All articles in this proceedings volume have been presented at the BUIRC 2025 on 12 to 13 June 2025 in Gaborone, Botswana. These articles have been double-peer reviewed by selected reviewers who were recommended by the conference selection committee and approved by the Editorial Board Committee and the...

Aim: To validate strategies to guide nurse educators to strengthen the clinical accompaniment of nursing students through the practice of caring presence. Background: Good-quality nursing education and practice involve a balance of knowledge and a holistic-caring approach to students. Quality nursing...

Cloud Radio Access Network (C-RAN) represents a paradigm shift in wireless network design, moving away from conventional distributed base station architectures toward centralized, cloud-based processing. This paper provides a comprehensive examination of the architectural fundamentals of C-RAN, including...

Achieving sustainable innovation in resource-constrained settings requires inclusive, context-aware approaches that prioritise end-user participation. This paper presents the ITIKI (Information Technology and Indigenous Knowledge with Intelligence) system as a case study of how Design Thinking (DT) can...

This paper critically examines the implementation of gender-responsive pedagogy (GRP) within Zimbabwean higher education. The study focuses on GRP’s role in fostering equitable teaching, learning, and innovation to support student development. Employing a rigorous desk-based research methodology, the...

The Northern Tuli Game Reserve (Notugre) and the wider Bobirwa district area are home to well-known private game reserves in Botswana. These game reserves require employees for various activities, including tourism and hospitality, as well as wildlife management and conservation. Although villagers are...

The use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools, such as ChatGPT, has revolutionised tertiary education worldwide at a rapid pace. This research investigated the effect of GenAI on the learning experience of final-year students at Botho University in the under-resourced country of Lesotho....

This study explores the effect of pedagogical leadership on academic staff performance within a public university in Zimbabwe. It examines how academic leaders, through their deliberate prioritization of effective teaching and the provision of needed pedagogical support, cultivate a culture of continuous...

The study explored the determinants of a green university facilities in Botswana. The purpose of this research is to evaluate universities’ greening initiatives and ascertain those demand-pull variables that cause universities to embark upon greening practices. The study was quantitative method research...

The research explored the determinants of university service quality in higher education institutions in Botswana. The significance of the study was to avail the key service characteristics that contributed towards quality in higher education institutions in Botswana. The methodology of the study was...

The aim of this paper is to evaluate plant production (growth) and economic viability in vertical Hydroponic systems. The quantitative approach, utilizing an experimental method and financial analysis, was employed for the project. The evaluation of plant growth of Swiss Chard (Beta vulgaris cicla) and...

A significant population of the African continent lack reliable electricity, a crisis acutely concentrated in its vast informal settlements. Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives are pivotal yet underexplored mechanisms for addressing this energy poverty...

In Botswana, youth unemployment remains high, partly due to a mismatch between academic education and the practical skills demanded by the labour market. Many young people leave secondary school without the competencies needed to secure employment or start businesses. This study explored the integration...

This study explored the role of Mobile money (M-money) in improving savings among rural informal traders to contribute towards sustainable development of rural areas. M-money and other digital payment methods have improved in recent years, leading to increased financial inclusion in the formal financial...

Lesotho Sign Language (LSL) remains an underrepresented language with less than 4500 speakers, unavailable datasets and limited assistive technologies. This study presents the development of an LSL dataset comprising gesture-based images of alphabet letters A-Y, collected and annotated in collaboration...

Colon cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Identifying key prog-nostic factors and understanding their interactions are crucial for improving patient outcomes. In this study, Bayesian Addi-tive Regression Trees (BART) approach for modeling cancer survival presented...

This study develops and formalizes the Salience-Weighted Generalized Conditioning (SWGC) framework as a model to explain preference and choice formation. We integrate deliberative cognition with motivated cognition under the influence of contextual factors. Options are evaluated through a salience function...

Financial fraud poses an escalating global threat, fueled by the proliferation of electronic payment systems. As traditional methods of monitoring and detection struggle to keep up with the vast number of daily transactions, the need for automated fraud detection systems has become paramount. This paper...

The digital transformation in higher education has seen the rise of AI tools, which are popular among teachers and students. While research has primarily focused on student perceptions, less attention has been given to teachers’ perspectives, particularly in Africa. Understanding these perceptions is...

The study explored the classroom-based interventions in the English Second Language syllabus delivery for grade 4 learners. The purpose was to explore the discrepancies between the ESL syllabus and its implementation within classrooms, intending to identify obstacles to teaching and learning and recommend...

This study aims to develop a deeper understanding of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) matters in Africa, gender diversity in corporate leadership and its impact on ESG matters. It examines the relationship between gender diversity in corporate leadership and ESG disclosure in South Africa,...

Induction programmes are designed to enable a smooth transition for new faculty members, providing them with critical resources, institutional expertise, and mentorship. However, such programmes vary across institutions, and newly-appointed lecturers often experience them differently. Methodology:...

In the 21st Century, the buzzword is “sustainability.“ In a constantly evolving realm of fashion, it has become very important for both customers and companies to embrace sustainability. This study examined how artificial intelligence (AI) is utilised to advance sustainable fashion and design innovative...

Advancement in biomedical science has led to the discovery of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) as new strategies for prevention of Human Immuno Deficiency Virus (HIV). Despite the proven effectiveness of PrEP in preventing HIV transmission, awareness and the use remain low in various populations. This...

The People’s Path Project (PPP) was a community-based ecotourism initiative implemented in north-western Botswana between 2021 and 2025. Designed to integrate marginalized communities into the tourism economy, it focused on empowering women and youth, enhancing market access, and preserving cultural...

Student engagement in accounting internships is a critical factor in bridging the gap between academic theory and professional practice. This study employed a qualitative meta-synthesis of peer-reviewed studies (2010–2024) on student engagement in accounting internships and related work-integrated learning....

The evolving dynamics of the global job market necessitate a change in how Universities equip their graduates with the relevant skills and competencies required for the workforce. In Botswana, one of the primary challenges faced by university graduates particularly those from the Faculty of Business...

A government has collected 1 million USD in taxes; should it build more schools or more factories? How should the government redistribute current income in an economic environment where more education by private agents crowds out physical capital, causes an excessive increase in the rate of return to...

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare offers transformative potential, especially for resource-limited settings like Lesotho, a mountainous country in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. Lesotho faces significant challenges including high burdens of tuberculosis...

Learner-centred methodology (LCM) has been widely promoted as a transformative approach to teaching and learning in many education systems, including Botswana. However, despite policy commitments advocating for learner-centred pedagogy, its actual implementation in classrooms remains inconsistent and...