GENERAL INFO
TRAVEL IDEAS
- Botswana Explorer, 10 days
- Chobe Wilderness Tented Safari, 3 days
- Classic Lodge Okavango Safari, 8 days
- Premier Lodge Okavango Safari, 8 days
- Green Desert Expedition, 8 days
- Okavango & Big Game, 6 days
- Wings Over Botswana, 7 days
- Group Travel
- Ichobezi Safariboats, 4 days
- Chobe Elephants & Livingstone, 5 days
RELATED IDEAS
- Victoria Falls, Chobe Elephants & Okavango Delta, 7 days
- Chobe Elephants, 5 days
Modern day Botswana is one of the world's richest third world countries - Thanks to a progressive government and lots of diamonds.
Botswana
COUNTRY QUICKFACTS
Capital: Gaborone
Independence: 30 September 1966
Size: 581 730 square kilometers (224 607 square miles), nearly 17% of which is protected wildlife area.
Climate: The climate is semi-arid, with the rainy season being from October until April. Rainfall in the south averages 15 cm, and 38-51 cm in the east The winter starts in May. Temperatures can range between 27 degrees celsius and 38° celsius.
Population: 1.533,393 million (1997 census). Gaborone, Botswana's capital has a population of 110,793 and Francistown has a population of 45,000.
People: Botswana is made up of a number of tribes; among them are the Bakgatla, Bamalete, Bamangwato, Barolong, Bangwaketse, Bakwena, Batlokwa, Batawana, Bakalanga, Basarwa, Bakgalagadi, and Maun (16 000). Eighty percent of the population of Botswana are rural inhabitants.
The main ethnic groups are the Batswana (descendants of iron-age immigrants from Central West Africa), the Basarwa (San, indigenous hunter-gatherers. pre iron-age), and the Herero (pastoralists).
History: The semi-nomadic San people were Botswana's earliest inhabitants. Bantu-speaking tribes from the north moved into the area before the first millennium, and European missionaries arrived in mid-19th century. In 1885, to counter Boer expansion from South Africa and Ndebele incursions from the north led by Mzilikazi, Botswana came under British protection. By 1895, Rhodes' British South Africa Company hoped to annex Botswana, prompting three Batswana chiefs to persuade Queen Victoria to keep their land under British control. The British administered the Bechuanaland Protectorate until 1966 when it granted the Batswana full independence under the leadership of Sir Seretse Khama. Diamonds were discovered in 1967, which brought rapid growth to Botswana. Today, the country boasts healthy foreign reserves and is considered one of Africa's economic success stories.
Government: Botswana is a multi party democracy, governed since independence by the Botswana Democratic, Party. Since the retirement of Sir Ketumile Masire. Mr Festus Mogae is president of the Republic. Ten other parties are recognized, the strongest of which is the Botswana National Front. Elections are held every five years.
Exports: Diamonds, vehicles, copper/nickel, beef, textiles.
Economic growth has mainly been through the mining of diamonds, copper-nickel, and soda-ash. However, beef is also a major income source, as is tourism.
