Category: Sunday Standard

The cattle industry is facing a worrying squeeze, with the national cattle herd shrinking by more than 100,000 animals over a decade while cattle deaths have surged, according to the newly released 2025 Agricultural Census by Statistics Botswana.

The census, conducted by Statistics Botswana in collaboration with the Ministry of Lands and Agriculture, shows that Botswana had 1,638,543 cattle in 2025, down from 1,744,166 recorded in 2015. That represents a 6.1 percent decline in the national cattle herd over ten years – a contraction of 105,623 cattle. The figures raise fresh questions about the resilience of Botswana’s livestock sector at a time when Government has identified agriculture as one of the priority sectors under the Botswana Economic Transformation Programme (BETP).

The census is intended to provide the baseline for monitoring the implementation of BETP and to support government planning and policy decisions.

But the latest cattle figures paint a troubling picture. While cattle numbers have fallen, the census shows that cattle deaths increased by 30.7 percent compared with the 2015 census. At the same time, cattle births declined by 14.3 percent. The combination of fewer births and substantially higher deaths has put pressure on the country’s cattle population, even as the census records an improvement in the calculated cattle birth rate.

The cattle birth rate rose from 56.7 percent in 2015 to 68.5 percent in 2025, an increase of 11.8 percentage points. However, the cattle death rate also climbed, rising from 6.3 percent to 8.7 percent, an increase of 2.4 percentage points.

Statistics Botswana says the natural growth rate, the difference between the birth and death rates stood at 59.8 percent in 2025, compared with 50.4 percent in 2015. Despite the apparent improvement in the natural growth rate, the overall cattle population declined between the two census periods.

The census characterises the annual natural growth rate as 0.9 percent, describing it as slow growth. A growth rate of less than one percent annually, the report notes, means a population is failing to reach replacement level, making it difficult to sustain growth without external support.

The deterioration in cattle numbers contrasts sharply with developments in Botswana’s smallstock sector. The goat population increased from 1,205,238 in 2015 to 1,271,407 in 2025, representing a 5.5 percent increase. Sheep recorded an even stronger increase, rising from 242,432 to 323,279, a 33.3 percent jump.

Goat deaths increased by 27.7 percent, while sheep deaths surged by 65.8 percent between the two census periods. Sheep births, however, increased by 35.7 percent, while goat births rose by 5.2 percent.The natural growth rate among smallstock was significantly stronger than that of cattle.

For goats, the natural growth rate rose from 26.7 percent in 2015 to 61.3 percent in 2025. For sheep, it increased from 24.6 percent to 60.9 percent. The census says the increase in natural growth rates among smallstock is more pronounced than that of cattle.

The cattle decline presents a significant challenge to Botswana’s ambitions to transform agriculture into a stronger contributor to the economy. The BETP identifies agriculture as a key priority sector, meaning the census findings provide an important reality check on the condition of one of the country’s traditional livestock industries. The figures suggest that increasing agricultural output cannot simply depend on policy ambition. The underlying livestock population must also be protected and expanded. The decline of more than 105,000 cattle over ten years, combined with a 30.7 percent increase in cattle deaths, points to structural pressures that policymakers will have to confront. The census does not, in the figures cited, attribute the cattle decline to a single cause.

Botswana could face an estimated P26 billion in economic losses from depression between 2025 and 2050, highlighting the growing economic cost of mental health problems. A new global study published in Nature Medicine titled: Global economic burden of depression in 154 countries from 2025 to 2050 estimates the country’s cumulative economic burden from depression at US$1.944 billion, equivalent to about P26.2 billion.

The estimated per-capita burden is US$635, equivalent to about P8,600, with a range of US$512 to US$788, or approximately P6,900 to P10,700. The study measures the cumulative difference in projected economic output between 2025 and 2050 under scenarios with and without depression morbidity. The researchers say reduced labour-force participation and productivity are the main drivers of the economic losses.

