Cement market constricted

According to a regional study carried out by the African Competition Forum (ACF), there are low deposits of limestone in Botswana, which is the chief raw material in cement production. As a consequence, Botswana imports cement and even other crucial cement inputs such as clinker and fly ash mainly from South Africa and other African countries and even as far away as Asia. According to the report, it is the unavailability of these raw materials that impedes access and expansion of the cement industry in Botswana. The study, conducted in six countries including Botswana, Namibia, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia, revealed that the market structure of cement is oligopolistic.