President Mokgweetsi Masisi has been declared winner following this week’s elections in Botswana, with his Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) claiming the necessary seats in parliament to secure his next five-year term. The country’s chief justice, Terrence Rannowane, made the announcement Friday morning after verifying that the BDP had met the…
The polls are set to open in Botswana early Wednesday but not without controversy that’s already emerged over the country’s Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and the transparency of the vote. The IEC defended itself on Tuesday over two media accounts reporting that the opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change party, led…
Botswana’s President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi, seeking to maintain his position in an election year, is campaigning in the southern African nation with an invitation for opposition leaders who have left the ruling though splintered Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) to return. Masisi, speaking in Gaborone alongside a candidate for the October…
Botswanans had a bit of a scare on Saturday when the helicopter carrying President Mokgweetsi Masisi had engine trouble. A Botswana Defence Force presidential helicopter was forced to make an immediate landing as it arrived around 5:30 p.m. at Francistown Airport, upon arrival from Mathangwane. Francistown is Botswana’s second-largest city….
The president of Botswana began an 11-day trip to the United States on Tuesday, leaving from Sir Seretse Khama International Airport as he headed off for his working visit to a number of cities. President Mokgweetsi Masisi will visit Las Vegas, San Francisco, New York and New Haven during his…
Botswana has lifted its ban on elephant hunting, in a controversial decision announced Thursday by environment and wildlife minister Kitso Mokaila. The ruling follows a year-long process in Botswana to evaluate the ban, which was put in place five years ago by former president Ian Khama. He was succeeded in…
The entire board of the Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority (BERA) has been suspended, following an independent investigation launched after reports of alleged misconduct among its members. Eric Molale, Botswana’s Minister of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security, said the board suspension takes effect immediately. It will continue during a…
Mokgweetsi Masisi, the current president of Botswana, will be the candidate of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) as the country moves toward elections later this year. His nomination followed the withdrawal of Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi, who stepped out of the process on Friday with a last-minute statement that said she…
President Mokgweetsi Masisi returned to Botswana at the weekend, after the southern African nation was invited to participate in the World Economic Forum at Davos for the first time – and he said there was “a lot of excitement” when the delegation told the Botswana story. “We met a whole…
From flooding to drought, countries across the African continent experience climate change in environmentally and economically diverse settings – but what do its citizens really think about it? The Ghana-based Afrobarometer research organization checked in with five different countries for their 2018 reports, from West Africa to the south, and…
Botswana’s minister for local government and rural development was removed from her position Wednesday, one day after announcing that she intended to challenge President Mokgweetsi Masisi for leadership of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP). “Yesterday I informed, in writing to the BDP and His Excellency the President, that I…
Botswana has been named the best African country for safari adventures, narrowly edging out Tanzania for the first time in annual ratings conducted by SafariBookings.com. “Botswana – a study in contrasting landscapes, from the impossibly beautiful Kalahari Desert with its big skies to the watery wonderland of the famous Okavango…
The United States isn’t the only nation with leaders making a high-profile visit to the African continent this week. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also has made Africa a priority, stepping up his own visits on trade and cooperation, as well as those of President Ram Nath Kovind and Foreign Minister Sushma…
The Government of Botswana says that this week’s gripping news of 90 elephant poaching fatalities in the country is misleading and sensationalized. Thato Raphaka, the secretary for the Ministry of Lands, said Wednesday that Botswana’s findings are not consistent with data attributed to Elephants Without Borders (EWB), which has been…
Legislation to protect wildlife from poaching in the Okavango River Basin of southern Africa was passed this week by the United States House of Representatives, where members who sponsored the bill raised the alarm over ties between wildlife trafficking and terrorist organization finance. “This ecosystem spans three countries,” said bill…