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BOTSWANA BACKGROUND
Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name
upon independence in 1966. Four decades of uninterrupted civilian leadership, progressive social policies, and significant
capital investment have created one of the most dynamic economies in Africa. Mineral extraction, principally diamond mining,
dominates economic activity, though tourism is a growing sector due to the country's conservation practices and extensive
nature preserves. Botswana has one of the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection, but also one of Africa's most
progressive and comprehensive programs for dealing with the disease.
ABOUT BOTSWANA
Population:
1,640,115 (July 2005 est.)
note: Estimates for
this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy,
higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population
by age and sex than would otherwise be expected
Age structure:
0-14 years: 38.8% (male:322,916; female:312,735)
15-64
years: 57.5% (male:455,183; female:487,236)
65 years and over: 3.8% (male:23,914; female:38,131) (2005)
Median age:
total:
19.29 years
male: 18.64 years
female: 19.93 years (2005)
Birth rate:
23.33 births / 1,000
population (2005 est.)
Death rate:
29.36 deaths / 1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate:
6.07
migrant(s) / 1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005)
under
15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005)
15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female (2005)
65 years and over: 0.63
male(s)/female (2005)
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005)
Infant mortality rate:
total:
54.58 deaths / 1,000 live births (2005 est.)
male:
55.97 deaths / 1,000 live births
female:
53.14 deaths / 1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total:
33.87 years (2005 est.)
male: 33.89
years
female: 33.84 years
Total
fertility rate:
2.85 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS — adult prevalence rate:
37.3% (2003
est.)
HIV/AIDS — people living with HIV/AIDS:
350,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS — deaths:
33,000 (2003
est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial
diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria (2004)
Nationality:
noun:
Motswana (singular), Batswana (plural)
adjective: Motswana (singular), Batswana (plural)
Ethnic groups:
Tswana
79% (or Setswana), Kalanga 11%, Basarwa 3%, other 7% including Kgalagadi and white
Religions:
Christian 71.6%,
Badimo 6%, other 1.4%, unspecified 0.4%, none 20.6% (2001)
Languages:
Setswana 78.2%, Kalanga 7.9%, Sekgalagadi
2.8%, English (official) 2.1%, other 8.6%, unspecified 0.4% (2001)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over
can read and write
total population: 79.8%
male: 76.9%
female: 82.4% (2003)
THE STRONGEST ECONOMY IN AFRICA !!!
Botswana has maintained one of the world's highest economic growth rates since
independence in 1966. Through fiscal discipline and sound management,
Botswana has transformed itself from one of the poorest countries in the world
to
a middle-income country with a per capita GDP of $9,200 in 2004. Two major
investment services rank Botswana as the best credit risk in Africa. Diamond
mining has fueled much of the expansion and currently accounts for more than
one-third of GDP and for 70-80% of export earnings. Tourism, financial
services,
subsistence farming, and cattle raising are other key sectors. On the downside
, the government must deal with high rates of unemployment and poverty.
Unemployment officially is 23.8%, but unofficial estimates place it closer to 40%. HIV/AIDS
infection rates are the second highest in the world and threaten Botswana's impressive economic gains. An expected leveling
off in diamond mining production overshadow long-term prospects.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$15.05 billion
(2004 est.)
GDP — real growth rate:
3.5% (2004 est.)
GDP — per capita:
purchasing power
parity: $9,200 (2004 est.)
GDP — composition by sector:
agriculture: 4%
industry: 44%
services:
52%
(2003)
Labor force:
264,000 formal sector employees (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate:
23.8%
(2004 est.)
Population below poverty line:
47% (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
7% (2004 est.)
Investment
(gross fixed):
25.5% of GDP (2004 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $3.74 billion (2004 est.)
expenditures:
$3.74 billion including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Public debt:
8.6% of GDP (2004 est.)
Agriculture
— products:
Livestock, sorghum, maize, millet, beans, sunflowers, groundnuts
Industries:
diamonds,
copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash; livestock processing; textiles
Industrial production growth rate:
4.4%
(2004 est.)
Electricity — production:
930 million kWh (2002 est.)
Electricity — consumption:
1.89
billion kWh (2002 est.)
Electricity — exports:
0 kWh (2002 est.)
Electricity — imports:
1.02
billion kWh (2002 est.)
Oil — production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil — consumption:
16,000
bbl/day (2001 est.)
Current account balance:
$337 million (2004 est.)
Exports:
$2.94 billion (f.o.b.
2004 est.)
Exports — commodities:
diamonds, copper, nickel, soda ash, meat, textiles
Exports —
partners:
European Free Trade Association 87%, Southern African Customs Union 7%, Zimbabwe 4% (2000)
Imports:
$2.26
billion (f.o.b. 2004 est.)
Imports — commodities:
foodstuffs, machinery, electrical goods, transport equipment,
textiles, fuel and petroleum products, wood and paper products, metal and metal products
Imports — partners:
Southern
African Customs Union 74%, EFTA 17%, Zimbabwe 4% (2000)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$5.7 billion (2004
est.)
Debt — external:
$531 million (2004 est.)
Economic — aid recipient:
$73 million
(1995 est.)
Currency:
pula (BWP)
Exchange rates:
pula per US$: 4.69 (2004 est.), 4.95 (2003 est.),
6.33 (2002 est.), 5.84 (2001 est.), 5.1 (2000 est.)
Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March
BOTSWANA GEOGRAPHY
Location:
Southern Africa, north of South Africa
Geographic coordinates:
22
00 S, 24 00 E
Map references:AfricaArea:
total: 600,370 sq km
land: 585,370 sq km
water:
15,000 sq km
Area - comparative:
Slightly smaller than France
Land boundaries:
total: 4,013
km
border countries: Namibia 1360 km, South Africa 1840 km, Zimbabwe 813 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime
claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
Semiarid; warm winters and hot summers
Terrain:
Predominantly
flat to gently rolling tableland; Kalahari Desert in southwest
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: junction
of the Limpopo and Shashe Rivers 513 m
highest point: Tsodilo Hills 1,489 m
Natural resources:
Diamonds,
copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash, coal, iron ore, silver
Land use:
arable land: 0.65%
permanent
crops: 0.01%
other: 99.34%
(2001)
Irrigated land:
10 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
Periodic
droughts; seasonal August winds blow from the west, carrying sand and dust across the country, which can obscure visibility
Environment
- current issues:
Overgrazing; desertification; limited fresh water resources
Environment - international agreements:
party
to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements (not
ratified)
Geography - Note:
Landlocked; population concentrated in eastern part of the country
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