Wilderness celebrates Botswana’s brave tourism decisions
correspondent | Wednesday June 24, 2026 10:27
This message was reaffirmed at a stakeholder evening held in Gaborone, bringing together leaders from tourism, conservation, business and government to reflect on Botswana’s tourism journey, its economic future, and the shared responsibility to protect one of the country’s greatest long-term advantages. The engagement honoured the leaders, communities and industry pioneers whose bold decisions helped establish Botswana’s conservation success story. It also offered guests a considered ‘taste of Wilderness’ in the heart of Gaborone, transforming one of the city’s hidden gems into a reflection of the warmth, people, purpose and place that define the Wilderness experience. Wilderness Botswana Chairman, Kabelo Binns, said Botswana’s tourism success was not accidental, but the result of deliberate and courageous choices made over many decades.
“At a time when many nations pursued extraction and high-volume growth, Botswana made the brave decision to protect wilderness, preserve ecological space and build value through conservation,” said Binns. “The easy thing would have been to chase volumes. The brave thing was protecting the asset itself. Today, Botswana stands as proof that conservation and commerce, when designed with courage, are not enemies. They are partners.” Botswana’s globally respected tourism positioning remains one of the country’s most important long-term strategic advantages, particularly as the economy continues to diversify beyond diamonds. “Our task is not to grow the number of visitors in ecologically sensitive areas like the Delta. Our task is to grow the value of every visitor.
That means richer cultural experiences, stronger conservation outcomes, better-trained guides, higher hospitality standards and continued investment in communities. Botswana’s success was built on scarcity, excellence and discipline, and it will only remain successful if we continue protecting those principles.” Binns further noted that Botswana’s conservation-led tourism model continues to stand apart globally precisely because of the discipline required to maintain it. “When you compromise wilderness slowly, incrementally and commercially, you eventually lose the very thing people travelled across the world to experience. Botswana’s advantage has never been volume. It has been restraint, authenticity and the courage to think long term.” The latest Wilderness Botswana Impact Report shows the business generated more than P700 million in foreign exchange in the last financial year, with local procurement exceeding P292 million and more than 80% of purchases by value sourced locally. Wilderness Botswana currently employs approximately 1,000 people, 97% of whom are Batswana. Across the wider Group, Wilderness reported US$251 million paid to host governments over the past decade, US$100 million paid to custodians of protected areas, and active support in protecting 5.4 million acres of wildlife land and habitat across Africa.
The significance of Botswana within the broader Wilderness network was also reaffirmed by Wilderness Group Chief Sales Officer and South Africa Managing Director, Simon Stobbs, who attended the engagement. “Botswana remains one of the most respected conservation tourism destinations anywhere in the world and continues to influence how many other markets think about sustainable tourism growth,” he shared. Globally, travellers are increasingly seeking experiences that feel authentic, responsible and deeply connected to nature and community. Botswana pioneered many of those principles long before they became international trends. The evening also reinforced Wilderness’ view that Botswana’s conservation success cannot be sustained through private sector action alone.
The business called on operators to continue investing in people and standards, on communities to fiercely protect the environmental assets entrusted to them, and on government to maintain the policy consistency and regulatory discipline that have safeguarded Botswana’s premium tourism positioning for decades. Wilderness Botswana Caretaker Managing Director, Joe Matome, reaffirmed this, celebrating partnerships, shared purpose and Botswana’s unique spirit of hospitality. “There is something incredibly special about bringing people together around conservation, conversation and shared appreciation for this country,” said Matome. “Botswana’s wilderness story has always been bigger than any one organisation.
We are proud to work alongside communities, partners, government and industry in helping showcase and protect one of the most extraordinary destinations on earth.” The stakeholder engagement forms part of Wilderness Botswana’s broader efforts to deepen dialogue around conservation economies, sustainable tourism growth and Botswana’s long-term tourism resilience. Hosting the engagement at the National Botanical Garden also reflected Wilderness’ desire to celebrate local spaces that continue to hold environmental, cultural and educational significance, experiencing a little taste of Wilderness right in the heart of Gaborone. (Issued by Wilderness Botswana)