi met with Ms. Boitumelo Mbaakanyi, Project Manager-Business Supplier Development Programme at UNDP Botswana, to promote environmental and clean energy solutions and technologies to improve the performances and international exposure of Botswana private sector.

A special meeting was held between UNIDO ITPO Italy and Dr. Racious Moatshe, Chief Executive Officer of the Local Enterprise Authority (LEA), the special agency of the Government of Botswana and the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) with the mandate of entrepreneurship and enterprise development in the country, which paved the way to a new alliance aimed at promoting the local private sector in Botswana. A working arrangement has been envisaged to allow Botswana SMEs to benefit from UNIDO ITPO Italy support aimed at favouring new models of development in line with the most advanced standard for environmental and energy processing solutions.

A third extremely interesting meeting was held on 31st August 2021 between UNIDO ITPO Italy and Ms. Lesedi Nancy Lungu and Mr. Jazenga Uezesa, respectively CEO and Director of Investment Promotion of SPEDU. SPEDU is a regional economic diversification agency also under the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI), set up to drive transformation of the greater Selebi-Phikwe region into a vibrant economic zone. Ambitious plans and strategies have been developed to achieve such a goal in a region that faces challenges in creating meaningful and sustainable employment, diversifying the local economy from mining, and improving the standard of living and household income levels. UNIDO ITPO Italy decided to select the most promising projects to sustain the growth of the region and to diversify local economy.