reservations

Economy

Botswana has some of the richest diamond fields in the world, and nearly all of them produce gem-quality stones. Other important minerals include uranium, copper, tin, lead, silver, vanadium, tungsten, and salt. The waters off Botswana's coast are rich in marine life. Most Botswanans raise livestock (cattle, Karakul sheep, and goats) and grow subsistence crops. The pressure of excessive farming has caused environmental damage. Woodlands and perennial grasses have vanished, leaving the soil degraded, and subject to desertification. Wildlife herds have suffered from drought and intensive hunting.

Education

English is the official language in Botswana and is used for most classroom instruction. Education is compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 16. The government has initiated programs to improve adult literacy.

Geography

Baobab Tree

Botswana can be divided into three regions. The coastal belt includes the Namib Desert, which extends along the entire Atlantic coast, and ranges from about 60 to 100 miles in width. Toward the east, a central plateau rises abruptly at the Great Escarpment. The plateau averages about 3,600 feet in elevation, but rises in several mountainous areas to elevations greater than 5,900 feet. Along the eastern border is the Kalahari Desert, containing vast sandy tracts. The only permanent rivers are the Orange, Kunene, Okavango, and Zambezi, all of which form international boundaries.

Government

Capital City, Windhoek

The constitution of 1990 established Botswana as an independent republic. Botswana's president is elected by the voters. The president may serve a maximum of two five-year terms. A constitutional amendment granted an exception for the current president, Sam Nujoma, allowing him to win a third term in 1999.

Healthcare

In spite of rapid population growth, agricultural production has increased sufficiently, so that per capita food output has been maintained. Natural freshwater resources and sanitation services are not widely available. Like most southern Africa countries, Botswana is facing a growing HIV risk among the young adult population.

Etosha National Park

Throughout the 1970's, Botswana's wildlife was vulnerable to poaching by the country's rural inhabitants, who needed the food that wildlife provided, and the money from their skins. In the 1980's the government created an innovative solution to the problem. People from rural communities were employed to scout for poachers. Each employee received a monthly food ration and a cash stipend. Many of these rural employees have become professional safari guides. By making the preservation of wildlife important to the livelihood of rural people, without significantly disrupting their traditional way of life, the program has made wildlife conservation more effective, benefiting the country's rural inhabitants. Wildlife populations rebounded, and ecotourism expanded. Wildlife includes buffalo, elephant, lion, leopard, cheetahs, impala and ostrich. Efforts are underway to reintroduce the endangered black rhinoceros.

Flooded Grasslands and Savannas

This habitat features the semi-desert vegetation of the Nama, Karoo, Namib and Kaokoveld deserts. These zones support 5,000 plant species, including the highest diversity of succulent plants in the world. Poor land management has resulted in the conversion of marginal semi-desert land for cultivation, and also for ostrich, goat, cattle, and sheep ranching.

Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands

The Okavango Delta, and associated flooded grasslands and savanna habitats, are among the most important biological sites in Africa. Besides a rich diversity of birds, this region supports significant populations of large mammals, such as the African elephant.

TEMPERATE UPWELLING

The Benguela Current flows north along the coast of Botswana. Abundant populations of fish, seabirds and marine mammals, as well as important migratory bird populations, occur in coastal lagoons and bays. Over-harvesting of many commercially valuable species continues.

TROPICAL AND SUBTROPICAL GRASSLANDS, SAVANNAS, AND SHRUBLANDS

Botswana Elephant

This habitat features a diverse population of large mammals, which make up the well-known savanna fauna. Much of the region remains sparsely settled, and the resulting human population pressures are minimal.

Botswana has several ethnic groups, including the Ovambo, the Kavango, the Herero, and the San. Cave paintings that may be more than 25,000 years old attest to the presence of hunter-gatherer groups in Botswana. The earliest identifiable inhabitants are the San, who were in the area by the 1st century AD. The Ovambo and Herero arrived much later.

