Botswana

Airports

100 total, 87 usable; 8 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 26 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

6 major transport aircraft

Highways

11,514 km total; 1,600 km paved; 1,700 km crushed stone or gravel, 5,177 km improved earth, 3,037 km unimproved earth

Railroads

712 km 1.0 67-meter gauge

Telecommunications

the small system is a combination of open-wire lines, radio relay links, and a few radiocommunication stations; 17,900 telephones; stations--2 AM, 3 FM, no TV; 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Branches

Botswana Defense Force (including Army and Air Wing), Botswana National Police

Defense expenditures

$99 million, 8.2% of GNP (1989)

Manpower availability

males 15-49, 260,290; 137,038 fit for military service; 14,767 reach military age (18) annually

Agriculture

accounts for only 3% of GDP; subsistence farming predominates; cattle raising supports 50% of the population; must import large share of food needs

Budget

revenues $1,719 million; expenditures $1,792 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92 est.)

Currency

pula (plural--pula); 1 pula (P) = 100 thebe

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $257 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $1.8 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $43 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $29 million

Electricity

217,000 kW capacity; 630 million kWh produced, 510 kWh per capita (1989)

Exchange rates

pula (P) per US$1--1.8720 (January 1991), 1.8601 (1990), 2.0125 (1989), 1.8159 (1988), 1.6779 (1987), 1.8678 (1986), 1.8882 (1985)

Exports

$1.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.); commodities--diamonds 77%, copper and nickel 12%, meat 4%, cattle, animal products; partners--Switzerland, UK, US, SACU (Southern African Customs Union)

External debt

$780 million (December 1990 est.)

Fiscal year

1 April-31 March

GDP

$3.1 billion, per capita $2,500; real growth rate 6.3% (1990)

Imports

$1.7 billion (c.i.f., 1990 est.); commodities--foodstuffs, vehicles and transport equipment, textiles, petroleum products; partners--Switzerland, SACU (Southern African Customs Union), UK, US

Industrial production

growth rate 16.8% (FY86); accounts for about 57% of GDP, including mining

Industries

mining of diamonds, copper, nickel, coal, salt, soda ash, potash; livestock processing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

12.0% (1990)

Overview

The economy has historically been based on cattle raising and crops. Agriculture today provides a livelihood for over 80% of the population, but produces only about 50% of food needs and contributes a small 3% to GDP. The driving force behind the rapid economic growth of the 1970s and 1980s has been the mining industry. This sector, mostly on the strength of diamonds, has gone from generating 25% of GDP in 1980 to over 50% in 1989. No other sector has experienced such growth, especially not agriculture, which is plagued by erratic rainfall and poor soils. The unemployment rate remains a problem at 25%.

Unemployment rate

25% (1989)

Climate

semiarid; warm winters and hot summers

Coastline

none--landlocked

Comparative area

slightly smaller than Texas

Disputes

short section of the boundary with Namibia is indefinite; quadripoint with Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe is in disagreement

Environment

rains in early 1988 broke six years of drought that had severely affected the important cattle industry; overgrazing; desertification

Land boundaries

4,013 km total; Namibia 1,360 km, South Africa 1,840 km, Zimbabwe 813 km

Land use

arable land 2%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 75%; forest and woodland 2%; other 21%; includes irrigated NEGL%

Maritime claims

none--landlocked

Natural resources

diamonds, copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash, coal, iron ore, silver, natural gas

Note

landlocked

Terrain

predominately flat to gently rolling tableland; Kalahari Desert in southwest

Total area

600,370 km2; land area: 585,370 km2

Administrative divisions

10 districts; Central, Chobe, Ghanzi, Kgalagadi, Kgatleng, Kweneng, Ngamiland, North-East, South-East, Southern; note--in addition, there may now be 4 town councils named Francistown, Gaborone, Lobaste, Selebi-Pikwe

Capital

Gaborone

Communists

no known Communist organization; Kenneth Koma of BNF has long history of Communist contacts

Constitution

March 1965, effective 30 September 1966

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Botsweletse Kingsley SEBELE; Chancery at Suite 404, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 244-4990 or 4991; US--Ambassador David PASSAGE; Embassy at Botswana Road, Gaborone (mailing address is P. O. Box 90, Gaborone); telephone [267] 353-982 through 353-984

Executive branch

president, vice president, Cabinet

Flag

light blue with a horizontal white-edged black stripe in the center

Independence

30 September 1966 (from UK; formerly Bechuanaland)

Judicial branch

High Court, Court of Appeal Chief of State and Head of Government--President Quett K. J. MASIRE (since 13 July 1980); Vice President Peter S. MMUSI (since 3 January 1983) Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), Quett MASIRE; Botswana National Front (BNF), Kenneth KOMA; Botswana People's Party (BPP), Knight MARIPE; Botswana Independence Party (BIP), Motsamai MPHO

Legal system

based on Roman-Dutch law and local customary law; judicial review limited to matters of interpretation; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

bicameral National Assembly consists of an upper house or House of Chiefs and a lower house or National Assembly

Long-form name

Republic of Botswana

Member of

ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, FLS, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, SACU, SADCC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WMO

National holiday

Botswana Day, 30 September (1966)

Suffrage

universal at age 21 President--last held 7 October 1989 (next to be held October 1994); results--President Quett K. J. MASIRE was reelected by the National Assembly; National Assembly--last held 7 October 1989 (next to be held October 1994); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(38 total, 34 elected) BDP 35, BNF 3

Type

parliamentary republic

Birth rate

36 births/1,000 population (1991)

Death rate

9 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

Ethnic divisions

Batswana 95%; Kalanga, Basarwa, and Kgalagadi about 4%; white about 1%

Infant mortality rate

43 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Labor force

400,000; 182,200 formal sector employees, most others are engaged in cattle raising and subsistence agriculture (1988 est.); 19,000 are employed in various mines in South Africa (1988)

Language

English (official), Setswana

Life expectancy at birth

59 years male, 65 years female (1991)

Literacy

23% (male 32%, female 16%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality

noun and adjective--Motswana (singular), Batswana (plural)

Net migration rate

0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

Organized labor

19 trade unions

Population

1,258,392 (July 1991), growth rate 2.7% (1991)

Religion

indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 50%

Total fertility rate

4.6 children born/woman (1991)