The authors state that mental health is projected to impose an economic burden equivalent to 0.293% of gross domestic product over the 2025-2050 period. That places it below several other sub-Saharan African economies on the relative GDP measure, including Lesotho, Uganda and Togo, which face some of the region’s highest projected burdens.

The macroeconomic model measures how depression affects labour participation, productivity, education and the accumulation of human and physical capital. ‘Depression is a leading contributor to the global burden of mental disorders worldwide, as measured by disability-adjusted life years (DALYs),’ states the report.

The researchers say the economic damage is driven primarily by the effect of depression on people’s ability to participate effectively in the workforce. ‘Lower labour force participation stands out as the primary way depression affects the economy,’ they wrote, while the decline in physical-capital investment plays a smaller role.

That finding carries particular significance for younger people, as the study notes that depression typically emerges during adolescence or early adulthood which are years when people are pursuing education, beginning careers and building families. ‘Previous studies have shown that depression is associated with productivity losses through reduced employment, absenteeism, presenteeism and premature mortality,’ states the report.

The authors argue that treating depression should not simply be viewed as an expense. Citing previous evidence, they say every US$1 [P13] invested in scaling up treatment for depression and anxiety can yield a US$4 [P54] return in improved health and productivity. ‘Treatment costs… should be considered strategic investments,’ the authors say.

They also call for mental-health services to be integrated into primary care and for wider access to affordable, evidence-based therapies, saying such measures could improve early intervention and reduce the economic burden.

Globally, the researchers estimate depression will cost the world roughly 0.460% of annual global economic output between 2025 and 2050. Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to bear a 0.493% burden relative to GDP, compared with 0.599% in North America.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, the researchers estimate a combined economic burden of US$375 billion, or about US$229 per person, over 2025-2050. Botswana’s per-capita burden is therefore substantially above the regional average.

The model incorporates the effects of depression on labour-force participation, education and work experience, using data from the World Bank and Global Burden of Disease study. It estimates economic losses through reductions in effective labour supply as well as weaker capital accumulation.

Botswana’s State-Owned Enterprise landscape has undergone significant changes in recent months, with several SOE boards being overhauled and new directors appointed to entities that had previously operated without fully constituted boards. The changes have been viewed as necessary to strengthen oversight and address governance concerns within institutions that carry significant public mandates. This comes against a backdrop of corporate governance concerns that have previously been raised in relation to some public interest entities by the Botswana Accountancy Oversight Authority (BAOA), placing renewed attention on the effectiveness of boards and the quality of oversight being exercised within Botswana’s public enterprises.

The reconstitution of these boards presents an opportunity to strengthen governance, but the appointment of directors is only one part of that process. The effectiveness of a board cannot be determined simply by the qualifications and experience of the individuals appointed to it. For this reason, there is a strong case for Board Performance Evaluations (BPEs) to form part of the governance cycle of Botswana’s SOEs, particularly as newly constituted boards settle into their roles and begin navigating the challenges of the institutions they have been appointed to oversee.

A board evaluation is intended to provide an honest assessment of how effectively the board is performing its responsibilities and whether the board’s collective conduct is contributing to the institution’s objectives. It can expose weaknesses in the quality of information reaching the board and the extent to which directors are exercising appropriate challenge. It can also reveal problems that are difficult to see from within the boardroom because they have become normalised through familiarity.

A board being evaluated can retain control of the entire process, deciding the questions to be asked, the areas to be examined and what action should follow. There is nothing wrong with a board evaluating its own performance, and directors may approach the exercise in good faith. But there is an obvious conflict in asking those whose performance is under scrutiny to define the standards against which they will be assessed. The risk is not necessarily that directors will deliberately protect themselves; it is that the process gives them control over what the evaluation can reveal.

Directors can approach an evaluation in good faith and still produce a limited assessment of their own effectiveness. A director who has dominated board discussions for years may not recognise that behaviour as a governance weakness, while other directors may be reluctant to identify it in a process controlled by the board itself. A board can therefore receive a technically complete evaluation while remaining largely unaware of the issues that matter most.

