Related Research Articles
Botswana,officially the Republic of Botswana,is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat,with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the south and southeast,Namibia to the west and north,and Zimbabwe to the northeast. It is connected by the Kazungula Bridge to Zambia,across the world's shortest border between two countries.
The economy of Botswana is currently one of the world's fastest growing economies,averaging about 5% per annum over the past decade. Growth in private sector employment averaged about 10% per annum during the first 30 years of the country's independence. After a period of stagnation at the turn of the 21st century,Botswana's economy registered strong levels of growth,with GDP growth exceeding 6–7% targets. Botswana has been praised by the African Development Bank for sustaining one of the world's longest economic booms. Economic growth since the late 1960s has been on par with some of Asia's largest economies. The government has consistently maintained budget surpluses and has extensive foreign-exchange reserves.
Botswana has put a premium on economic and political integration in southern Africa. It has sought to make the Southern African Development Community (SADC) a working vehicle for economic development,and it has promoted efforts to make the region self-policing in terms of preventive diplomacy,conflict resolution,and good governance.
Gaborone is the capital and largest city of Botswana with a population of 246,325 based on the 2022 census,about 10% of the total population of Botswana. Its agglomeration is home to 421,907 inhabitants at the 2011 census.
The pula is the currency of Botswana. It has the ISO 4217 code BWP and is subdivided into 100 thebe. Pula literally means "rain" in Setswana,because rain is very scarce in Botswana—home to much of the Kalahari Desert—and therefore valuable and a blessing. The word also serves as the national motto of the country.
The Mozambique national football team represents Mozambique in men's international football competitions and is controlled by the Mozambican Football Federation,the governing body for football in Mozambique. Mozambique have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup,but they have qualified for five Africa Cup of Nations in 1986,1996,1998,2010,and most recently 2023,being eliminated in the first round in all five. In 1997,the Mozambique Football Federation became a founding member of COSAFA.
The Botswana national football team was founded in 1970 to represent Botswana in association football and is governed by the Botswana Football Association (BFA). It qualified for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.
The Parliament of Botswana consists of the President and the National Assembly. In contrast to other parliamentary systems,the Parliament elects the President directly for a set five-year term of office. A president can only serve 2 full terms. The President is both Head of state and of government in Botswana's parliamentary republican system. Parliament of Botswana is the supreme legislative authority. The President of Botswana is Mokgweetsi Masisi,who assumed the Presidency on 1 April 2018. In October 2019,the 2019 general election was held which saw the return of the Botswana Democratic Party to the power with a majority of 19 seats in the 65 seat National Assembly.
The National Assembly is the sole legislative body of Botswana's unicameral Parliament,of which consists of the President and the National Assembly. The House passes laws,provides ministers to form Cabinet,and supervises the work of government. It is also responsible for adopting the country's budgets. It is advised by the Ntlo ya Dikgosi,a council of tribal chiefs which is not a house of Parliament.
The Botswana national cricket team is the men's team that represents Botswana in international cricket. They have been an associate member of the International Cricket Council since 2005,after previously being an affiliate member since 2001 and an associate member in 2017. They are in Division Five of the World Cricket League and are ranked at joint 29th in the world by the International Cricket Council (ICC). They are the 5th-highest ranked non-Test team in the African region. The team's coach is former Kenyan ODI player Joseph Angara,who was appointed in July 2015.
The Botswana national rugby union team represents Botswana in the sport of rugby union. Botswana have thus far not played in a Rugby World Cup,but have participated in qualifying tournaments. They are currently ranked 74th in the world.
The Internet in Botswana is used by approximately 87.2% of the population,as of 2023. There has been a massive increase in internet users since 2013 when only 30% of the population of Botswana was found to use the internet. This is notably higher than the percentage of internet users in Africa as a whole,which is around 43%. For reference,in 2023,the global statistic for internet users is 66%.
Many well-known international organizations have ranked Botswana as one of the least corrupt countries in Africa. However,corruption is not eradicated,and can still be seen in many different governmental sectors and in differing forms. The 2023 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index gave Botswana a score of 59 on a scale from 0 to 100. When ranked by score,Botswana ranked 39th among the 180 countries in the Index,where the country ranked first is perceived to have the most honest public sector. For comparison with worldwide scores,the best score was 90,and the worst score was 11. For comparison with regional scores,the average score among sub-Saharan African countries was 33. The highest score in sub-Saharan Africa was 71 and the lowest score was 11. Botswana had the third-highest score in sub-Saharan Africa,after Seychelles and Cape Verde. The Business Anti-Corruption Portal,ranked Botswana as moderate in regards to the amount of corruption seen in the country. The Business Anti-Corruption Portal continued on,stating that multiple government sectors,such as the Judicial services,Police,Legislation,Public services,Tax Administration and Public Procurement all see varying risks of corruption. In the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report Botswana ranks 113/141 in the public-sector performance and ranks 32/141 in Transparency. And in the Global Competitiveness Report conducted in the years of 2011 and 2012,it was reported that corruption in Botswana is one of the most problematic factors when it comes to doing business in the country.
Nijel Carlos Amilfitano Amos is a Botswana middle-distance runner who competes in the 800 metres. He won the silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics,which was Botswana's first ever Olympic medal. Amos claimed gold medals at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and 2015 All-Africa Games. At the African Championships in Athletics,he took golds in 2014,2016 and 2018.
Visitors to Botswana require a visa unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.
Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe Masisi is a Botswana politician who is the fifth and current President of Botswana,serving since 2018. He served as the 8th Vice President of Botswana from 12 November 2014 to 1 April 2018. He was a Member of Parliament in the National Assembly for the Moshupa-Manyana constituency from 2009 to 2018.
The Botswana women's national cricket team represents the country of Botswana in women's cricket matches. The team is currently coached by Karabo Motlhanka.
The Botswana Basketball Association (BBA) is the premier basketball league for clubs in Botswana. The league consist out of twelve teams. As of December 2019,the defending champions are Dolphins.
The 2024 Botswana general election will be held to determine the composition of the 13th Parliament of Botswana as well as local councils across the country. Up for election are 61 seats of the National Assembly as well as 490 local council seats,all elected through the first-past-the-post voting system.
References
- ↑ "DailyNews" . Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ↑ Staff Writer (2019-11-06). "New cabinet sworn in". Mmegi Online. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ "Botswana Government Ministries". www.govpage.co.za. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
 | This article about a politician from Botswana is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |