Botswana
Botswana, formally Bechuanaland, came into being as the British Protectorate of Bechuanaland in 1985. She gained independence from Britain on 30th September 1966. The country is reputed to have the oldest d democracy in Africa. Nowadays, she is currently emerging as the most civilized and decent country in Africa mainly because of the way it manages its government and economy. The countrty is officially called the Republic of Botswana and its capital is Gaborone. The first president of independent Botswana was Sir Seretse Khama.
Botswana has a population of about two million, which is the population of some local governments in Nigeria. It occupies a landmass of about 582,000 sq. km. making it one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. The country is completely landlocked. It is sandwiched between South Africa, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 70% of its terrain is occupied by the Kalahari Desert, an arid and hash terrain with very unique features that distinguishes it from conventional deserts. The desert is mostly inhabited by the famous bushmen of southern Africa. They are sometimes called San people. They make a living in the desert through livestock rearing, hunting and subsistence farming. A contentious attempt to relocate and move them into the mainstream of Botswana life in the mid 1990’s was me t with acrimonious legal battle.
Botswana is the world’s largest producer of diamonds. Prudent management of its resources has turned the fortunes of the country from one of the poorest at independence to a middle-income country and one of the fastest growing economies in the world today. It has about the highest gross national income at purchasing power parity in Africa, giving it one of the highest standard of living in the continent.It also has the fastest growth rates in per capita income in the world far above what prevails in most African countries.
At independence Botswana had very few graduates and a high illiteracy rate. With the economic boost that came with the diamond trade, a huge investment was injected into the education sector. All students were guaranteed ten years of basic education. The country now has six technical colleges, two universities and several other colleges and teriary institutions, some of them privately owned. After decades of free education, the government reintroduced school fees in January, 2006. However the government still provides full scholarships with living expenses to any Botswana citizen in a Botswana university, but either if a student wishes to pursue an education in any field not offered locally, such as medicine, they are provided with a full scholarship to study abroad.
Botswana is doing exceedingly well also in the sporting arena, judging by its small population. The country has qualified for the 2012 African Cup of Nations competition for the first time. It also won its firsr Olympic medal when Nijel Amos won a silver medal the 800 metres race in the London 2012 Olympic games.
The savannas and grasslands of the country has a large population of wild life, some of them, like th African Wild Dog, are on the endangered species list and the world’s largest concentration of African elephants. Botswana is a favorite tourist destination for nature lovers. Chobe National Park alone covers an area of about 11,000 sq. km. and has about 350 species of birds apart from other wild life. There is also the Kalahari desert, which is one of the largest in Africa. The Okavango Delta, which is the worlds largest inland delta, is in the northwest of the country. The Makgadikgadi Pan, a large salt pan, lies in the north. The Limpopo River, one of the great rivers in Africa, has many of its’s tributaries forming the Limpopo River Basin in Botswana.
The national currency of Botswana is called Pula. English is the official language in the republic and the most widely spoken indigenous language is Setswana.
