Portal:Botswana

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Coat of Arms of Botswana	Flag of Botswana

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Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the south and southeast, Namibia to the west and north, Zambia to the north and Zimbabwe to the northeast. With a population of slightly over 2.4 million people and a comparable land area to France, Botswana is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. It is essentially the nation-state of the Tswana people, who constitute nearly 80 percent of the population.

The Tswana ethnic group are descended mainly from Bantu-speaking peoples who migrated into southern Africa, including modern Botswana, in several waves before AD 600. In 1885, the British colonised the area and declared a protectorate named Bechuanaland. As part of the decolonisation of Africa, Bechuanaland became an independent Commonwealth republic under its current name on 30 September 1966. Since then, it has been a parliamentary republic with a consistent record of uninterrupted democratic elections, although the Botswana Democratic Party was the only ruling party from independence until 2024. As of 2024^[update], Botswana is the third-least corrupt country in Africa, according to the Corruption Perceptions Index published by Transparency International.

The economy is dominated by mining and tourism. Botswana has a per capita GDP (purchasing power parity) of about $20,158 as of 2024^[update]. Botswana is the world's biggest diamond-producing country. Its relatively high gross national income per capita (by some estimates the fourth-largest in Africa) gives the country a relatively high standard of living and the second-highest Human Development Index of continental Sub-Saharan Africa (after South Africa). Despite this, Botswana continues to grapple with high unemployment rates. Botswana is a member of the Southern African Customs Union, the Southern African Development Community, the Commonwealth of Nations and the United Nations. (Full article...)

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A kgosi (/ˈkoʊsi/; Tswana pronunciation: [ˈkχʊ.si]) is the title for a hereditary leader of a Batswana and South Africa peoples tribe. (Full article...)

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... that the first trade union in Botswana was not recognised by the ruling Bechuanaland Protectorate until 1964, 16 years after its formation?

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Leon-Eline at peak intensity during landfall in Mozambique on 22 February

Intense Tropical Cyclone Leon–Eline was the second longest-lived cyclone in the Indian Ocean, behind Cyclone Freddy, traveling over 11,000 km (6,800 mi) during its 29-day track through the Indian Ocean, throughout the month of February. The cyclone formed on 1 February 2000, in the Australian basin as Tropical Cyclone Leon, and was renamed Eline after crossing 90° E into the South-West Indian Ocean; there, the Météo-France office in Réunion (MFR) tracked the storm's movement and intensity. Late on 17 February, Eline made landfall near Mahanoro, Madagascar, with 10‑minute winds of 165 km/h (103 mph). The storm rapidly weakened over land, but restrengthened in the Mozambique Channel to reach peak 10‑minute winds of 185 km/h (115 mph), making it an intense tropical cyclone. On 22 February, Eline made landfall about 80 km (50 mi) south of Beira, Mozambique, near peak intensity. Eline quickly weakened over land as it moved across Southern Africa, finally dissipating over eastern Namibia on 29 February.

While moving across much of the Indian Ocean, Eline brought high waves, gusty winds, and rainfall to several islands. When Eline struck Madagascar, the country was in the midst of a cholera epidemic that killed over 1,000 people. Eline directly killed at least 64 people in the country. Tropical Storm Gloria struck Madagascar 13 days later, compounding the damage and making it difficult to discern the individual effects. Damage from Eline was estimated at $9 million (USD), and collectively the two storms killed 205 people and left another 10,000 homeless. In the region around Vatomandry where Eline made landfall, 65% of houses were damaged, 90% of crops were lost, and 75% of health facilities were wrecked. (Full article...)

