Botswana Independence
Botswana Independence: Prior to independence in 1966, Botswana was neglected to a degree unusual even in colonial Africa. The Act of Union of 1909 said that the three High Commission Territories (Basutoland, Bechuanaland, and Swaziland) would eventually be incorporated into the Union of South Africa. Britain, therefore, did very little for Bechuanaland, and South Africa did nothing because Bechuanaland was considered British.
Britain did, however, refuse to allow incorporation, despite considerable pressure from the government of South Africa. Botswana therefore inherited almost nothing in 1966 and was then one of the poorest countries in the world. Until just before independence, the country had no capital city, having been governed from Mafeking in South Africa; there were just a few kilometers of tarred road; and in 1965, only 27 students had graduated from five years of secondary education.
The country was entirely surrounded until 1980 by hostile, white-ruled states, apart from a theoretical pinpoint boundary with Zambia that was not acknowledged by the governments of Rhodesia or South Africa. The new government was dependent on British aid for half of the recurrent budget. On the other hand, ethnically and linguistically the population was relatively homogeneous, and the first president, Seretse Khama, was well-educated, having studied at Oxford and in London.
A tradition of pragmatic diplomacy, to which the country owed its existence, was carried forward after independence into both foreign and economic policy. The discovery of mineral deposits (copper and nickel at Selebi-Phikwe and diamonds at Orapa) made rapid economic growth possible. In addition, beef exports gained access to Europe at prices above those from other parts of the world, Botswana’s sources of aid were diversified, and renegotiation of the Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU) increased Botswana’s customs revenue.
The copper and nickel mine was never profitable, but the government’s share of large diamond profits from the three mines eventually developed generated a surplus on the recurrent budget in 1973 and on the development budget in 1984. By the 1990s, Botswana was the world’s largest producer by value of gem diamonds. Financial surpluses continued in most years thereafter. As a consequence, the government accumulated balances equivalent to two years’ spending and foreign exchange reserves equivalent to three years’ imports.
Botswana avoided the problems of other mineral boom economies. Government expenditure took account of the scarcity of skilled manpower and the government’s own capacity to manage public spending. The result was not only rapid economic growth (Botswana’s economy was bound to grow rapidly) but also rapid growth of employment and considerable diversification of the economy. Employment growth did stop in the first half of the 1990s but resumed thereafter.
From the time of independence, the Botswana government handled relations with its white-ruled neighbors in a pragmatic way. Permission was sought and granted from the United Nations for Botswana not to apply sanctions to Rhodesia, although despite this, there were security problems until the Rhodesian war for independence ended in 1980. Botswana offered sanctuary to refugees but did not allow military training or military bases to be established.
Again, this was not sufficient to prevent a number of military raids across the border from South Africa during the 1980s. Trade, however, was not seriously affected. Botswana has been a multiparty democracy throughout the post-independence period, with elections every five years. For many years, the ruling Botswana Democratic Party held all but 3 or 4 seats out of approximately 30 in the country’s parliament. The opposition achieved majorities in the main town councils and came to hold most of the urban parliamentary seats, winning 14 out of 40 seats in the enlarged parliament in the 1994 election.
As the country had moved from being 4 percent to 50 percent urban, it would appear that the opposition might have done even better and for the future to be on its side. However, it split badly between 1994 and 1999, when the election was contested by some 14 parties. Although there was no change of ruling party arising from elections, there have to date been three peaceful changes of president.
Sir Seretse Khama was succeeded on his death in 1980 by his vice president, Sir Ketumile Masire, who chose to retire in 1998. He was succeeded by the then vice president, Festus Mogae; Mogae’s vice president is Ian Khama, who was formerly head of the Botswana Defense Force (BDF) and is the eldest son of Seretse Khama.
Botswana played a leading part in the creation of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). In the 1990s, SADC members were divided on a number of political issues, and attempts to establish a SADC free trade area were subject to delays. Nevertheless, the SADC continued to be active in settling regional political issues, in which Botswana played a part, for example, contributing to troops brought into Lesotho by the SADC in 1998.
The BDF also contributed to peacekeeping forces elsewhere in Africa. Most of Botswana’s other international trading agreements were in a state of uncertainty in the late 1990s. The SACU was in the process of renegotiation; South Africa had agreed to free trade with the European Union, which would result in reductions in customs union revenue and in the level of protection of SACU producers; the Lomé agreement was due for renegotiation and was not expected to continue substantially unchanged as previously; and a further global round of World Trade Organization negotiations was imminent.
On the other hand, all of Botswana’s neighbors were ruled by democratically elected governments, with which Botswana had normal diplomatic relations. Both the economic and the strategic position of Botswana had therefore been transformed for the better since 1966. However, the period of diamond-led growth was coming to an end, and the economy could not depend indefinitely on further rapid growth of government spending.
Future economic growth and growth of employment depended, therefore, on Botswana being able to attract foreign investment in such sectors as manufacturing, financial services, and tourism. Unusually, Botswana did not necessarily need the inflow of income but did need scarce skilled management resources and access to foreign markets.
Also Read: Tswana People Of Botswana: The Incredible History Of Bechuanaland Protectorate of 1885-1899
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