The changing face of Monarch

The majority of erstwhile dusty roads have been upgraded while yellow earth-moving machines are still working on others.

Monarch, one of Francistown's oldest 'estates', has also been one of Botswana's most overcrowded, grimiest and least developed low-income tenements. The majority of people here live in mud thatched huts that fall far short of the council's building standards. By contrast, modern houses appear just a stonethrow from Monarch.