The World Bank partners with the government to promote private sector-led, jobs-intensive growth, strengthen human and physical assets, and support effective resource management.
Botswana is located at the center of southern Africa, positioned between South Africa, Namibia, Angola, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. One of the world’s poorest countries at independence in 1966, it rapidly became one of the world’s development success stories. Significant mineral (diamond) wealth, good governance, prudent economic management and a relatively small population of more than two million, have made it an upper middle-income country. The World Bank’s engagement is focused on helping it consolidate its progress while addressing a range of persistent and emerging challenges.
Political Context
Botswana has a stable political environment with a multi-party democratic tradition. General elections are held every five years. The ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) has been in power since 1966. With the end of his second five-year term, President Ian Khama stepped down and, as per convention, the Vice-President (Mokgweetsi Eric Masisi) assumed the Presidency on April 1 and will stand for the Presidency in the next general elections.
Economic Overview
Since gaining independence from Britain, Botswana has been one of the world’s fastest growing economies, averaging 5% per annum over the past decade. Its reliance on commodities renders it vulnerable to international market fluctuations. Economic activity is expected to intensify to 4.5% in 2017, up to 4.8% by 2019. Economic growth will be driven by the mining activity, construction, services sector and intensified public investments.
The National Budget for 2018/19 was passed. Presented to Parliament on February 5, 2018, the new budget puts total expenditure and net lending at P67.87 billion (33.4% of gross domestic product (GDP)), an increase of P8.3 billion (1.3%) compared to the previous fiscal year. The (capital) budget is P19.31 billion, up by P2.4 billion (16.6%) over the previous fiscal year. A budget deficit of P3.59 billion (1.8% of GDP) is expected despite the positive domestic economic outlook.
Read more on: https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/botswana/overview