Key Benefits:
3. Establishment of the Centre
(1) There is hereby established a body to be known as the Botswana Investment and Trade Centre.
(2) The Centre shall be a body corporate with a common seal, capable of suing and being sued in its own name and, subject to the provisions of this Act, of doing or performing all such acts as bodies corporate may, by law, perform.
(1) There is hereby established a Board which shall perform the powers and functions as may be conferred on it by this Act.
(2) The Board shall consist of the following nine members-
(a) a Chairperson, who shall be appointed by the Minister;
(b) the Permanent Secretary responsible for trade and the Permanent Secretary responsible for finance, or their respective representatives;
(c) four other persons appointed by the Minister and who, in the opinion of the Minister, have knowledge and experience likely to contribute to the successful management of the Centre;
(d) a legal advisor, appointed by the Minister; and
(e) the Chief Executive appointed by the Minister under section 14(1), who shall be entitled to attend all meetings of the Board but shall have no right to vote.
(3) The members of the Board shall elect, from among their number, a Vice Chairperson of the Board.
(4) A person shall not be appointed to be a member for more than five years at a time but shall be eligible for re-appointment for an aggregate period not exceeding 10 years.
5. Powers and functions of the Board
The Board shall-
(a) determine policy and the courses of action for giving effect to the objects and purposes of the Centre and of this Act;
(b) monitor the performance of the Centre;
(c) review, where necessary, the objects and purposes of the Centre and to recommend, to the Minister, such changes, consequent upon such review, as it considers appropriate; and
(d) establish such committees as it considers necessary to assist it in the performance of the functions of the Centre, and may delegate, to such committees, such of its functions as it considers appropriate.
6. Disqualification for appointment as a Board member
A person shall not be appointed as a member of the Board, nor shall any person be qualified to hold office as a member of the Board, who-
(a) has in terms of any law in force in any country-
(i) been adjudged or otherwise declared insolvent or bankrupt and has not been rehabilitated or discharged, or
(ii) made an assignment to, or arrangement or composition with, his or her creditors, which has not been rescinded or set aside;
(b) has, within a period of 10 years immediately preceding the date of his or her proposed appointment, been convicted-
(i) in Botswana, of a criminal offence, or
(ii) outside Botswana, of an offence which, if committed in Botswana, would have been a criminal offence, and sentenced by a court of competent jurisdiction to imprisonment for six months or more without the option of a fine, whether that sentence has been suspended or not, and for which he or she has not received a free pardon; or
(c) is the holder of an office in a political party, a councillor in a local authority or a member of the National Assembly.
A member of the Board shall vacate his or her office and his or her office shall become vacant-
(a) if he or she becomes disqualified in terms of section 6 to hold office as a member of the Board;
(b) if he or she is adjudged bankrupt or insolvent;
(c) if he or she is absent from three consecutive meetings of the Board, without reasonable excuse;
(d) upon his or her death;
(e) upon the expiry of one month's notice, given in writing to the Minister, of his or her intention to resign from office;
(f) upon the expiry of such time as the Minister may specify in writing, notifying him or her of his or her removal from office by the Minister;
(g) if he or she becomes mentally or physically incapable of performing his or her duties efficiently, and a medical doctor has issued a certificate to that effect; or
(h) if he or she is convicted of an offence under any Act for which he or she is sentenced to imprisonment for a term of six months or more without the option of a fine.
The Minister may, if he or she is satisfied that a member of the Board has acted improperly as such member, require the member of the Board to vacate his or her office within such time as the Minister may, in writing, specify.
9. Filling of vacancies of the Board
On the vacation of office under section 7, the Minister shall appoint a person to take the place of the member who vacated his or her office until the expiry of the period during which such member would have otherwise continued in office.
A member of the Board shall be paid such remuneration, such allowances, and such travelling expenses, incurred in connection with his or her service on the Board, as the Minister may determine.
