Botswana must shatter its long-standing economic bottlenecks and move aggressively toward decentralisation and private-sector growth if it wants to seize its full potential on the global stage. This was the hard message delivered by the Presidential Envoy on International Relations and Economic Development, Dr Farzam Kamalabadi, during a high-level session at the Botswana Economic Forum in Gaborone today.
Kamalabadi praised Botswana as a rare African success story--peaceful, educated, and rich in natural resources--but warned that the country is now being held back by complacency and a rigid, over-centralised economic system.
Despite decades of stability and mineral wealth, Botswana's economy remains 80 percent government-driven, with only 20 percent powered by private enterprise. Kamalabadi said this imbalance is not only slowing economic transformation, but actively scaring away investors--including 75 high-value international investors he personally attracted to Botswana. After months of facilitation, he revealed, only two managed to secure even non-binding MOUs.
"This is not a failure of investors," he implied. "It is a failure of systems."
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He pointed to the underlying causes:
· A receiver mentality that prioritises control over openness
· Reluctance to liberalise the economy
· Over-protectionist practices
· A sluggish, paperwork-heavy bureaucracy
· Delayed diversification away from diamonds
These factors, he said, are choking growth and dimming the country's prospects.
Kamalabadi called for urgent structural reforms, including:
- Decentralising state authority--shifting from micro-control to smart oversight
- Fast-tracking business approvals and cutting bureaucratic drag
- Privatising more state assets
- Expanding private-sector participation to reverse the 80:20 imbalance
- Embedding entrepreneurship even within government structures
- Opening up to skilled immigration and joint-venture enterprises
- Driving regional integration and large cross-border projects
- Building a dynamic circular-economy model to create youth jobs
Drawing from global economic trends, Kamalabadi warned that nations trapped in protectionism and centralised control inevitably slide into stagnation, rising unemployment, weaker credit ratings, and deepening poverty. Botswana, he argued, still has time to avoid that path--but the window is shrinking.
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He concluded with a challenge: Botswana must re-energise its private sector, unleash entrepreneurship, and embrace bold economic openness. With decisive reforms, he said, the country can not only avert looming risks but position itself as one of Africa's most competitive and fastest-growing economies.
Progressive Institute
