Botswana
Botswana (officially called the Republic of Botswana) is a country in southern Africa. The capital of Botswana is Gaborone.
Republic of Botswana Lefatshe la Botswana (Tswana) | |
|---|---|
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| Motto: | |
| Anthem: | |
.svg) Location of Botswana (dark green) | |
| Capital and largest city | Gaborone 24°39.5′S 25°54.5′E / 24.6583°S 25.9083°E |
| Official languages | English |
| Ethnic groups (2012 est.) | |
| Religion |
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| Demonym(s) |
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| Government | Unitary dominant-party[1][2][3] parliamentary constitutional republic[4] |
| Mokgweetsi Masisi[5] | |
| Slumber Tsogwane | |
| Phandu Skelemani | |
| Terence Rannowane | |
| Legislature | National Assembly |
| Independence from the United Kingdom | |
• Established (Constitution) | 30 September 1966 |
| Area | |
• Total | Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1850: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value).[6] (47th) |
• Water (%) | 2.7 |
| Population | |
• 2016 estimate | 2,250,260[7] (145th) |
• 2011 census | 2,024,904 |
• Density | Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1850: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). (231st) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2019 estimate |
• Total | $44.3 billion[8] |
• Per capita | $18,654[8] |
| GDP (nominal) | 2019 estimate |
• Total | $19.651 billion[8] |
• Per capita | $8,263[8] |
| Gini (2015) | ▼ 53.3[9] high |
| HDI (2019) |  0.735[10]high · 100th |
| Currency | Botswana pula (BWP) |
| Time zone | Central Africa Time (GMT+2)[11] |
| Date format | dd/mm/yyyy |
| Driving side | left |
| Calling code | +267 |
| ISO 3166 code | BW |
| Internet TLD | .bw |
Website www | |
History
The first people in Botswana's territory were the Khoe and San people.[12] Botswana was first formed as the Bechuanaland Protectorate by the British Empire in 1885.[13][14]
Geography
The countries that border Botswana are Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Namibia. It is also possible to travel from Botswana directly into Zambia by crossing the Zambezi River by ferry.
Botswana is landlocked. All of Botswana's trade must be brought in over land or by airplane.
The two most important geographical features in Botswana are the Okavango Delta and the Kalahari Desert.
Divisions
Botswana is divided into 10 districts:
Culture
People from Botswana are called Batswana. The population of Botswana is about 2.2 million. [15] This is only 2.7 persons per km², a small number for a country of this size. This is because most of the country is desert and very dry.
Botswana has two official languages: Setswana and English. Setswana is the national language (also called Tswana).
Governance
Botswana is a democracy. The people vote for their political leaders. Those leaders vote for the president. In 2008 Ian Khama became the fourth president of Botswana.
President Khama won elections in 2009 and 2014. The current President of Botswana is Dr. Eric K. Mokgweetsi who took over from Dr. Ian Khama Seretse Khama in 2018.
Economy
The economy of Botswana has been growing very fast since it became an independent country in 1966. The people of Botswana have had the world's fastest growth in standard of living since that time.
Botswana's economy comes mostly from mining. This includes diamonds, metals (including copper) and minerals (including salt). Botswana is the highest producer of diamonds by value in the world.[16] In 1999, Botswana produced over 30 million carats (6,000 kg) of diamonds from the three Debswana mines. That is about 25% of worldwide production. There has been an agreement with De Beers since 1969. In 2023 a new agreement was made giving the country more of the diamonds - 30% in 2023, 40% from 2028 and 50% from 2033.[17]
Tourism is also important to the country. Many people come to Botswana each year to see its wildlife.
The currency of Botswana is called the pula (which means rain). It is made up of 100 thebe (which means shield). In 2017, one US dollar was about 10.32 pulas.[18]
In popular culture
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books by Alexander McCall Smith are set in Botswana. The HBO television series based on the books was filmed in Botswana.
Gallery
Okavango sunset
Tsodilo Hills
Grassland Bushman Lodge
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Botswana Media
Instrumental recording of "Fatshe leno la rona" ("Blessed Be This Noble Land"), the national anthem of Botswana
Location of Botswana
The 'Two Rhino' painting at Tsodilo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
German map of 1905 still showing the undivided Bechuanaland area
Postage stamp of British-ruled Bechuanaland from 1960
Future presidents Quett Masire (left) and Seretse Khama (right) at independence talks in London, 1965.
Botswana map of Köppen climate classification
Related pages
References
- ↑ Seabo, Batlang; Kesaobaka, Molebatsi. "Botswana's Dominant Party System" (PDF). Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ↑ Benza, Brian (24 October 2019). "Botswana's Masisi retains presidency as BDP wins election". Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-botswana-election/botswanas-masisi-retains-presidency-as-bdp-wins-election-idUSKBN1X40KS. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ↑ Selolwane, Onalenna (2002). "Monopoly Politikos: How Botswana's Opposition Parties Have Helped Sustain One-Party Dominance". African Sociological Review. 6 (1): 68–90. doi:10.4314/asr.v6i1.23203. JSTOR 24487673.
- ↑ "Africa :: Botswana – The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Archived from the original on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ↑ Masisi to Lead Botswana as Khama Steps Down After a Decade. 28 March 2018. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-28/masisi-to-lead-botswana-as-khama-steps-down-after-decade-at-helm. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ↑ (2015) Global Forest Resources Assessment 2015 – Country Report – Botswana . United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, 9. Report. “Total Country Area ('000)ha / 58 173”
- ↑ "World Population Prospects: The 2017 Revision". ESA.UN.org (custom data acquired via website). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "IMF Country Specific Data". Retrieved 10 August 2019.
- ↑ "GINI index (World Bank estimate)". World Bank. Archived from the original on 13 December 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ↑ "Human Development Report 2020" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. December 15, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
- ↑ Chapter: 01:04 (20 July 1984). "Interpretation Act 1984 (§40(1))". Archived from the original on 28 March 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
- ↑ "Botswana | South African History Online". www.sahistory.org.za. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
- ↑ "History of Botswana | Embassy of the Republic of Botswana in Washington, D.C." www.botswanaembassy.org. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
- ↑ Morton, Fred (January 1989). "The Birth of Botswana: A History of the Bechuanaland Protectorate from 1910 to 1966". African Economic History – via ResearchGate.
- ↑ "Africa :: Botswana — The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Archived from the original on 2018-06-08. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
- ↑ "Botswana diamonds". Know Botswana.com. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
- ↑ Dempsey, Harry; Cotterill, Joseph (2023-07-25). "De Beers prospects blemished after Botswana cuts new diamond deal". Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/f2b27377-3650-448f-84ed-40e43118e801?. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
- ↑ "XE: Convert USD/BWP. United States Dollar to Botswana Pula". www.xe.com. Retrieved 2017-05-17.
Other websites
Media related to Botswana at Wikimedia Commons
Botswana travel guide from Wikivoyage- Botswana Newspapers Archived 2012-10-06 at the Wayback Machine