Botswana is at a critical juncture in its development. This revelation which was made by African Development Bank (AFDB) economists this week who were exploring the challenges of a country at a crossroads come at a time when former President Ian Khama who was championing vision 2036 was fired by President Mokgweetsi Masisi.
The national vision seeks to among others transform the Botswana economy in accordance with its national development agenda and transform the country from a mid-income to a high-income country by the Year 2036.
“The transition to high-income status requires us to introspect and be bold in charting our way forward. We need to put in place conditions that will allow dynamic transformation,” reads the document of the vision 2036 in part.
But three days after AFDB released a report advising that Botswana needs to accelerate economic transformation from the primary sector to advanced manufacturing and services in order to reduce its vulnerability to shock in the diamond trade as espoused in the vision document, Masisi showed Khama the exit door.
Masisi wrote to Khama through his permanent Secretary Carter Morupisi that, “I have been instructed by President Masisi to duly inform you that he has taken a decision to relieve you of the position of the Vision 2036 Champion.”
This is not the first time that Khama has been removed from championing institutions tasked with diversifying the country’s economy.
Early this year Khama was also sacked as Botswana Tourism Ambassador, a role that is now played by First Lady Neo Masisi.
Reports indicated that as part of achieving the ideals of its national vision, Botswana has laid out plans for transformation to a knowledge economy, i.e. in providing for good education systems, the country has developed the Education and Training Sector Strategic Plan (ETSSP), and is also finalising the National Human Resource Development Plan.
On ICT infrastructure, Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA) and Botswana Fibre Network (BofINET) have since been established to champion same ICT infrastructure and access.
Regarding innovation, the Botswana Innovation Hub (BIH), Botswana Institute for Technology, Research and Innovation (BITRI), Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST), etc. have been set up to champion the transformation.
But the AFDB, in its new recent report analysing Botswana’s economy found that the global financial crisis of 2009 exposed the country’s vulnerability to external shocks due to its reliance on one commodity.
Real Gross Domestic Product contracted by 7.8 percent from an annual average growth of 10 percent experienced over the previous four decades. In addition, Botswana’s economy will face a difficult challenge in the medium term with the depletion of its diamond resources.
“The country needs to revive the growth of private sector investments and increase the productivity of economic investments. To achieve this, the government needs to invest in high impact infrastructure to improve competitiveness, provide a sound regulatory environment that is friendly to business, and further enhance skills development,’’ reads the country strategy paper by ADFB.
It says Botswana has made huge strides socioeconomic development over the past four decades, transforming itself from an underdeveloped country into a middle-income economy.
However, the report says, a striking feature of the Botswana economy is the rather limited economic transformation.
“The structure of production has changed very little since the 1990s, minerals still dominate the economy, while labour-intensive manufacturing, which normally absorbs unskilled laborers who exit traditional agriculture, has not developed. As a result, the economy has high levels of unemployment and inequality. The 2009 global economic downturn exposed the country’s vulnerability to external shocks due to reliance in one commodity. At the same time, growth in the non-mining sector softened,” the report says.
To reduce unemployment and inequality, AFDB notes that the country will need to accelerate growth of private sector investments and increase the productivity of economic investments.
The country strategy paper by AFDB, which is anchored on the bank’s ten-year strategy responds to the need to transform the Botswana economy in accordance with its national development agenda, outlined in the government’s 10th National Development Plan NDP10 covering the period 2009-2016.
KO/as/APA