OVERVIEW OF THE PROVISION OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AT THE

Over the years, the university has recognised the substantial demand for tertiary education by Batswana. The university also appreciates that this demand for educational opportunity from all those who aspire to and qualify for it cannot be met by increasing the number of places in the full-time programmes, because this task would require the construction of additional institutions to provide the required teaching, administrative and accommodation space. Second, some target groups cannot be reached through the traditional mode of delivery since it is difficult to withdraw them from their occupational and family commitments. Conventional institutions of higher learning are not an easy option for these target groups. For these reasons distance education programmes are planned to complement the full-time programmes by making educational opportunities available to a wider population at certificate, diploma, undergraduate and graduate levels. In this way, the university will be responding to the national goals that uphold the provision of education in order to produce the skilled human resources which the nation so badly requires. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BOTSWANA The University of Botswana, which existed previously as a constituent college of the Universit