Ministry of Finance — Botswana government department managing budget, borrowing, and state enterprise policy amid economic challenges including diamond-sector downturn.
… Hosted by the Green Loop Foundation, the event has received government endorsement through Parliament, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Environment and Tourism. …
… These include functions associated with PEEPA, the Botswana Accountancy Oversight Authority and the Enterprise Development Policy Unit, as well as relevant responsibilities within the Ministry of Finance. …
… We must strengthen the economic fundamentals that underpin the currency.” His remarks follow the government’s recent decision to maintain the current Pula exchange-rate framework after a comprehensive review by the Ministry of Finance in collaboration with the Bank of Botswana. …
… SESUPO RANTSIMAKO The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is considering summoning Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance Tshokologo Alex Kganetsano to explain how businessman Zunaid Moti’s investment proposal with…
… We must strengthen the economic fundamentals that underpin the currency.” His remarks follow the government’s recent decision to maintain the current Pula exchange-rate framework after a comprehensive review by the Ministry of Finance in collaboration with the Bank of Botswana. …
… The BETP Mid-Year Review, presented by Naledi Madala, Senior Policy Adviser at the Ministry of Finance and BETP Secretariat, reveals a marked change in government strategy. …
… The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Dr Tshokologo Kganetsano, shared these updates during the BETP mid-term report and media roundtable on Wednesday. …
… Another factor, he said, was cost containment which, among other things, compels that any government purchase be requested and approved by the Ministry of Finance. …
… The Ministry of Finance emphasized that NDP 12 aims to enhance national service delivery to 75 percent by 2036 through innovative implementation strategies and a rigorous monitoring and evaluation framework. …
… Domestically, the Ministry of Finance forecasts 3.1 percent economic growth for 2026, buoyed by a mining sector rebound and sustained expansion in non-mining areas. …
Botswana Sustainability Week 2026, the fourth annual edition scheduled for Maun from October 21 to 23, will bring together leaders, investors and policymakers to shift the sustainability conversation toward practical environmental, social and governance investments and unlock new economic opportunities across 18 sectors. The summit, hosted by the Green Loop Foundation with government backing, aims to mobilise private capital into community-led sustainable development projects.
Botswana Sustainability Week 2026, the fourth annual edition scheduled for Maun from October 21 to 23, will bring together leaders, investors and policymakers to shift the sustainability conversation toward practical environmental, social and governance investments and unlock new economic opportunities across 18 sectors. The summit, hosted by the Green Loop Foundation with government backing, aims to mobilise private capital into community-led sustainable development projects.
The government has proposed a State-Owned Enterprises Ownership Policy that marks a departure from providing indefinite bailouts, instead requiring enterprises to deliver measurable public and economic value. The framework would apply to a portfolio of 67 enterprises and aims to overhaul how Botswana establishes, owns, governs, and finances state-owned enterprises.
Vice President and Finance Minister Ndaba Gaolathe warned that Botswana cannot indefinitely defend the Pula through monetary measures alone while the economy remains heavily reliant on diamonds, as a prolonged global diamond sector downturn has exposed long-recognised vulnerabilities in the country's economic model.
The Public Accounts Committee is considering whether to summon the Finance Ministry's Permanent Secretary to explain the revival of businessman Zunaid Moti's investment proposal, which had previously been rejected on cost grounds.
Vice President and Finance Minister Ndaba Gaolathe warned that Botswana cannot indefinitely defend the Pula through monetary measures alone while the economy remains heavily reliant on diamonds. He said the prolonged downturn in the global diamond sector has exposed long-recognised vulnerabilities and that monetary policy alone cannot provide a permanent shield for the currency.
Botswana's Economic Transformation Programme has identified 186 priority projects across nine sectors targeting P514 billion in cumulative investment and 512,000 jobs by 2036, with initial efforts focused on removing obstacles to investment execution in areas including land access, financing, regulation, and infrastructure.
