BIUST honours H.E. Festus G. Mogae, former president of the republic of Botswana

TOn Friday, September 22, 2023, the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) honoured the former President of the Republic of Botswana and founding Chancellor of BIUST, His Excellency Dr. Festus Gontebanye Mogae with an Honourary Doctorate Degree in Science. he conferment was made during the University's 8th Graduation ceremony held at its Campus in Palapye. H.E. Mogae served as the third President of the Republic of Botswana between 1998 and 2008.

Prior to that, he served in Washington DC as Alternate and Executive Director for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Anglophone Africa from 1976 to 1980. He then returned to Gaborone, where he was appointed Governor of the Central Bank between 1980 and 1981.

In 1982, H.E. Mogae took up the position of Permanent Secretary to the President, Secretary to Cabinet and Supervisor of Elections. After leaving office, H.E. Mogae was appointed to take up positions of responsibility at the United Nations, as well as on Boards and Commissions of other international organizations and charities.

These include appointment as the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Climate Change; Member of the WHO Panel on NCDs and Other Communicable Diseases; Chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) for the South Sudan peace process; Member & Chairperson of the Coalition for Dialogue on Africa (CoDA); Member of the Board of Directors of the Mastercard Foundation; Member of the Board & Prize Committee of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation; Chancellor of Kenya's AMREF International University. H.E. Mogae is the recipient of several awards and recognitions, both locally and internationally, including Naledi Ya Botswana & the Presidential Order of Honour.

He is the recipient of the coveted Mo Ibrahim Prize for African Leadership. The Africa-America Institute awarded H.E. Mogae its National Leadership Award, presented only once before to Nelson Mandela. He was awarded the Grand Cross of the Légion d'Honneur by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

He also holds honorary doctorates and fellowships from several institutions, including the University of Botswana and University of Oxford. His Excellency Mogae played a significant role in the establishment and growth of BIUST.

He provided guidance during its formative years and continued years later to emphasize the vision of BIUST growing into a leading international university, focused on science and technology. In February 2017, he announced a compounded P1 million sponsorship prize for best performing student, now dubbed the Chancellor's Award - awarded from the basket to the best performing student from graduating batches, annually.