An online tool in Botswana that helps citizens engage with parliamentarians is to become accessible across the whole country.

The ‘Botswana Speaks Parliamentary Initiative’ website has features such as ‘U-Speak’, which enables constituents to register on the website and share an issue, an opinion or request information from constituencies’ members of parliament.

Since April 2013, constituents from areas such as Nata, Boteti North, Maun West and South East South have been using the Botswana Speaks platform to share issues, opinions or to request information from their members of parliament.

The project; though, has primarily been in a pilot phase with a plan to extend testing through to the end of March 2014: a decision made by project partners from the University of Stockholm’s eGovlab, the parliament of Botswana and Gov2u.

However, government officials in Botswana have also decided to eventually roll-out the project to all constituencies in the country.

“Following interviews with the team of the parliament of Botswana, the initiative has raised citizens’ awareness on the role that the parliament plays as an institution and on the role MPs play as representatives,” says a press statement from Botswana Speaks.

“The growing demand for interaction between citizens and elected representatives, the need for effective access to information and consultation could lead more members of the parliament and more countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to get involved,” adds the statement.