10 districts and four town councils*; Central, Chobe, Francistown*, Gaborone*, Ghanzi, Kgalagadi, Kgatleng, Kweneng, Lobatse*, Ngamiland, North-East, Selebi-Pikwe*, South-East, Southern.
Population:
1,586,119
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.)
Currency:
pula (BWP)
Languages:
English (official), Setswana
Elevation:
highest point: Tsodilo Hills 1,489 m
lowest point: junction of the Limpopo and Shashe Rivers 513 m
Natural hazards:
periodic droughts; seasonal August winds blow from the west, carrying sand and dust across the country, which can obscure visibility
Botswana has maintained one of the world's highest growth rates since independence in 1966. Through fiscal discipline and sound management, Botswana has transformed itself from one of the poorest countries in the world to a middle-income country with a per capita GDP of $6,600 in 2000. Diamond mining has fueled much of Botswana's economic expansion and currently accounts for more than one-third of GDP and for three-fourths of export earnings. Tourism, subsistence farming, and cattle raising are other key sectors. The government must deal with high rates of unemployment and poverty. Unemployment officially is 19%, but unofficial estimates place it closer to 40%. HIV/AIDS infection rates are the highest in the world and threaten Botswana's impressive economic gains.
Industry:
diamonds, copper, nickel, coal, salt, soda ash, potash; livestock processing
Ethnicgroups:
Tswana (or Setswana) 79%, Kalanga 11%, Basarwa 3%, other, including Kgalagadi and white 7%
Vaccination requirements:
No vaccination requirements for any international traveller.
Malaria:
Malaria risk—predominantly due to P. falciparum—exists from November to May/June in the northern parts of the country: Boteti, Chobe, Ngamiland, Okavango, Tutume districts/sub-districts. Chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum reported.
