50 years ago Botswana.....

.....gained her Independence as a country.

….when their first President Sir Seretse Khama was married to a white British lady, Ruth, setting the standard and example for racial harmony, beginning the process of what we see around us today!  Later this year a new movie will open the British Film Festival called 'A United Kingdom'. It's about their story. 

The flag of this landlocked Southern African country reflects the principles of peace (light blue) and racial harmony (black and white).

Next month - September is the month of the main celebration, particularly on the actual day - September 30th, but in this month of August the celebrations have increased significantly.  The 'torch' has been travelling around the country and is nearing the completion of its journey and other events of celebration are already occuring. There is a big event planned at the National Stadium for the day.  The daughter of the lady who works as our house-help, is one of the school children who was chosen to participate in the special displays on the day.

These next weeks will be ones filled with much celebrating and ululating. …….

Botswana was never colonised, but was the 'Bechuanaland Protectorate' of Great Britain from 1885 till Independance in 1966. It was the only country in the world that had its Capital in another country.

Great Britain didn't place much value in this patch of sparsely populated, hot, dry Kalahari Desert (70% of the country), with less than 1% of arable land.  

So the process of Independence was very peaceful.

We have heard it said that "the worst thing Great Britain did for Botswana was nothing, but the best thing Great Britain did for Botswana was nothing!"

But in 50 years it's come a long way…..

ROADS

The new country of Botswana inherited from Great Britain only 6km of sealed road in the entire country! 

Now it has over 6000km of sealed road including some multi-laned highways! (and about another 20,000km of other gravel and sand roads)

DIAMONDS

• Such progress is mostly due to the fact that in 1967, the year after Independence, diamonds were discovered.....lots of diamonds!
• Botswana now produces 1/3 of the world's diamonds.....or should we rather say that 1/3 of the world's diamonds are extracted from beneath the sand in Botswana.
• The Debeers rough diamond sales headquarters relocated in 2013 from London to Gaborone, Botswana's Capital city.
• It is wise use of the money from these diamonds which has essentially funded the development of the country in such quick time.
• But diamonds in the dust of the desert is a reminder of the extremes of this country.  

On the one hand Botswana supplies the world with 1/3 of its diamonds,

yet there are...

SOME GREAT ADVANCES and SOME GREAT CHALLENGES

As much as the diamonds is a 'wow' statistic, on the other hand, it has as much of a 'oh no' statistic of still being the country with one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world.

It also has one of the highest degrees of income differences in the world between the rich and poor.

Then in the north it has the large Chobe River and Game Reserve and the largest inland Delta (Okavango Delta) in the world with an abundance of wildlife, and bird life and spectacular scenery.

A Pod of Hippopotami in the Chobe River

But in the south there have been times in recent days when the main hospital can't carry out all needed surgery because of massive water rations due to there not being enough to supply the area's requirements let alone peak demands and the major dam supplying the capital city 'failed' because it more or less dried up.  It is currently in the midst of the driest year in 34 years!

It is a country with massive potential but also have to deal with massive difficulties.

It's a tough time in its history. But it is persevering and making full effort to grow itself.

As it becomes more educated, exposed to media, and urbanised, all new pressures come upon it.  It's people want more, expect more and consume more.

THE PEOPLE

POPULATION

While population growth dropped during the worst of the HIV crisis it is now over 2 million people, about 4 times what it was at Independence.

At Independance the population of it's capital city (which had been built from scratch in 3 years) was 5000.  It was originally built with a maximum of 20,000 in view. At the 2011 census it had over 230,000 with over 420,000 in the wider agglomeration area. 61% of the population of the country has now become urbanised, whereas over 90% were rural dwelling in multiple villages under 500 people at the time of Independence

EDUCATION

At Independance schooling was limited.  Only 20% of school aged children were attending school at all, but only about 100 had completed Secondary School and 1.4% had completed Primary School.  There was no university of its own but a shared one with Swaziland and Lesotho.  There were only 22 University Graduates among the entire population. The University of Botswana started in 1982.  Now there are a few different Universities both state and privately run, and other various tertiary study institutions, and over 95% of children attend school.

HEALTH

One area of priority since Independence has been health. Though there were some clinics at Independence it is said that most did not have resident staff. There are now multiple hospitals and clinics both government and private.

Almost all the country now has access to safe drinkable water. 

MEDIA & COMMUNICATION

It now has its own TV station and produces its own programs, and has multipe radio stations.

It has telephone, internet and cell phone availability, although full availability and efficiency of those services varies across the country

And these provisions and services have almost all come in the last 50 years.

MAKING ITS MARK

But this country of only 2 million people , one of the most sparsely populated in the world (3 people per square km) is making its mark on the world scene. 

It earned the name of the most peaceful country in Africa and one of the fastest growing economies of the world. At Independance GDP per capita was about US$70 per year but now boasts a GDP (purchasing power parity) per capita of about $18,825 per year as of 2015, which is one of the highest in Africa.

In 2012 Botswana gained its first Olympic medal when Nigel Amos won Silver in the Mens' 800m.

In 2015 it was rated yet again as the best in Africa in rule of law and governance. 

Also in 2015 the second largest diamond ever discovered in the world and the largest to be discovered in over a century, was found in Botswana.

Truly this is an amazing country - PRAY for her people, that they would seek God, not pride in their own achievements, as the measure of 'success'….that they would come to know the One who not only Created them but provided a way through Jesus Christ to save them from sin and give them true honour, not just for 50 years but for eternity.