Vice President Merafhe at the Council on Africa

| Tuesday September 28, 2010 00:00

I am aware that many, if not most, of you around the table, are familiar with the evolution of my country Botswana, from its humble beginnings as a Least Developed Country at Independence in 1966, to its present classification as an upper middle income country.

This formal categorisation has however, not immunised Botswana against the daunting development challenges facing other developing countries.

In the case of Botswana, these include inadequate diversification of our economy, unfavourable climatic conditions that undermine the country's agricultural potential, and the HIV and AIDS pandemic.

The financial and economic crisis, which has impacted Botswana negatively like many other countries around the world, merely exacerbated my county's challenges.

The need to tackle these and other challenges, and set the country on a path to sustainable development, have prompted my Government to embark on a deliberate and focused economic diversification program, mainly through foreign direct investment.

This is why I am meeting with you today; to invite you to Botswana to explore with us, the prospects of setting up businesses in the country, which will no doubt broaden your business portfolios. 

For us, your business activity in Botswana would contribute to our efforts towards economic diversification and growth, employment creation, income generation, poverty eradication, technology and skills transfer, and so forth.

We are seeking a partnership with you, and we see it as a win - win relationship. I think the question in your mind is, why Botswana?

Over the years, my Government has put in place, what we consider an attractive package for investors.    This incentive package includes:

*the lowest tax regime in the region of 15% for manufacturing and services companies;*a negotiable tax holiday of five to 10 years for high impact and strategic  businesses;* free repatriation of profits, dividends and capital and* a 200% refund on the cost of training at an accredited institution. 

In addition to these, we expect that the investor would benefit from the general business-friendly environment consisting of, among others:

*a stable and predictable political and economic set up;*a consistently high credit rating internationally;* a firmly entrenched culture of the rule of law;* a high literacy rate of over 82%;* a competitive labour cost of USD150 per month for unskilled workers;*respect for the sanctity of contracts; * a sizeable regional market of 300 million people;* a large duty free, quota free market in Europe and the United States of America.Mr. President,

Botswana is inviting American investors to explore investment opportunities in areas of great potential such as:* Textile and clothing manufacturing;*Leather products manufacturing;* Glass-making;* Mineral prospecting and mining; *Mineral beneficiation that includes diamond polishing, cutting and jewellery making;*Development of sectoral economic growth points, otherwise known in Botswana as Hubs, to enhance the country's competitiveness and benefit in certain activities. 

* These growth points have been identified in areas such as Innovation, Diamond beneficiation, Transport, Health, Education and Agriculture.

Let me conclude my brief remarks by once again thanking the Corporate Council on Africa, through you Mr President, for having made this interaction possible.As I indicated earlier, I have with me here, as  part of my delegation, Mr. Nkate, the Chief Executive of BEDIA, who will be able to amplify on some of the issues, I have raised during our discussion, as necessary. I thank you.

*Lieutenant General Mompati Merafhe is the Vice President