Background: In the early 1800s, multiple political entities in what is now Botswana were destabilized or destroyed by a series of conflicts and population movements in southern Africa. By the end of this period, the Tswana ethnic group, who also live across the border in South Africa, had become the most prominent group in the area. In 1852, Tswana forces halted the expansion of white Afrikaner settlers who were seeking to expand their territory northwards into what is now Botswana. In 1885, Great Britain claimed territory that roughly corresponds with modern day Botswana as a protectorate called Bechuanaland. Upon independence in 1966, the British protectorate of Bechuanaland adopted the new name of Botswana, which means land of the Tswana. More than five decades of uninterrupted civilian leadership, progressive social policies, and significant capital investment have created an enduring democracy and upper-middle-income economy. The ruling Botswana Democratic Party has won every national election since independence; President Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe MASISI assumed the presidency in 2018 following the retirement of former President Ian KHAMA due to constitutional term limits. MASISI won his first election as president in 2019, and he is Botswana’s fifth president since independence. 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 rates of HIV/AIDS infection but also one of Africa's most progressive and comprehensive programs for dealing with the disease.  

Geographic coordinates: 22 00 S, 24 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 581,730 km²
Land: 566,730 km²
Water: 15,000 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Texas; almost four times the size of Illinois

Land boundaries
Total: 4,347.15 km
Border countries: (4) Namibia 1,544 km; South Africa 1,969 km; Zambia 0.15 km; Zimbabwe 834 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
Highest point: Manyelanong Hill 1,495 m
Lowest point: junction of the Limpopo and Shashe Rivers 513 m
Mean elevation: 1,013 m

Natural resources: diamonds, copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash, coal, iron ore, silver

Land use
Agricultural land: 45.8% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land arable land: 0.6% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent pasture: 45.2% (2018 est.)
Forest: 19.8% (2018 est.)
Other: 34.4% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land: 25 km² (2014)

Major watersheds area km²:

Total water withdrawal
Municipal: 110 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
Industrial: 30 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
Agricultural: 80 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

Total renewable water resources: 12.24 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)

Natural hazards: periodic droughts; seasonal August winds blow from the west, carrying sand and dust across the country, which can obscure visibility

Geography
Note: landlocked; sparsely populated with most settlement concentrated in the southern and eastern parts of the country; geography dominated by the Kalahari Desert, which covers about 70% of the country, although the Okavango Delta brings considerable biodiversity as one of the largest inland deltas in the World 

Population
Distribution: the population is primarily concentrated in the east with a focus in and around the captial of Gaborone, and the far central-eastern city of Francistown; population density remains low in other areas in the country, especially in the Kalahari to the west as shown in this: 2,417,596 (2023 est.)
Growth rate: 1.37% (2023 est.)
Below poverty line: 19.3% (2009 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Motswana (singular), Batswana (plural)
Adjective: Motswana (singular), Batswana (plural)

Ethnic groups: Tswana (or Setswana) 79%, Kalanga 11%, Basarwa 3%, other, including Kgalagadi and people of European ancestry 7%

Languages: Setswana 77.3%, Sekalanga 7.4%, Shekgalagadi 3.4%, English (official) 2.8%, Zezuru/Shona 2%, Sesarwa 1.7%, Sembukushu 1.6%, Ndebele 1%, other 2.8% (2011 est.)

Religions: Christian 79.1%, Badimo 4.1%, other 1.4% (includes Baha'i, Hindu, Muslim, Rastafarian), none 15.2%, unspecified 0.3% (2011 est.)

Demographic profile: Botswana has experienced one of the most rapid declines in fertility in Sub-Saharan Africa. The total fertility rate fell from more than 5 children per woman in the mid 1980s to approximately 2.4 in 2013, and remains at that level in 2022. The fertility reduction has been attributed to a host of factors, including higher educational attainment among women, greater participation of women in the workforce, increased contraceptive use, later first births, and a strong national family planning program. Botswana was making significant progress in several health indicators, including life expectancy and infant and child mortality rates, until being devastated by the HIV/AIDs epidemic in the 1990s.