The problem becomes more pronounced where evaluation questionnaires are built around conventional questions that invite directors to rate the board on a scale, confirm whether procedures are followed and express general satisfaction with the functioning of the board. Such an exercise can produce impressive percentages without necessarily revealing much about how the board actually functions. A board can score highly on attendance, compliance with meeting procedures and receipt of board papers while still failing to challenge management adequately.

The recent reconstitution of SOE boards makes the question of evaluation particularly important because a newly appointed board can inherit institutional problems that existed long before the arrival of its directors. It can also inherit established relationships, management practices and boardroom cultures that influence how decisions are made. New directors may bring considerable professional experience to the table and still find themselves operating within a system whose weaknesses are difficult to identify without deliberately testing the way the board functions.

An evaluation should therefore go beyond asking directors whether they believe the board is effective and examine how the board actually functions. The early stages of a board’s tenure may provide the most valuable opportunity to establish a culture in which performance is examined before ineffective practices become entrenched.

This does not mean that every board evaluation must be outsourced to an external consultant. An external evaluator can ask the wrong questions, misunderstand the institution, produce a generic report and leave the board with a document that is filed rather than acted upon.

A board can legitimately conduct periodic self-assessments as part of its own governance practice. What becomes problematic is treating that self-assessment as the only mechanism through which board effectiveness is tested. A stronger model would introduce greater objectivity at appropriate points in the governance cycle. External facilitation could be used periodically, particularly for newly constituted boards, boards experiencing significant changes in leadership or composition, or institutions where governance concerns have already emerged.

An evaluation should not be designed merely to confirm that the board is functioning but also to find out where it is not functioning. That requires questions that examine behaviour, judgement and outcomes rather than simply asking whether directors are satisfied with processes. It requires attention to the conduct of the chairperson, the effectiveness of individual directors, the quality of collective decision-making and the relationship between governance and organisational performance.

A board that receives a report identifying weaknesses and then files it with the previous year’s governance documents has completed an administrative exercise rather than a performance intervention. Findings should translate into specific areas of development and changes in board processes. Where the evaluation identifies persistent individual performance concerns, those concerns should not disappear simply because the board is reluctant to confront them.

Botswana’s SOEs have an opportunity to approach board evaluations differently as new boards take shape. The objective should not be to create another annual compliance requirement that produces a report stating that the board is functioning satisfactorily. The objective should be to create a governance discipline in which boards are periodically required to confront the gap between how they believe they are performing and how they are actually performing.

Public institutions cannot reasonably be expected to demonstrate continuous improvement while their boards assess themselves against standards of their own making without meaningful challenge to those assessments. Where public resources and public mandates are involved, the credibility of governance processes matters almost as much as the processes themselves.

If board evaluations have historically been treated as an annual exercise in self-confirmation, repeating the exercise with a new board composition does not necessarily change what the evaluation is capable of revealing. Changing the directors without changing the mechanism through which their effectiveness is examined risks reproducing the same governance blind spots under a different set of names.

A board that marks its own homework may well give itself an honest assessment and even identify weaknesses that require attention. But where the institution’s performance, public mandate and accountability are at stake, governance should not depend entirely on the assumption that the person holding the marking pen will always identify every mistake on the page.

Financially hamstrung Botswana Fencing Federation (BFF) remains determined to expand its international footprint and build a stronger pathway for local fencers. The BFF missed both the recent Commonwealth Games and the Junior World Championships due to an acute lack of funds. Despite these challenges, the federation continues to find ways to give some of its athletes some international exposure.

This year, two senior fencers, Koketso Masena and Aobakwe Modise, were sent to the World Senior Championships in Hong Kong. Two others, Katlego Poonyane and Modise, represented Botswana at the African Championships in June.

BFF Public Relations Officer, Thabile Pilane says the federation was encouraged by the exposure gained. This is despite being unable to send full teams which include coaches to the events. While acknowledging that sending individual athletes instead of teams was not ideal, she says the federation was determined to improve its representation at future competitions.

