Botswana Telecommunication Corporation Limited (BTCL) has announced plans to conduct nationwide road shows to encourage locals to buy shares ahead of the company's listing on the Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) in April.

According to BTCL the nationwide public education campaign will begin on 18 January, seven days after the initial public offering (IPO) opens.

BTCL will list on the Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) through a public offer of 462 000 000 shares at a price of P1.00 per share, by way of a sale offer by the selling shareholder of 212 000 000 shares and a subscription offer for 250 000 000 new shares.

"With something of this magnitude, there is a need for awareness and understanding to be created. The public education road show serves as one of many platforms that seek to deliver this. We encourage Batswana to come out and be a part of the biggest investment opportunity to date in our Nation's history. The BTCL IPO is here and it belongs to us all," said Paul Taylor, Managing Director of BTCL.

The six-week public education campaign, which will cover 28 towns and villages, has been introduced to support the listing of BTCL's initial public offering (IPO) on the bourse, which has experienced numerous setbacks and postponements.

"This momentous time comes off the back of years of hard work, and we are excited to deliver this historical opportunity to Batswana.

The BTCL IPO is underpinned by Government's desire to empower the country's citizens and citizen-owned entities to own national assets.

Government has placed on offer a total of 49% of the company's shares, 44% are available for purchase by citizens and citizen companies, while the remaining 5% is reserved for BTCL employees through a Trust.