OVAMBO

The Bantu-speaking Ovambo migrated from Central Africa in the 17th century, settling in an area that today includes northern Botswana and southern Angola. They lived in small villages. Extended families raised cattle and cultivated millet, sorghum, and beans. The Ovambo are closely related to the Kavango, and possibly to the Herero. Highly productive farmland, a flourishing metal-working industry, and trade in salt, copper, and iron ore have brought prosperity to the Ovambo. Many Ovambo men earn their livelihoods as mine laborers, while women continue to farm the land. They represent over half of the population in Botswana. Men wear overalls to protect their clothing, and often wear hats.

KAVANGO

The Kavango are descendants of Ovambo, who split from that society during the 17th century, and settled in the floodplain and on the islands of the Okavango River. Known as Kavangoland, this area has high seasonal rainfall. The river's silt deposits make the soil rich and arable. The riverine environment supports a variety of hardwood, nut, and fruit tree species. Papyrus, which grows in black water pools, produces leaves that are used for mats and thatch. The Kavango comprise fewer than 10 percent of the total population, and they are materially poor.

HERERO

Herero Woman

The Herero now call themselves Ovaherero, and are thought to have arrived in Botswana during the 16th century. They migrated with other Bantu-speaking people, from the area around Lake Victoria. Some of these migrants settled in the northern Kaokoveld, and became known as the Himba. The nomadic Himba place great cultural and economic value on cattle. Cattle herds are an important measure of wealth. Many Herero/Himba feel they are discriminated against by the Ovambo-dominated government. They constitute around 7 percent of the Botswanan population.

SAN

San Boy on Bicycle

The San people live mainly in the Kalahari Desert of Botswana and Botswana. They are also known as the Khoisan, and speak a language characterized by clicking sounds. The San continue to live as hunter-gatherers and are organized into small groups of about ten families. Women gather wild plants and fruit, which provide most of the nourishment. Men supplement the diet by killing animals with light bows and poison-tipped arrows. The San are skilled painters, and engrave pictures on the walls of their caves. They have lived in southern Africa for thousands of years. Many have recently begun working as farm laborers. As a result, their cultural heritage has been altered.

Botswana is famous for the starkly beautiful landscapes of the Namib Desert, Damaraland and the Kalahari Desert. Botswana has long been a destination for travelers. Most are fascinated by the opportunity to experience overland treks, hot air balloon rides, and isolated desert photo and walking safaris.

ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK

The Etosha Pan was once a shallow lake, which was filled by a river that long ago changed its course. The pan is now a salt desert, with several water holes used by wildlife. Botswana's premier wildlife reserve, Etosha is a semi-arid savannah grassland and thorn scrub expanse, surrounding a calcrete pan. Etosha Pan is "the place of dry water." It is transformed for a brief period each rainy season, only to return to a sea of mirages during the notoriously dry winter months. Large herds of elephants, zebras, giraffes and black rhinos congregate at water holes.

KALAHARI DESERT

An arid region in southwestern Botswana and eastern Botswana, the Kalahari Desert is generally covered with red soil, and low-growing grasses and brush. Heavy rains cause pools of water to form in the region's extensive mud flats. The desert is inhabited by the Khoikhoi and San people.

NAMIB DESERT

Massive Sand Dunes

The world’s oldest desert extends along the coast of Botswana, reaching inland 60 to 100 miles. The Benguela Current carries icy Atlantic Ocean water to the African coast, helping to cool the desert. The collision of cold water with warm air creates a dense fog that causes a navigational hazard, known as the Skeleton Coast, to ships at sea. Some parts of the Namib Desert are spectacularly scenic. Sossusvlei is legendary for its huge orange and coral-colored sand dunes. Karakul sheep are raised in the south, where the Namib Desert merges with the Kalahari.

KAOKOVELD

Botswana's least accessible region, the Kaokoveld features some of Africa's most famous examples of rock art, in the granite landmarks of Damaraland. The northern area is a harsh mountainous desert, supporting the endangered Kaokoveld elephant.

SKELETON COAST

Skeleton Coast

Over the past few centuries, the western coast of Botswana has acquired a sinister reputation as a graveyard for unwary mariners. The remote and ecologically sensitive wilderness in the north is still largely off-limits.

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