‘It is not completely bad because we managed to have some exposure internationally, although we sent one person instead of a team. In future we would like to try and send a number of players.’

Despite the financial challenges, the federation continues to organise local competition to keep its athletes active and competition ready. ‘We managed also to have a tournament around March. That is how we keep our players active, so that they are always ready to compete. At any point in time, we can pick from the rankings for these international games when we get the proper funds and the support that we need,’ Pilane says.

With no sponsors on board, the federation currently relies largely on parents and individuals willing to provide financial assistance. ‘We have willing individuals and parents, but it is not stable to run a federation like that.’

‘Our federation is in dire need of sponsors to enable it to grow and gain the recognition it deserves and be part of the strong codes for Team Botswana,’ the BFF PRO emphasises.

Pilane says that while the federation’s mother bodies have supported them, assistance often comes at the last minute, making long-term planning difficult. The federation has since intensified efforts to secure partnerships and sponsorships. Among those recently approached is the Embassy of China in Botswana.

‘We approached the Embassy of China to Botswana because there is another tournament in Hong Kong coming up. We want to take the junior team that didn’t manage to go to the Commonwealth, so that they get that experience and exposure,’ she explains.

In the interim, the BFF is also preparing to host an international local tournament on 19 September 2026 in Gaborone. Athletes from other countries are expected to participate. The competition will cater for junior, senior and cadet categories.

While funding setbacks continue, the federation’s message is one of perseverance: keeping athletes active, seeking partnerships and creating opportunities so that Botswana fencing can eventually compete internationally with full teams and the support structure it deserves.

As the BFF moves towards its elective Annual General Meeting, Pilane says the current committee is still committed to advance the interest of the federation. She says as the committee, they acknowledge that there are still shortcomings, particularly in its efforts to move Botswana up from its current tier to the top tier. Despite these, they remain committed to building on the progress made through a number of initiatives planned for the future.

Bakang Seretse and his companies, Khulaco Proprietary Limited and MandB Properties, have applied to have Court of Appeal President Tebogo Tau and Justice Isaac Lesetedi recuse themselves from a pending appeal over interest earned on restrained funds. They argue that the two judges have already expressed views that create a reasonable apprehension of bias.

The application arises from a dispute over who is entitled to interest generated from millions of pula that were frozen under the Proceeds and Instruments of Crime Act before being released following the collapse of the state’s forfeiture case against Seretse and his companies.

At the centre of the matter is an Appeal in which the Attorney General is challenging a High Court judgment by Justice Zein Kebonang that awarded Seretse, Khulaco and MandB Properties interest accrued on restrained funds.

Seretse argues that Tau and Lesetedi should not sit on the appeal because they recently formed part of a three-judge panel that delivered judgment in a separate but related case involving the same P42 million payment made to Khulaco under a contract linked to the National Petroleum Fund.

According to the application, the July 31 judgment, authored by Justice Edwin Cameron and concurred in by Tau and Lesetedi, contained findings that characterised the transaction and Seretse’s conduct in strongly negative terms. Seretse points to passages in which the court referred to ‘sticky fingers’, suggested that ‘a monstrous heist was in the making’, and stated that a ‘whiff of fraud’ lingered around the transaction.

He argues that those findings went beyond procedural issues and amounted to judicial conclusions about his honesty and the legitimacy of the underlying transaction.

Seretse contends that the remarks are difficult to reconcile with an earlier Court of Appeal judgment delivered in 2022, which dismissed the state’s forfeiture appeal and accepted that the P42 million payment had a contractual basis.

‘The cumulative effect of those findings was to judicially characterise me as having participated dishonestly in a transaction involving the appropriation of Government monies,’ Seretse states in his affidavit. He argues that because the present appeal concerns funds connected to the same underlying transaction, a reasonable and informed observer could conclude that Tau and Lesetedi have already formed views on issues that may arise in the matter. The Attorney General opposes the application.