Age structure
0-14 years: 29.17% (male 355,951/female 349,283)
15-64 years: 64.88% (male 745,327/female 823,267)
65 years and over: 5.95% (2023 est.) (male 57,876/female 85,892)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 57.5
Youth dependency ratio: 51.8
Elderly dependency ratio: 5.7
Potential support ratio: 13.8 (2021 est.)

Median age
Total: 26.8 years (2023 est.)
Male: 25.6 years
Female: 27.9 years

Population growth rate: 1.37% (2023 est.)

Birth rate: 20 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Population distribution: the population is primarily concentrated in the east with a focus in and around the captial of Gaborone, and the far central-eastern city of Francistown; population density remains low in other areas in the country, especially in the Kalahari to the west as shown in this

Urbanization
Urban population: 72.9% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 2.47% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: 269,000 GABORONE (capital) (2018)

Environment
Current issues: overgrazing; desertification; limited freshwater resources; air pollution
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
International agreements signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants
Particulate matter emissions: 12.82 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions: 6.34 megatons (2016 est.)
Methane emissions: 5.73 megatons (2020 est.)

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

Maternal mortality ratio: 186 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 24.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
Male: 26.7 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 22 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 66 years (2023 est.)
Male: 64 years
Female: 68.2 years

Total fertility rate: 2.37 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 67.4% (2017)

Drinking water source
Improved urban: 98.1% of population
Improved rural: 96.9% of population
Improved total: 99.4% of population
Unimproved urban: 0.2% of population
Unimproved rural: 3.1% of population
Unimproved total: 0.6% of population (2020 est.)

Current health expenditure: 6.2% of GDP (2020)

Physicians density: 0.38 physicians/1,000 population (2018)

Hospital bed density: 1.8 beds/1,000 population

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: high (2023)
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria
Note: on 31 August 2023, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Travel Alert for polio in Africa; Botswana is currently considered a high risk to travelers for circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPV); vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) is a strain of the weakened poliovirus that was initially included in oral polio vaccine (OPV) and that has changed over time and behaves more like the wild or naturally occurring virus; this means it can be spread more easily to people who are unvaccinated against polio and who come in contact with the stool or respiratory secretions, such as from a sneeze, of an “infected” person who received oral polio vaccine; the CDC recommends that before any international travel, anyone unvaccinated, incompletely vaccinated, or with an unknown polio vaccination status should complete the routine polio vaccine series; before travel to any high-risk destination, the CDC recommends that adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose of polio vaccine

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 18.9% (2016)

Alcohol consumption
Per capita total: 5.98 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita beer: 2.93 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita wine: 0.46 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita spirits: 0.96 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita other alcohols: 1.64 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Tobacco use
Total: 19.4% (2020 est.)
Male: 30.4% (2020 est.)
Female: 8.3% (2020 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: NA

Education expenditures: 8.7% of GDP (2020 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 88.5%
Male: 88%
Female: 88.9% (2015)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 12 years
Male: 12 years
Female: 12 years (2021)

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15 24 total: 41.2% (2021 est.)
Rate ages 15 24 male: 39.5%
Rate ages 15 24 female: 43.3%

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Botswana
Conventional short form: Botswana
Local long form: Republic of Botswana
Local short form: Botswana
Former: Bechuanaland
Etymology: the name Botswana means "Land of the Tswana" - referring to the country's largest ethnic group

Government type: parliamentary republic

Capital
Name: Gaborone
Geographic coordinates: 24 38 S, 25 54 E
Time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Etymology: named after GABORONE (ca. 1825-1931), a revered kgosi (chief) of the Tlokwa tribe, part of the larger Tswana ethnic group

Administrative divisions: 10 districts and 6 town councils*; Central, Chobe, Francistown*, Gaborone*, Ghanzi, Jwaneng*, Kgalagadi, Kgatleng, Kweneng, Lobatse*, North East, North West, Selebi-Phikwe*, South East, Southern, Sowa Town*

Independence: 30 September 1966 (from the UK)

National holiday: Independence Day (Botswana Day), 30 September (1966)

Constitution
History: previous 1960 (pre-independence); latest adopted March 1965, effective 30 September 1966
Amendments: proposed by the National Assembly; passage requires approval in two successive Assembly votes with at least two-thirds majority in the final vote; proposals to amend constitutional provisions on fundamental rights and freedoms, the structure and branches of government, and public services also requires approval by majority vote in a referendum and assent by the president of the republic; amended several times, last in 2021

