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$Unique_ID{COW00457}
$Pretitle{404}
$Title{Botswana
Introduction.}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Cecilia Gautier}
$Affiliation{Embassy of Botswana, Washington DC}
$Subject{botswana
economy
}
$Date{1988}
$Log{Map of Botswana*0045701.scf
}
Country: Botswana
Book: Botswana Review of Commerce and Industry 1988
Author: Cecilia Gautier
Affiliation: Embassy of Botswana, Washington DC
Date: 1988
Introduction.
[See Map of Botswana: Courtesy Embassy of Botswana, Washington DC.]
Message from
HON. M.P.K. NWAKO, M.P.
MINISTER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
I always derive pleasure from writing the introductory message for the
current edition of the Annual Review of Commerce and Industry. It is a
document that many have admired over the years and most have found useful.
This Review complements a number of publications by my Ministry which are
geared towards prospective investors and other interested parties and which
aim at sharing information on investment opportunities and commercial and
industrial development.
At 21, Botswana has come of age. This manifests itself in the number of
industries that have been established recently, the sophistication of their
product lines, the increase in exported goods, the nature and type of
investors attracted to Botswana - Colgate-Palmolive and LONRHO International
to mention just two - and the performance and management of the economy which
has recently received international acclaim.
It is tragic to note that the country still appears to be in a drought
cycle. If this trend continues, we will be entering the sixth consecutive
year of drought. This has placed an additional burden on my Ministry to press
urgently for and intensively promote, the acceleration of the establishment of
job-creating industrial and commercial ventures, in an attempt to diversify
the economy away from subsistence agriculture and to minimise over-reliance
on the mining sector.
My Ministry is aware that the current sparkle of the economy is due
mainly to revenues earned from a non-renewable resource. We shall continue to
spare no effort to create an environment conducive to the development of a
sound industrial base, especially in the manufacturing and processing sectors,
to a level where their contribution to the Gross National Product and the
balance of payments offers a significant complement to our diamonds and a
balancing mechanism to the economy.
Regional co-operation, through the Southern African Co-ordination
Conference, various bilateral trade agreements and the now long-existing
Southern African Customs Union, combine to make Botswana a very attractive
location for investment. Though the local population is only one million,
access to these adjoining vast markets through such co-operation makes
investment location in Botswana good business sense. Without boasting, we
believe that we are still blessed with the best in terms of stability,
security and peace in the region, a factor crucial to any investor. We are
also resolutely determined to preserve such an atmosphere despite the
difficulties presented by the turbulence that prevails around us.
I hereby invite you all to join hands with us to accomplish this
difficult task.
Hon. M.P.K. Nwako, M.P.
Introduction
Botswana has come of age, and as the country advances into its third
decade since Independence, the momentum of development continues.
The foundations for this development could be said to lie deep down
beneath the sands of the Kalahari, for it is there that the country's diamonds
and other mineral riches are buried. Thanks to their supercharging effect on
the economy, Botswana has achieved one of the fastest growth rates in the
world and an enviable reputation as one of Africa's best investment bets.
Sprawled over a huge, and virtually empty, portion of Southern Africa,
Botswana is the proud custodian of several more priceless resources. One of
these is undoubtedly the wilderness - the secret, brooding world of endless
red sands, the fragile wonderland of the Okavango, and the vast, game-filled
plains of Chobe and Moremi - which increasingly is recognised for the national
treasure it is.
Botswana is also rich in cattle and copper-nickel, coal and soda ash,
cereal crops, citrus and cotton, and on this base of natural wealth the
modern economy takes on fresh challenges each year.
Her people are industrious, ambitious and resourceful, led by
intelligent, far-sighted men and women. For years now, the country has proved
to be an island of stability, racial harmony and prosperity in a turbulent
continent. Botswana has every reason for pride in the past and confidence in
the future.