Botswana

At the dawn of its independence in 1966, the Republic of Botswana was among the world's poorest countries. However, following the discovery of diamonds, the country invested the mineral revenues in developing physical and human capital. Combined with a stable political environment, effective governance, a robust civil service and dynamic economic management, this enabled Botswana to attain upper-middle-income status in 2005.

Despite these achievements, Botswana continues to grapple with challenges, including a high unemployment rate and very high inequality. Efforts are underway to diversify the economy beyond the diamond sector, focusing on agriculture, manufacturing, and the service industry. This process aims to create an economy that is both diverse and inclusive.  

IFAD contributes towards inclusive transformation for an equitable and sustainable food system in Botswana. We do this by providing technical assistance, designing climate interventions and supporting access to finance for national development finance institutions.

Since 2022, IFAD has been supporting the small ruminant sector through the Lobu Smart Farm project. The goal is to develop, test, implement and scale up a small livestock farm model to enable farmers to increase their productivity and profitability.

IFAD is exploring opportunities for an integrated operation, including non-sovereign operations and climate financing, to support the agriculture sector and help achieve the country’s ambition to become a high-income country by 2036.

• Botswana is the world’s second-largest producer of diamonds.
• 17% of the population lives below the poverty line, while 24.2%. of rural people live in poverty.