Legal system: mixed legal system of civil law influenced by the Roman-Dutch model and also customary and common law

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Botswana
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe MASISI (since 1 April 2018); Vice President Slumber TSOGWANE (since 4 April 2018); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe MASISI (since 1 April 2018); Vice President Slumber TSOGWANE (since 4 April 2018)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
Elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 23 October 2019 (next to be held in October 2024); vice president appointed by the president
Election results: President Seretse Khama Ian KHAMA, who had served as president since 1 April 2008, stepped down on 1 April 2018 having completed the constitutionally mandated 10-year term limit; upon his retirement, then Vice President MASISI became president; national elections held in 2019 gave MASISI'S BPD 38 seats in the National Assembly which then selected MASISI as President

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Parliament consists of the National Assembly (63 seats; 57 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 4 nominated by the president and indirectly elected by simple majority vote by the rest of the National Assembly, and 2 ex-officio members - the president and attorney general; elected members serve 5-year terms); note - the House of Chiefs (Ntlo ya Dikgosi), an advisory body to the National Assembly, consists of 35 members - 8 hereditary chiefs from Botswana's principal tribes, 22 indirectly elected by the chiefs, and 5 appointed by the president; the House of Chiefs consults on issues including powers of chiefs, customary courts, customary law, tribal property, and constitutional amendments
Elections: last held on 23 October 2019 (next to be held in October 2024)
Election results: percent of vote by party - BDP 52.7%, UDC 35.9%, BPF 4.4%, AP 5.1%, other 1.7%; seats by party - BDP 38, UDC 15, BPF 3, AP 1; composition as of October 2023 - men 56, women 7, percent of women 11.1%

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Court of Appeal, High Court (each consists of a chief justice and a number of other judges as prescribed by the Parliament)
Judge selection and term of office: Court of Appeal and High Court chief justices appointed by the president and other judges appointed by the president upon the advice of the Judicial Service Commission; all judges appointed to serve until age 70
Subordinate courts: Industrial Court (with circuits scheduled monthly in the capital city and in 3 districts); Magistrates Courts (1 in each district); Customary Court of Appeal; Paramount Chief's Court/Urban Customary Court; Senior Chief's Representative Court; Chief's Representative’s Court; Headman's Court

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, AU, C, CD, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Onkokame Kitso MOKAILA (since 17 September 2020)
In the us chancery: 1531-1533 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,036
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 244-4,990
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 244-4,164
In the us email address and website:
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Howard A. VAN VRANKEN (since 24 May 2023)
From the us embassy: Embassy Drive, Government Enclave (off Khama Crescent), Gaborone
From the us mailing address: 2,170 Gaborone Place, Washington DC 20,521-2,170
From the us telephone: [267] 395-3,982
From the us FAX: [267] 318-0232
From the us email address and website:

Flag description: light blue with a horizontal white-edged black stripe in the center; the blue symbolizes water in the form of rain, while the black and white bands represent racial harmony

National symbols: zebra; national colors: light blue, white, black

National anthem
Name: "Fatshe leno la rona" (Our Land)
Lyrics/music: Kgalemang Tumedisco MOTSETE
Note: adopted 1966

National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites: 2 (1 cultural, 1 natural)
Selected World Heritage Site locales:

Economy overview: good economic governance and financial management; diamond-driven growth model declining; rapid poverty reductions; high unemployment, particularly among youth; COVID-19 sharply contracted the economy and recovery is slow; public sector wages have posed fiscal challenges

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2017 dollars

Real gdp growth rate:

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2017 dollars

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 48.5% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 18.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 29% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: -1.8% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 39.8% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -33.9% (2017 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 1.8% (2017 est.)
Industry: 27.5% (2017 est.)
Services: 70.6% (2017 est.)

Agriculture products: milk, roots/tubers, vegetables, sorghum, beef, game meat, watermelons, cabbages, goat milk, onions

Industries: diamonds, copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash, coal, iron ore, silver; beef processing; textiles

Industrial production growth rate: 19.38% (2021 est.)

