Botswana Economy
Economy - overviewBotswana 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 $8,800 in 2003. Two major investment services rank Botswana as the best credit risk in Africa. Diamond mining has fueled much of the expansion and currently accounts for more than one-third of GDP and for nine-tenths of export earnings. Tourism, subsistence farming, and cattle raising are other key sectors. On the downside, the government must deal with high rates of unemployment and poverty. Unemployment officially is 21%, 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. Long-term prospects are overshadowed by the expected leveling off in diamond mining production.
GDP
purchasing power parity - $14.2 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate
7.2% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita
purchasing power parity - $9,000 (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 4%
industry: 48.7% (including 36% mining)
services: 52% (2003 est.)
Investment
23.9% of GDP (2003)
Population below poverty line
47% (2002 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA
Inflation rate
9.2% (2003 est.)
Labor force
264,000 formal sector employees (2000)
Labor force - by occupation
NA
Unemployment rate
40% (official rate is 21%) (2001 est.)
Budget
revenues: $3.263 billion
expenditures: $3.283 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003)
Public debt
7% of GDP (2003)
Agriculture - products
livestock, sorghum, maize, millet, beans, sunflowers, groundnuts
Industries
diamonds, copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash; livestock processing; textiles
Industrial production growth rate
7.3% (2003 est.)
Electricity - production
409.8 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - consumption
1.564 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports
1.183 billion kWh (2001)
Oil - production
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption
16,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports
NA (2001)
Oil - imports
NA (2001)
Current account balance
$539 million (2003)
Exports
$2.544 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Exports - commodities
diamonds, copper, nickel, soda ash, meat, textiles
Exports - partners
European Free Trade Association (EFTA) 87%, Southern African Customs Union (SACU) 7%, Zimbabwe 4% (2000)
Imports
$1.753 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Imports - commodities
foodstuffs, machinery, electrical goods, transport equipment, textiles, fuel and petroleum products, wood and paper products, metal and metal products
Imports - partners
Southern African Customs Union (SACU) 74%, EFTA 17%, Zimbabwe 4% (2000)
Reserves of foreign exchange & gold
$5.25 billion (2003)
Debt - external
$392 million (2003)
Currency
pula (BWP)
Currency code
BWP
Exchange rates
pulas per US dollar - 4.9499 (2003), 6.3278 (2002), 5.8412 (2001), 5.1018 (2000), 4.6244 (1999)
