Botswana has, over the past 40 years, been striving to create an environment conducive for investment and has remained open to foreign direct investment. Several policies and programmes have also been developed over the years to promote local enterprise development that is required to facilitate economic growth based on linkages and synergies between foreign and local firms.

As a result of the afore-mentioned initiatives, Botswana remains an ideal location for investment, not only for her strategic location as the gateway to the over 200 million inhabitants of the SADC Region, but also because business and investment opportunities abound in the country. Botswana's investment climate has won her accolades over the years from around the globe including from institutes of repute such as Moody’s, Standard and Poor and Transparency International, among others.

Economic diversification remains a key objective for Government and partnership between Government and the private sector is key to achieving this major task.

In recognition of the limited market offered domestically, Botswana continues to explore other markets. To date, investors in Botswana enjoy duty-free market access offered through the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and the lucrative United States market under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which is not fully exploited, save for the textile industry. The Southern African Development Community (SADC), which aims at establishing a Free Trade Area by 2008, Customs Union by 2010, Common Market by 2015 and a Monetary Union by 2018, provides a wider regional market with over 200 million people in terms of both scope and products.

As a signatory to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement, Botswana stands to benefit from the three pillars of agriculture, namely: elimination of domestic support by trading partners which results in unfair competition, reduction of export subsidies, and improved market access for agricultural goods. On the industrial front, WTO strives for market access for industrial goods through reduction in tariffs. The WTO and SADC also aim at opening up trade in services, though this is still at infancy stage.

I, therefore, invite you to enjoy the experience of investing in Botswana. The Botswana Export Development and Investment Authority (BEDIA) has been established to facilitate both pre and post investment requirements of both foreign owned and joint ventures. My Ministry and all the People of Botswana will be at your service to turn your investment decisions into worthy ventures.

D.N. MOROKA (MP)
Minister of Trade and Industry