The Botswana Economic Transformation Programme (BETP) has progressed from strategy to implementation within six months, achieving legislative reforms and land delivery for high-impact projects. The programme has identified 186 high-impact projects, 60 per cent of which are private-sector-led, and has resolved land-title issues through "land labs" to facilitate project delivery.
Botswana's economy registered 3.5 per cent growth in the first quarter of 2025, attributed to increased diamond sales and cost containment measures. The MP for Francistown South noted that diamond sales rose from P100 million in July 2024 to P300 million in July 2025, and highlighted that the country's foreign reserves stand at P51 billion.
A Bank of Botswana survey shows businesses in Botswana expressing cautious optimism about trading conditions through June 2027, supported by government economic recovery initiatives, though the operating landscape remains challenging and companies faced concerns including high borrowing costs and constrained government spending in mid-2026.
Bank of Botswana Governor Lesego Moseki has warned that businesses and households should prepare for ongoing inflationary pressures from rising fuel and electricity costs, livestock movement restrictions, and global geopolitical tensions. The Monetary Policy Committee has kept the policy rate steady at 5.5 percent while headline inflation remains above the central bank's medium-term target range and economic expansion has been modest.
A Block 7 school-and-clinic development by the Moti Group's African Hero initiative is being showcased as the first physical project under a lease-to-own model proposed to government, though the proposal had previously drawn scrutiny from the Ministry of Finance over its financial implications.
The Duma Boko School & Clinic in Block 7 will be unveiled on September 5, according to African Hero, the infrastructure initiative behind the project funded by South African businessman Zunaid Moti. The development reverses an earlier rejection by the Ministry of Finance, which flagged the proposal as financially costly and advocated for open competitive bidding.
Botswana's government plans to raise P3.1 billion from the domestic market on 28 August through a Bank of Botswana-conducted auction, comprising P1.5 billion in three-month Treasury bills, P1 billion in six-month bills, and P600 million in reopened longer-term government bonds, as part of its ongoing reliance on monthly auctions to finance the budget deficit.
Development Finance Institutions have been urged to strengthen their anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing and counter-proliferation financing controls as Botswana prepares for a critical mutual evaluation of its financial crime controls. A Sectoral Risk Assessment Report for DFIs launched by the Financial Intelligence Agency emphasized that risk management must involve boards, executives, credit teams, and frontline staff, not just compliance officers.
The Ministry of Finance is seeking Parliament's approval to raise Botswana's domestic bond issuance ceiling to P85 billion, citing a global diamond market downturn that is squeezing government revenues and stating that the existing P55 billion programme is nearing exhaustion after years of heavy borrowing to finance widening budget deficits.
The Ministry of Finance announced it has cleared P3.8 billion in inherited unpaid invoices, trimmed expenditures, and repaid emergency debt during a period of fiscal constraint.
The Department of Veterinary Services, which leads the country's foot-and-mouth disease response, received a marginal budget reduction to P496 million for the 2026-27 financial year, down from about P500 million in 2025-26.
Under President Xi Jinping's leadership, China's eight-year poverty alleviation campaign lifted nearly 100 million rural residents above the national poverty line; the nation now focuses on all-around revitalization for the roughly 450 million people in the countryside, with solar panel projects in rural areas like Yunnan Province providing income and environmental benefits.
Econsult warns Botswana faces a potential debt crisis within five to ten years if current government borrowing trends persist, driven by persistent budget deficits where spending consistently outpaces revenue. The report notes significant delays in implementing fiscal reforms needed to restore fiscal resilience despite the 2026 budget being anticipated to chart a course toward fiscal consolidation.
A forensic audit commissioned by Boko found repeated use of non-competitive procurement, weakly justified direct awards, emergency procurement, and tender manipulation across multiple entities, with overuse of direct appointments and reliance on emergency procurement without clear basis, departing from open and competitive tendering.