The Attorney General argues that the recusal bid is not based on dissatisfaction with an unfavourable judgment but on concerns about the appearance of impartiality.

Seretse and Co maintain that the test is not whether the judges are actually biased, but whether there is a reasonable apprehension that they may not approach the pending appeal with an open mind.

The dispute stems from lengthy litigation over funds linked to the National Petroleum Fund. The Directorate of Public Prosecutions previously sought forfeiture of assets connected to Seretse and his companies, but both the High Court and the Court of Appeal dismissed those efforts. After the restrained funds were released, a fresh dispute emerged over interest that accrued while the money was held in interest-bearing accounts.

In the recusal application, Seretse asks that Tau and Lesetedi step aside and that the matter be reassigned to a differently constituted Court of Appeal panel.

Former Transport and Infrastructure Minister Eric Molale is expected to be added to the sprawling corruption case involving his successor, Noah Salakae.

This follows an announcement by the prosecution that they will amend the charge sheet to add another suspect before pleas are taken.

Information gathered bySunday Standard suggests Molale is the unnamed suspect the State referred to when the matter came before the Broadhurst Regional Magistrates’ Court on Friday. Prosecutors told the court that another suspect would be joined to the proceedings and that the charge sheet would be amended before all accused persons enter their pleas.

The development adds another spin to the controversial corruption case involving P1.5 billion Ghanzi-New Xade road construction project, which the prosecution believe was initiated during Molale’s tenure as Minister of Transport and Infrastructure in 2024.

Molale and the lead investigator in the case, Thabo Malambane have a controversial history. Molale, then Permanent Secretary to the President (PSP)signed the 2014 letter firing Malambane from his position as Principal Magistrate, based in Ghanzi. The letter, signed by Molale stated that, ‘Consequently, I am directed to inform you that His Excellency has, in exercise of the powers vested in him by section 104 (2) (b) of the Constitution, decided to dismiss you from your position as Principal Magistrate with immediate effect’.

It remains unclear what role Molale is alleged to have played in the procurement process currently before court.

Salakae was arraigned alongside Tau Grading and Building Construction (Pty) Ltd, its managing director Hugo Johannes Lemcke, accountant Seby Jose, company director Christiaan Rudolf Lemcke, retired former permanent secretary Kgakgamalo Ken Ketshajwang and attorney Mompati Patrick Sepego.

The seven accused face charges of corrupting a public officer, corruption, abuse of office and money laundering arising from allegations that inducements were paid to secure the lucrative road contract. According to the charge sheet, Tau Grading, its officials and others allegedly offered Salakae P1.6 million in cash, a Toyota Fortuner valued at P575,000 and bush-clearing services as rewards for influencing and ensuring the signing of the contract in favour of the company.

The State alleges that the benefits were linked to the Ghanzi-New Xade road construction project, a government contract valued at P1,535,503,969.39.

Prosecutors allege that, while serving as minister, Salakae used his office to obtain the cash, vehicle and services before influencing the award of the multibillion-pula contract to Tau Grading. The charge sheet further alleges that the P1.6 million was later used to acquire portions of a farm in Ghanzi, while the bush-clearing services were performed at his in-laws’ farm and a lodge he leased.

Ketshajwang, the former permanent secretary in the ministry, is accused of abuse of office after allegedly approving the direct appointment of Tau Grading despite the project requiring selective procurement. Prosecutors contend that the decision prejudiced other companies that could have competed for the contract.

The money laundering count alleges that the accused knowingly transferred and concealed proceeds of crime, including routing the P1.6 million through a Bank Gaborone account held by Sepego before using part of the funds to purchase farm portions in Ghanzi. Prosecutors further allege that efforts were made to disguise ownership of the property by registering it in the name of Salakae’s wife and later a company.

The possibility of Molale being joined to the proceedings could significantly widen the scope of the case, particularly if the state established that decisions relating to the road project were taken before Salakae assumed office. The matter returns to court on October 9, 2026 when the amended charge sheet is expected to be presented and the accused called upon to plead.