Labor force: 1.05 million (2021 est.)

Unemployment rate:

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15 24 total: 41.2% (2021 est.)
Rate ages 15 24 male: 39.5%
Rate ages 15 24 female: 43.3%

Population below poverty line: 19.3% (2009 est.)

Gini index
Coefficient distribution of family income: 53.3 (2015 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10%: NA
Highest 10%: NA

Budget
Revenues: $3.828 billion (2020 est.)
Expenditures: $6.006 billion (2020 est.)
Surplus  or deficit: -1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Taxes and other revenues: 22.32% (of GDP) (2020 est.)

Public debt:

Revenue
From forest resources: 0.23% of GDP (2018 est.)
From coal: 0.45% of GDP (2018 est.)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate consumer prices:

Current account balance:

Exports:
Note: Data are in current year dollars and do not include illicit exports or re-exports.
Partners: India 21%, Belgium 19%, United Arab Emirates 19%, South Africa 9%, Israel 7%, Hong Kong 6%, Singapore 5% (2019)
Commodities: diamonds, insulated wiring, copper, beef, gold (2021)

Imports:
Partners: South Africa 58%, Namibia 9%, Canada 7% (2019)
Commodities: diamonds, refined petroleum, cars, delivery trucks, electricity (2019)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

Debt external:

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Access electrification-total population: 73.7% (2021)
Access electrification-urban areas: 93% (2021)
Access electrification-rural areas: 24.9% (2021)
Installed generating capacity: 766,000 kW (2020 est.)
Consumption: 3,515,900,000 kWh (2019 est.)
Exports: 0 kWh (2019 est.)
Imports: 1.101 billion kWh (2019 est.)
Transmission/distribution losses: 631 million kWh (2019 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels: 99.8% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources solar: 0.2% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources wind: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources biomass and waste: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)

Coal
Production: 1.876 million metric tons (2020 est.)
Consumption: 1.416 million metric tons (2020 est.)
Exports: 497,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
Imports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Proven reserves: 1.66 billion metric tons (2019 est.)

Petroleum
Total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2021 est.)
Refined petroleum consumption: 21,700 bbl/day (2019 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate imports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.)

Refined petroleum
Products production: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products exports: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products imports: 21,090 bbl/day (2015 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Consumption: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Imports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions: 5.965 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From coal and metallurgical coke: 2.922 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From petroleum and other liquids: 3.042 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From consumed natural gas: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)

Energy consumption per capita: 34.095 million Btu/person (2019 est.)

Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 91,725 (2022 est.)
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 5 (2021 est.)
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 4,160,553 (2021 est.)
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 161 (2021 est.)

Broadcast media: 2 TV stations - 1 state-owned and 1 privately owned; privately owned satellite TV subscription service is available; 2 state-owned national radio stations; 4 privately owned radio stations broadcast locally (2019)

Internet
Country code: .bw
Users total: 1.924 million (2021 est.)
Users percent of population: 74% (2021 est.)

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 259,525 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 11 (2020 est.)

Military expenditures:

Military and security forces: Botswana Defense Force (BDF): Ground Forces Command, Air Arm Command, Defense Logistics Command (2023)
Note: both the BDF and the Botswana Police Service report to the Ministry of Defense and Security; the Botswana Police Service has primary responsibility for internal security; the BDF reports to the Office of the President through the minister of defense and security and has some domestic security responsibilities

Military service age and obligation: 18 is the legal minimum age for voluntary military service for men and women; no conscription (2023)

Space program
Overview: has a small program focused on acquiring, operating, and exploiting satellites; has received some technical training and support from China (2023)
Overview note: further details about the key activities, programs, and milestones of the country’s space program, as well as government spending estimates on the space sector, appear in space programs

National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 1 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 6
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 253,417 (2018)
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 110,000 (2018) mt-km

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: A2

Airports: 74 (2021)
With paved runways: 10
With paved runways note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
With unpaved runways: 64
With unpaved runways note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control

Railways
Total: 888 km (2014)
Narrow gauge: 888 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge

Roadways
Total: 31,747 km (2017)
Paved: 9,810 km (2017)
Unpaved: 21,937 km (2017)

Disputes international: none identified