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Gaositwe Chiepe

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Gaositwe Chiepe
Dr Chiepe
Minister of Trade and Industry
In office
1977–1984
Foreign Minister
In office
1984–1994
Minister of Education
In office
1994–1999
Personal details
Born (1922-10-20) 20 October 1922 (age 102)
NationalityMotswana
Political partyBotswana Democratic Party
ResidenceBotswana
Alma materTiger Kloof Educational Institute, South Africa, Fort Hare University

Gaositwe Keagakwa Tibe Chiepe MBE (born 20 October 1922)[1][2] is a Botswana former politician and diplomat with the Botswana Democratic Party.[3] She was her country's high commissioner to the United Kingdom and Nigeria and ambassador to West Germany, France, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the European Economic Community.[4] She was Botswana's Minister for Trade and Industry in 1977, and in 1984, she became the Foreign Minister.[5] She then served as the Minister for Education from 1994 to 1999.[5][6]

Early life

Chiepe was born in what was the Bechuanaland Protectorate (now Botswana) on 20 October 1922, to Moruti Tibe Chiepe and S. T. Chiepe (née Sebina).[2][3][7] Her father died in her youth and her extended family wanted her to leave school and get married, Her mother insisted she stayed on at school to continue her education.[2] Chiepe later attributed her successful career to her mother's insistence that she be educated.[2][8][7]

Education

She attended primary school in Serowe and eventually went to Tiger Kloof Educational Institute, South Africa for secondary education, having received a scholarship as the best student in the country.[3][8]

She then attended Fort Hare University, also in South Africa, where she received a Bachelor of Science as well as a postgraduate Diploma in education.[3][7]

In 1958, she graduated from the University of Bristol in the UK with a master's degree.[4] Her thesis was entitled "An Investigation of the Problems of Popular Education in the Bechuanaland Protectorate in Light of a Comparative Study of Similar Problems in the Early Stages of English Education and in the Development of Education in Yugoslavia and Uganda.[2][7]

She was awarded an honorary degree from Depaul University, United States.[3] Chiepe began her career in the Bechuanaland Protectorate Government in the Department of Education and was one of the first two Africans appointed to an administrative position (Education Officer) in the colonial government.[9][10] Chiepe was the first woman education officer of Botswana.[3][2]

Political career

Chiepe was the first female cabinet member in Botswana (1974) having become a Specially-Elected Member of Parliament.[6][7][11][12] She was popularly elected to parliament from the Serowe South constituency in the Central District of Botswana in a by-election in 1977.[7][11]

She was appointed to the post of high commissioner to United Kingdom and Nigeria and ambassador to West Germany, France, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the European Economic Community from 1970 to 1974.[7][12][13][14] During her time as High Commissioner in the UK, she chaired the fifth Caroline Haslett Memorial Lecture at the Royal Society of Arts.[7] Run by the Women's Engineering Society, Dr Letitia Obeng, then Director of Freshwater Research Institute of Aquatic Biology in Ghana spoke on 'Nation Building & the African Woman'.[15]

From 1974 to 1977, Chiepe was the Minister of Trade and Industry. From 1977 to 1984, she was the Minister of Mines & Natural Resources.[13] In 1982 Chiepe served as Honorary President of the Kalahari Conservation Society (KCS).[7]

In 1984, Chiepe became the Foreign Minister (Minister of External Affairs), in which position she remained until 1994.[2][7][10]

From 1994 to 1999, she was the Minister of Education.[13] Chiepe retired from government life in 1999 after nearly 30 years of high level positions.[13]

In 2013, she was the headline speaker at Botswana's International Day of Older Persons held in the Mokolodi Nature Reserve, saying ““We want to be ‘the aged in counsel and the young in action....Let us, as the elderly not be relegated to being dinosaurs but utilize our knowledge and hard earned wisdom to not only increase our relevance and longevity in society, but also increase the contact between generations, bridging the gap between young and old.” [2][16]

Recognition

Chiepe has been awarded both the Presidential Order of Merit and the Presidential Order of Meritorious Service (Botswana),[13] and been made a Commander of the Royal Order of the Polar Star by the King of Sweden and a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).[8][14][17]

She has received honorary doctorates from University of Bristol in Britain,[2] De Paul University in United States [2][7] and Fort Hare in South Africa. In 2009 she was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws by the University of Botswana for her outstanding work in the development of the country.[2][8]

In October 2022, Chiepe turned 100. In response, the Cabinet of Botswana convened a meeting to honour Chiepe for her lifetime of service to the country.[18]

Publications

  • Thesis (Ph.D.) University of Bristol, 1957. An investigation of the problems of popular education in the Bechuanaland Protectorate : in the light of a comparative study of similar problems in the early stages of English education and in the development of education in Yugoslavia and Uganda.
  • Chiepe, G.K.T.. (1973). Development in Botswana. African Affairs. 72. 319–322. 10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a096390.
  • Rensburg, Patrick & Chiepe, G. (1996). Education with Production—An Overview [and] The Botswana Brigades, 1965–1995.

See also

Wikiquote has quotations related to Gaositwe Chiepe.

Sources

  1. ^ "Index Ch". www.rulers.org. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Dr. Gaositwe Chiepe". KnowBotswana. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Gaositwe Keagakwa Tibe Chiepe". biography.yourdictionary.com. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Dream big: 7 famous female Bristol Alumni you should know". Epigram. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Dr. Gaositwe Chiepe". KnowBotswana. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Dr Gaositwe Chiepe KNO, PH, PMS - Ducere Global Business School". ducere.education. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Celebrating our heroes and heroines: Dr. Gaositwe Chiepe". Weekend Post. 11 September 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  8. ^ a b c d Akyeampong, Emmanuel K.; Gates, Henry Louis, eds. (1 January 2011). "Dictionary of African Biography". History Faculty Book Gallery. doi:10.1093/acref/9780195382075.001.0001. ISBN 9780195382075.
  9. ^ Gossett, C.W. "The Civil Service in Botswana," Ph.D dissertation, Stanford University, 1986, p. 372.
  10. ^ a b Hudson, Derek (2015). "My Life in Botswana, and Observation of the Society from 1971 to 2005". Botswana Notes and Records. 47: 135–139. ISSN 0525-5090. JSTOR 90024311.
  11. ^ a b "History". www.parliament.gov.bw. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Gaositwe Keagakwa Tibe Chiepe | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  13. ^ a b c d e "Mmegi Online :: Along came Gaositwe". Mmegi Online. 26 April 2007. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Dr Gaositwe Chiepe KNO, PH, PMS - Ducere Business School". www.ducere.edu.au. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  15. ^ "The Woman Engineer". www2.theiet.org. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
  16. ^ "Sunday Standard". Sunday Standard. 16 October 2013.
  17. ^ "Mmegi Online :: UB Honours Dr Chiepe". Mmegi Online. 12 October 2009. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  18. ^ Lebanna, Pako (26 October 2022). "Chiepe national recognition mooted". Daily News Botswana. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
Political offices
Preceded by Foreign Minister of Botswana
1985–1994 		Succeeded by
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