GABORONE – Stanbic Bank Botswana marked the culmination of its Transact to Win campaign with a Grand Finale held in Gaborone North, bringing to a close a campaign that rewarded clients for their everyday banking activity.

Delivered in partnership with Visa, the Swipe, Pay, Send to Win campaign saw customers rewarded for transactions including card payments, eCommerce purchases and Instant Money transfers. The finale took place at the site of the campaign’s grand prize, a newly constructed sustainable fully- furnished Legae Home valued at P980,000, located in Gaborone North.

Throughout the campaign, customers stood a chance to win weekly cash prizes, with sixteen winners selected during each weekly draw. Qualifying winners received P2,500, while customers who transacted using a Stanbic Bank Point of Sale machine stood a chance to receive P5,000.

The Grand Finale saw the campaign’s biggest prizes awarded. Tsarona Rabakane walked away with the newly constructed fully- furnished sustainable Legae Home valued at P980,000. Goena Esi Bareetseng received P100,000, while Odirile Elias received P50,000. Stanbic Bank Botswana also covered all costs associated with transferring the grand prize property to its new owner.

The sustainable home formed an important part of the campaign’s broader focus on rewarding customers with a prize designed to deliver lasting value. Beyond home ownership, the grand prize reflects Stanbic Bank Botswana’s continued focus on supporting more sustainable choices and encouraging greater awareness of how sustainability fits into the everyday lives and aspirations of Batswana. This builds on the Bank’s wider sustainability efforts, including the recent launch of its Sustainability Academy, aimed at building greater understanding of sustainability and supporting the shift towards more environmentally responsible practices.

Speaking at the event, Stanbic Bank Botswana Chief Executive, Chose Modise, said the campaign reflected the Bank’s commitment to creating meaningful value for clients while encouraging greater adoption of convenient banking solutions.

‘Transact and Win reflects a simple principle for us. Banking should create meaningful value in people’s lives. Today, we celebrate a client reaching the significant milestone of owning a sustainable home, one that represents security, dignity and the opportunity to build for generations. This is the kind of progress we want to enable for our clients and for Botswana, while supporting a future where economic growth and sustainability move together.’

For Tsarona Rabakane, the Grand Finale marked a significant milestone as she received the keys to the sustainable Legae Home.

‘I am so happy to have won this home, I don’t know what to say, thank you so much Stanbic Bank Botswana, I didn’t know that I was actively taking part in a competition, I was just doing my everyday transactions’ said Tsarona Rabakane.

The campaign was open to eligible Stanbic Bank Botswana customers aged 18 years and above, including qualifying credit, prepaid and debit cardholders, as well as customers using the Stanbic Bank App, USSD and Internet Banking.

Customers qualified through everyday banking activity, including using their debit, credit or prepaid cards, making eCommerce payments or completing at least three Instant Money transfers per month during the campaign period.

Beyond the grand prize, the campaign recognised customers consistently throughout its duration. In total, 64 customers received weekly cash prizes, with P 240 000 awarded over the course of the campaign.

Modise added that the sustainable Legae Home represents the kind of long-term progress the Bank seeks to support for its clients.

‘Home ownership is an important aspiration for many Batswana, and increasingly, the conversation around home ownership must also consider how we build and live more sustainably. We are proud that the grand prize brings these two ambitions together. We congratulate all our winners and thank every client who participated in the campaign and made this journey a success.’

As the Transact and Win campaign closes, Stanbic Bank Botswana remains focused on delivering banking experiences that reward clients, encourage convenient ways of transacting and support sustainable, long-term progress.

A new study by Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis (BIDPA) has revealed how Botswana is failing to fully exploit tourism as a vehicle for economic diversification despite possessing a wealth of wildlife, natural resources and a reputation for peace and stability.

The study titled The Impact of Economic Growth in Botswana, says Botswana’s tourism industry remains uncompetitive when compared with regional destinations such as Seychelles and Mauritius, raising questions about the country’s ability to use the sector to reduce its long-standing dependence on minerals.

