The Botswana Public Employees Union (BOPEU) has endured a mixed bag of financial fortunes between the years 2019 and 2020, The Business Weekly & Review has established.
The Treasurer General’s report released in December 2021 and was compiled by the union’s Finance and Investment Committee that is headed by Chairperson Panana Dipatane. It covers the financial year 2019/20 and gives an organisational overview of the last three years, 2019 to 2021. It denotes a mixture of good and bad fortunes for the trade union that until recently hoarded headlines for all the wrong reasons of a factional enmity between president Masego Mogwera and former 1st Deputy president Olefile Monakwe.
According to the report, income increased from P33.7 million to P36.2 million in 2020, a 7.4 percent increase. It shows an increase in total expenditure of P7.6 million in 2020 compared to 2019, which is an 18.3 percent increase. Assets increased to P37.9 million from P37.1 million in the past financial year, representing a 1.98 percent increase, whereas liabilities increased from P9.1million to P10.6million, representing 16.6 percent increase. “Generally, between 18/19 and 19/20 there was a decline in total revenue reported,” reads the report. “We realised an increase in subscriptions of 7.4 percent and a significant decline in other income streams by 35.8 percent.”
Group results show decreased revenue of 0.3 percent from P108 million to P107.7 million in 2020. The report states that expenditure of the Group decreased from P89.8 million to P83.4 million, representing a 7.1 percent decrease. “The overall comprehensive profit for the group increased from P6.2million to P18.1 million, representing a 34 percent increase,” says the report. Group total assets decreased from P212.1 million to P186.9 million, representing a 11.9 percent decrease. Total liabilities decreased from P185.5 million to P142.3 million, a 23 percent decrease.
The report notes an increase in subscription fees for the union. “Revenue from subscriptions increased by 7.45 percent from P33.7 million in 2019 to P36.2 million in 2020,” it states. “The increase in subscription fee income is due to the growth in membership. In the past years, the union has experienced a significant growth in membership except for 2020 which recorded slow increases due to COVID-19.”
BOTUSAFE Investments, a BOPEU associate with a 25 percent stake, declared a P3 million dividend in the 18/19 fiscal compared to P1 million in 19/20. Rental from Fairgrounds property recorded a decrease of 83.91 percent in 2020 due to its transfer to Babereki Investments, a BOPEU subsidiary, as a way of improving its liquidity which posed a threat to the NBFIRA licence. “Investment property recorded 183.91 percent decrease in 2020,” says the report. “This was due to property that was transferred to Babereki Investments.”
Due to organisational restructuring, staff salaries and wages were down by 12 percent from P11.5 million to P10.1 million. Overall, operating expenses went down by 9.89 percent compared to 2019. Owing to the advent of COVID-19, the union and its business wing were negatively affected. As a result, there has been a decrease in other revenue streams like donations and dividends management fees/royalties.
