The BIHL Group women’s leadership led by its CEO Catherine Lesetedi donated IT equipment to the Botswana GBV Prevention and Support Centre (BGBVC). The donation was made to commemorate the International Women’s Day held on the 8 th of March under the theme: “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality”.
The women’s leadership handed over six laptops to the BGBVC in order to help close the gap of
gender inequality and to give women and girls access to technology. The laptops donated will be used to document client information and help with reporting in Francistown, Gantsi and Gaborone. This donation was selected from a list of key needs that the organisation requires to perform its mandate, they will used to record client information and assist with reporting therefore help persons affected by GBV in various locations across the country This is also a to showcase that the Group continues to improve livelihoods by standing in solidarity to support women, men and children affected by gender-based violence.
Said the BIHL Group CEO, Catherine Lesetedi, “Gender-based violence is one of the most prevalent human rights violations in the world. The Botswana National Relationship Study (BNRS) revealed that 92% of women have experienced some form of abuse and 94% have experienced Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) were abused in their childhood. Therefore, as the BIHL Group, we believe that the sustainability of the communities we operate in is a core feature of our business and we stand to support them. Therefore, on a day in which we celebrate the achievements and accolades of women in Botswana and around the world, we found it suitable to share a gesture of kindness and support to those who are affected by gender-based violence.”
Adding on the study has indicated that one in three women (37%) and one in five men (21%) have reported that they have experienced some form of Gender Based Violence (GBV) be it emotional, physical or sexual at least once in their lifetime.
Lorato Moalusi, CEO of Botswana Gender Based Violence Prevention and Support Centre (BGBVC) notes, “We would like to thank the BIHL Group for their generous donation towards our work at the Botswana Gender Based Violence Prevention and Support Centre. The laptops donated today will contribute greatly to improving our services in data management, reporting and programming. Furthermore, we are excited to see the impact of the technology on our operational capacity across all our centres around the country. Since opening in 1998, our aim has been to support women, men, girls, and boys experiencing and affected by GBV in Botswana and we are grateful for the support and encouragement from partner organizations such as the BIHL Group.”
The BIHL Group is unwavering in its commitment towards improving the livelihoods of Batswana and positively impacting the communities in which they operate. It continues to realize a strong
dedication towards social impact and helping engineer positive legacies in Botswana.