According to the study, Botswana has a significant comparative advantage in tourism, with its game reserves, national parks, wildlife and wetlands providing the foundation for a globally attractive tourism industry.

However, it argues that this potential has not translated into meaningful economic diversification.

‘Botswana’s tourism sector is not competitive compared to other regional countries (e.g. Seychelles and Mauritius), despite the country’s comparative advantage, abundance of wildlife and being peaceful in nature,’ the study says.

It identifies insufficient investment as one of the major factors holding the sector back, arguing that inadequate investment has prevented Botswana’s tourism industry from becoming sufficiently competitive in the global market.

The study contrasts Botswana’s performance with that of Seychelles and Mauritius saying the two countries have made significant investments in tourism, allowing the sector to make a substantial contribution to economic growth.

‘Other regional countries, including Seychelles and Mauritius, have made significant investments in tourism which has resulted in the sector contributing immensely to economic growth,’ the study states.

The findings come as Botswana continues to grapple with the challenge of diversifying an economy heavily dependent on minerals, particularly diamonds.

The study argues that tourism could provide one of the most immediate avenues for diversification because it is labour-intensive and has strong linkages with other sectors of the economy.

It says expanding tourism could create employment, particularly for young people and communities in rural areas, while simultaneously supporting businesses involved in food supply, accommodation, transport, internet services and other local services.

‘Promoting tourism development is considered as a key strategy that can lead to economic upliftment, export diversification and employment creation, further leading to poverty reduction,’ the study says. BIDPA says Botswana needs to significantly improve the quality of infrastructure and services supporting the tourism industry.

It points to housing, accommodation capacity, internet connectivity and roads as among the factors that can determine whether the country is competitive as an international tourism destination.

‘Service quality needs to be encouraged in Botswana’s tourism sector,’ the study says, warning that infrastructure and other supporting services need to meet high standards if Botswana is to compete successfully in the global tourism market.

The study also calls for greater investment in hospitality skills, arguing that Botswana needs a workforce capable of delivering the service standards expected by international tourists.

It recommends product diversification so that Botswana does not rely too heavily on traditional wildlife and safari offerings, while also calling for a clear tourism market strategy.

The study argues that if government is serious about using tourism to drive economic diversification, it must commit more resources to the sector.

‘If the objective of government is to promote economic diversification through tourism, the policy should strengthen and commit more resources to tourism development in order to expand the sector and increase demand for its products,’ it says.

It further calls for a more conducive environment for private-sector investment, arguing that greater investment would help expand the tourism industry and increase its contribution to economic growth and exports.

BIDPA also recommends policies focused on environmental conservation, reducing tourism leakages and empowering citizens to participate more actively in the sector.

The issue of tourism leakages is particularly important because a larger tourism industry does not automatically mean that most of the money generated remains in Botswana. The study argues that policies should ensure greater participation by citizens and local businesses so that tourism revenue circulates more extensively within the domestic economy.

The study concludes that Botswana is well positioned to become a major tourism destination but is failing to fully convert its natural advantages into economic gains.

It argues that developing tourism would not only generate foreign exchange and exports but also stimulate activity across multiple sectors.

‘Tourism also has strong economic linkages with other sectors, therefore, its development will also benefit other sectors, for example, local service providers such as food, internet, accommodation, transport and others,’ the study says.

Parliament has been asked to raise the ceiling on Botswana’s government bond issuance programme from P55 billion to P85 billion, with Finance Minister Ndaba Gaolathe insisting the increase is about financing flexibility rather than a plan to borrow more.

Gaolathe told legislators that the proposed ceiling should not be interpreted as a borrowing target or an intention to use the full amount. Instead, it would set the maximum value of government securities that may be outstanding at any given time.

The existing programme is nearing its limit, with domestic government securities outstanding at P48.3 billion at the end of March 2026, equivalent to about 88% of the current ceiling.

