Features :: Mmegi Online

Friday, September 18, 2026

Adesina lays down ground rules on Diamonds for Development

The P1 billion Diamonds for Development Fund will not be a first-come, first-served, free-for-all cash grab, but a catalytic investment vehicle for economic diversification says its founding chair. Development finance veteran, Akinwumi Adesina, speaks to MBONGENI MGUNI

Mbongeni Mguni | 18 September 2026

Gathering momenum: Adesina’s task is taking shape PIC: MBONGENI MGUNI

The price of love: Some research suggests the cost of bogadi and expensive wedding ceremonies is turning many couples away from marriage PIC: KENTEKNOTS.COM

Inside why Batswana are putting marriage on hold

Since time immemorial, marriage has been an important rite of passage of Setswana culture. Courtship would led to patlo, bogadi and marriage, with children traditionally coming afterwards.

Lewanika Timothy | 18 September 2026

Building dreams: Dangote’s IPO is the biggest ever seen on the continent PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO

Why local pension funds billions are chasing Dangote

A roomful of pension funds and their asset managers recently made an impassioned plea for Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, to ensure local access to his record-breaking Initial Public Offer. The $1.6bn float promises high returns and portfolio diversification, writes MBONGENI MGUNI

Mbongeni Mguni | 18 September 2026

Pressing on: Gaolathe was in South Korea last week engaging investors on the BETP. He is due to headline the Botswana Day event at the London Stock Exchange later this month on the same theme PIC PHATSIMO KAPENG.

BETP turns in its six-month report card

Six months into the ten-year BETP, officials are noting positive momentum. Most eyes are on projects, but the early wins are in refined policies such as the introduction of simple basic accounts and an additional clearing window for payments through which P23bn flowed in just three months. MBONGENI MGUNI writes

Mbongeni Mguni | 16 September 2026

Blue and black: This year's Independence Day celebrations also mark the decades of diamond excellence

‘Kanreki’: 60 and still being young

For two days every year, we anticipate and then are reassured by a singular event. On 30 September - 1 October, the people of Botswana always direct their attention to celebrating the country’s independence, no matter what.

BONGI D D M RADIPATI* | 16 September 2026

Global horror: The haunting image of the Twin Towers after impact, is still stuck in the minds of many PIC: DEMOSTATA.RS

The world 25 years after 9/11

For Americans and most of the world, the sky fell on September 11, 2001. Today, even with the benefit of numerous documentaries and eyewitness accounts, the entire event still feels surreal. The scale and shock of the atrack, the confusion and panic, the death toll, the stories of survival and heroism have echoed down the decades.

Mbongeni Mguni | 11 September 2026

Capital central: The BSE’s headquarters in Gaborone PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO

BSE scores first IPO since 2017

The BSE has a spring in its step, as its years-long campaign for new listings is bearing fruit. The local bourse has welcomed a P2.13bn Initial Public Offer from Continental Re, with the pan-African group saying Botswana was a prime choice for a listing. MBONGENI MGUNI writes

Mbongeni Mguni | 08 September 2026

Knowing Ukraine beyond the war

For many Batswana, Ukraine is primarily associated with the war with Russia. But Ukraine’s ambassador to Botswana says the country should be understood beyond the conflict, as a European nation with a thousand-year history, a strong national identity, advanced technology and a major agricultural sector.

Lewanika Timothy | 04 September 2026

Save our souls: Some of the maps which emerged from the Swakopmund meeting, showing both rainfall and heat forecasts this rain season

‘Hell Niño’ rears its ugly head again

Just three years after it last visited, El Nino, hated and dreaded in equal parts, is back and threatening a record-breaking impact. SADC forecasters met in Namibia last week and expect Botswana to be amongst those hard hit this season. MBONGENI MGUNI writes

Mbongeni Mguni | 04 September 2026

Burning ambition: Galvanising Botswana is steaming ahead with its plans FILE PIC

How Galvanising Botswana seeks to spark a steel revolution

Botswana is preparing to take a step further down the steel value chain with a new hot-dip galvanising plant expected to begin operations in the first quarter of next year, opening possibilities for local manufacturers who have long depended on South African facilities to complete their products. TIMOTHY LEWANIKA chats with one of the pioneering local entrepreneurs, Steven Steven, who is one of the directors of Galvanising Botswana

Lewanika Timothy | 28 August 2026

Botswana’s new tax laws: What they mean for Batswana

TLOTLISO DIRE | 28 August 2026

The gloom surrounding Botswana’s Diamond Jubilee

Lewanika Timothy | 21 August 2026

Internet misfits: The next epidemic

Bantu Piet | 21 August 2026

Global HIV hits 30yr low, but stubborn risks remain

Mbongeni Mguni | 21 August 2026

Inside Botswana’s growing digital safety challenge

Itumeleng Garebatshabe | 21 August 2026

BITC, BIUST join forces to fast-track Botswana’s STEM economy

kutlo moagi | 21 August 2026

Chebani dumps BCP for BNF

Former councillor, Wabuya Chebani has joined the Botswana National Front (BNF), saying his latest political move is driven by a desire to contribute to Botswana’s economic and democratic development.

Mojadigo plans to file no case to answer

Rape convict Goitsekgosi Mojadigo has indicated that he intends to file an application for a no case to answer after the prosecution closed its rape matter before Village Senior Magistrate, Tshepo Thedi.

Atshabeng was laid to rest at his home village of Molepolole on Sunday as police continue investigations into his gruesome killing

Throat attack survivor found murdered

The brutal murder of a 53-year-old Botswana Defence Force (BDF) Lieutenant Colonel Goitsemodimo Atshabeng has left the nation stunned, with growing questions about whether his killer could be the same person who previously slit his throat.

BPF's Porati joins the fray. PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO

BPF enters Sefhophe by-election race

The Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF) has entered the race for the Sefhophe by-election, choosing experienced public administrator and community leader Loeto Porati as its candidate.

Half-a-million Pula child maintenance debt could jail Molatlhegi

After two separate civil imprisonments, Nonofo Molatlhegi, a man who was ordered by the Court of Appeal (CoA) to pay child maintenance arrears of P340 500 still hasn’t paid and has approached the court to stop another impending jail time.

Botswana celebrates 60 years with choir competition

Music lovers and dikhwaere enthusiasts are set for an evening of entertainment and national pride when Dipidipidi Garden at Gakgatla, Masebosebo hosts the Independence Choir Competitions on September 30, 2026.

Deficit narrows sharply as economy finds its footing

The Ministry of Finance is projecting to sharply slash its projected 2026–2027 budget deficit by nearly two-thirds, providing fresh evidence that the country’s fiscal and economic position is beginning to improve after two difficult years marked by declining diamond revenues and overall economic contraction.

Ruling party should tread carefully on cadre deployment

But on the particularly sensitive question of cadre deployment, the BNF must tread very carefully.The issue deserves robust debate, not ideological enthusiasm. Recent public comments from the BNF leadership are reassuring: the party has said that government positions should be based on merit and competence rather than party membership, and that it does not have a specific cadre-deployment policy.That principle should remain firmly at the centre...

The Monitor Editor | 29 September 2026

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