DEMOCRACY AND DEVELOPMENT IN BOTSWANA

Abstract

Botswana

has social and physical settings which could make development difficult. Botswana is an

ethnically diverse and landlocked country, with much of its landmass desert-menaced and hostile.

In spite of these limitations, Botswana is considered one of the world’s development successes,

and has secured for herself the status of a fast growing economy. The development gains in

Botswana are often credited to the availability of minerals, particularly diamond. But mineral

deposits may impede development as seen in most African countries where natural resources have

caused endless civil conflicts or where large sums of mineral wealth have been squandered. On

the other hand, many developed economies are resource endowed. Thus, the abundance of

resources may or may not be a curse; and whichever case is true of any country is dependent on

more fundamental factor(s) such as the nature and character of politics. From inception,

Botswana’s governance system has been democratic, and this has impacted significantly on

development in the country. Consequently, the study establishes a nexus between democracy and

development in Botswana. The theoretical basis

is systems theory, while the analytical tool is

content analysis. The findings, inter alia, are that

Botswana’s democracy is participatory, that the

culture of corruption is not tolerated, and that the

resources of the state are effectively utilized for

development.