Global Expo to forge local-investor deals
Pauline Dikuelo | Wednesday September 24, 2025 06:00
The government investment-promoting agency, which is hosting Global Expo Botswana 2025 in October, has announced a significant local response to its call for investment-ready projects. BITC stated it has received approximately 131 submissions from Batswana ahead of the event. BITC Executive Director of Export Development and Promotion, Temo Ntapu, said they had issued an Expression of Interest (EoI) in May for locals to submit project ideas where they need investors. “We intend to generate many of our investment leads at the expo, and we were impressed with the number of locals who have shown interest in being paired with investors,” he added. According to officials, the submissions have now been evaluated, and those projects assessed as being closest to bankability will be given a prominent platform during the exposition. “They will be accorded an opportunity to pitch to potential investors in deal rooms during the expo,” Ntapu stated and assured that the event will feature serious prospects. “We have ensured we have credible investors who are willing to invest in Botswana.”
The Global Expo Botswana 2025 will form a key part of a broader national effort to position Botswana as an investment destination of choice and will host dedicated Business-to-Business linkages. “The expo will host high-level dialogues to provide discussions around key topics so that we can give our investors a clear view of the policies around those industries,” he added. This year's edition will feature international exhibitions, industry-focused workshops, matchmaking sessions, and the much-anticipated Pula Investment Conference, a new platform designed to connect promising local projects with investors in a deal-room format. With a sharpened focus on innovation and investment, Global Expo Botswana 2025 will spotlight Botswana’s dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystem and create fertile ground for groundbreaking ideas to take root. Additionally, this year’s investment and trade showcase is expected to be a large-scale, multi-sectoral event, anticipating about 300 exhibitors from 15 participating countries and approximately 250 delegates.
The exhibitions will provide a platform for both local and international businesses to showcase their products. Global Expo Botswana is the country’s premier International multi-sectoral business-to-business exhibition that is managed by BITC on behalf of the government. The annual expo is held towards the end of the year, and it attracts exhibitors and businesspeople from the region and globally.