Government’s financing requirement for 2026/27 is estimated at P26.35 billion, with about P12 billion expected to be raised through domestic bonds. External financing remains important but can involve lengthy negotiations and conditions beyond government’s control.

Gaolathe also pointed to the Retirement Funds Act of 2022, which requires pension funds to increase domestic investment and reduce offshore holdings. The resulting repatriation of pension assets could increase demand for government securities, which provide relatively safe investment instruments while supporting domestic liquidity management.

The bond programme was established in 2004, initially when government was running surpluses, to develop the domestic capital market and provide long-term investment instruments for pension funds. Its ceiling was subsequently increased to P15 billion, P30 billion and P55 billion in 2024.

Gaolathe said reforms including monthly auctions, published borrowing calendars and liability-management operations had strengthened the market and investor demand remained strong.

He stressed that raising the ceiling would not authorise additional government spending. Actual borrowing, he said, would remain determined by the budget, debt management strategy and debt-sustainability framework.

The higher ceiling would therefore give government additional headroom to finance approved priorities without relying excessively on more expensive short-term borrowing.

The World Bank has warned that Botswana’s public health system is facing a persistent essential medicines crisis. The bank says stockouts are being driven by systemic failures in forecasting, procurement, data management, warehousing and distribution.

The findings are contained in the Botswana Health Public Expenditure Review which paints a picture of a health system receiving relatively high budget allocations but struggling to convert public spending into reliable services for citizens. The report states bluntly that ‘challenges with stockouts of essential medicines in the public sector are a continuing concern.’

According to the World Bank, Central Medical Stores (CMS) tracks the availability of vital, essential and necessary medicines, but all three categories remained below the government’s 97 percent availability target during the three years for which data was available. The World Bank says previous assessments had already shown that CMS order-fill rates had been declining since 2014. The report identifies poor forecasting and quantification caused by poor-quality data, irrational medicine use, including prescribers’ preference for branded medicines, procurement processes that are not aligned with health-sector needs, and inadequate warehousing and distribution capacity.

The World Bank also takes aim at Botswana’s fragmented information management systems, warning that they may fail to provide government with timely, adequate and actionable information.

‘The absence of quality data undermines the ability of government and partners to plan, monitor, and evaluate health performance,’ the report states. The weaknesses extend to monitoring and accountability. The report highlights the lack of regular data-quality audits, inadequate capacity to synthesise and use strategic information and the absence of key structures such as a national monitoring and evaluation plan. District Health Management Teams also lack sufficient personnel dedicated to monitoring and evaluation, while accountability for programme data quality is largely concentrated among national-level programme leaders.

But the medicines crisis is only one symptom of what the World Bank describes as a broader problem of inefficiency in Botswana’s health expenditure. The report says weak budgeting and public financial management arrangements are contributing to poor performance, including weak links between annual work plans and budgets, insufficient decentralisation of spending responsibilities, poor budget execution and weaknesses in information used for planning. The World Bank cites evidence that in 2019 only 14 percent of the Vulnerable Groups Feeding Programme ration reached intended recipients, while in districts with the highest prevalence of moderate and severe underweight, the proportion was estimated to be as low as 7 percent.

Despite relatively high health allocations, Botswana’s public health expenditure is described as inefficient with recurring expenditure consuming 96 percent of total public health spending on average between 2017/18 and 2020/21, leaving development spending crowded out. The report also says spending is heavily skewed towards hospitals, which are generally less cost-effective than primary healthcare, while inadequate investment in medical equipment contributes to referrals to private providers locally and abroad.

Botswana is also spending heavily on private healthcare providers and specialists. Fees paid to private providers accounted for 7 percent of total public health expenditure, rising from about P524 million in 2017/18 to P958 million in 2021/22.The World Bank warns that the concentration of spending within the Ministry of Health further obscures accountability and makes it difficult to track resources against strategic health objectives. The report says the Department of Health Services Management accounted for about 87 percent of Ministry of Health expenditure, effectively creating what it describes as a ‘ministry within a ministry.’