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The following are images from various Botswana-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Mokgweetsi Masisi speaking at a conference on the illegal wildlife trade in London in 2018 (from History of Botswana)
Image 2Francistown Stadium (from Francistown)
Image 3A postage stamp circa 1943, the postmark reading "Gaborone's Village" (from Gaborone)
Image 4I-Tower at Central Business District (from Gaborone)
Image 5A 1960 stamp of the Bechuanaland Protectorate featuring images of Queen Victoria and Elizabeth II, the first and last British monarchs of the protectorate (from History of Botswana)
Image 6Festus Mogae alongside foreign presidents Joaquim Chissano, George W. Bush, and José Eduardo dos Santos in 2002 (from History of Botswana)
Image 7Madila sour cultured milk (from Tswana people)
Image 8Gaborone Dam (from Gaborone)
Image 9Road map of Gaborone (from Gaborone)
Image 10Rhodesia Railways car at the national museum (from Gaborone)
Image 11Satellite View of Gaborone. North is to the left of the image. (from Gaborone)
Image 12I-Towers, Gaborone Central Business District (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 13Botswana Gaborone I Towers (from Gaborone)
Image 14Jan Mashiani and Len Taunyane were the first black participants from Africa in the Olympics (from Tswana people)
Image 15Street scene near the Main Mall (from Gaborone)
Image 16Tourist resort at Kasane (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 17Gaborone Mosque (from Gaborone)
Image 18Man on donkey herding goats in a dry river bed (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 19Prehistoric cave paintings at Tsodilo (from History of Botswana)
Image 20Francistown City Bus and Taxi Rank (from Francistown)
Image 21CBD Developments (from Gaborone)
Image 22Aerial view over Okavango Delta (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 23SSKI Airport (from Gaborone)
Image 24Orapa House (from Gaborone)
Image 25Batswana Men dressed in traditional attire in 1946 (from Tswana people)
Image 26Botswana traditional baskets (from Culture of Botswana)
Image 27Gaborone Hindu Temple (from Gaborone)
Image 28Homestead in the ancient City of Kaditshwene
Image 29An illustration of a Tswana man and his wife in the early 1800s (from History of Botswana)
Image 30Sir Seretse Khama International Airport (GBE) (from Gaborone)
Image 31A road in Gaborone (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 32Ostriches at Mokolodi Nature Reserve, Botswana (from Gaborone)
Image 33Flag map of Gaborone (from Gaborone)
Image 34View from Kgale Hill (Oodi Hill on horizon) (from Gaborone)
Image 35Rail network map of Botswana (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 36Francistown Bus Terminal (from Francistown)
Image 37Bechuanaland Boys cleaning Aa Guns in the Twilight after Action, Syracuse, Sicily, 1944 art piece by Leslie Cole (from History of Botswana)
Image 38Magadi (traditional wedding) (from Culture of Botswana)
Image 39CBD Mall (from Gaborone)
Image 40Gaborone Dam (from Gaborone)
Image 41Kombi (Minibus taxi) (from Gaborone)
Image 42The Jwaneng diamond mine is the second biggest in the world today. (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 43Graduation daggers that were given to Tswana Fighting Regiments (from Tswana people)
Image 44Gaborone Hindu temple (from Gaborone)
Image 45An 1865 portrait of Kgosi Sechele I in Ntsweng Bechuanaland (from Tswana people)
Image 46New CBD (from Gaborone)
Image 47Gaborone aerial (from Gaborone)
Image 48Botswana traditional house at the National Museum (from Culture of Botswana)
Image 49Tswana Baskets (from Tswana people)
Image 50GDP per capita (current), compared to neighbouring countries (world average = 100) (from Economy of Botswana)
Image 51Room 52 Roof Top Restaurant (from Gaborone)
Image 52The National Assembly of Botswana (from Gaborone)
Image 53Watch house in Gaborone Game Reserve (from Gaborone)
Image 54Rev. Derek Jones, the first mayor of Gaborone
Image 55New Construction Developments (from Gaborone)
Image 56Christ The King Cathedral (from Gaborone)
Image 57St. Joseph's College students (from Gaborone)
Image 58Seretse Khama signing the oath of office to become Botswana's first President in 1966 (from History of Botswana)
Image 59BR Express, the passenger train (from Francistown)