ICT Awards: SPARC Systems-(Africa)-Ltd won two 2026 Southern Africa Brand Quality Awards, taking “Leading ICT Solutions Provider of the Year” and founder Dr. Wisely Phiri’s “Leading Male Entrepreneur of the Year Platinum Award,” reinforcing the firm’s push to use technology to transform businesses across the region. Urban Economy: Debswana’s Jwaneng Central Business District is set to break ground this month, aiming to diversify the mining town into a retail, services, tourism and logistics hub that can outlast the life of the mine. Higher Education Reform: A UN forum warned that higher education must be reshaped for sustainability, as universities face AI-driven change, climate pressure, inequality and shifting demographics while still delivering quality, equity and inclusion. Digital Health: A growing push for medical drones across Africa is highlighted as a way to deliver vaccines, blood, antivenom and lab samples faster where roads and terrain slow care. Botswana Mining Tech: Giyani Metals filed its 43-101 technical report for the K.Hill battery-grade manganese project in Botswana, confirming earlier feasibility economics (post-tax NPV and IRR). Wildlife Monitoring: In Botswana’s Okavango Delta, a leopard ID monitoring project blends GPS-precise photo records with local field expertise, building a long-term digital archive of individual leopards. Infrastructure & Connectivity: Botswana Railways signaled interest in working with Chinese firms on new rail links to ports in South Africa, Namibia and Mozambique, as rail leaders discussed cross-border cooperation.