Men continue to dominate Botswana

According to the report, the National Development Bank (NDB) in Botswana is one of the main parastatal banks that helps women grow and expand their business ventures. But in general, more men gain access to loans from the NDB than women, at 30 percent and 10 percent respectively. Further, 58 percent of the loans requested by men are for farming enterprises and 25 percent loans requested by women are for retail and manufacturing businesses.

The report states that this indicates that women and men are still operating in business sectors that are traditionally determined by gender roles. As indicated by the Botswana MDGs' 2010 progress report, access to and control of productive resources are still male biased. This is an important economic empowerment sector and urgent affirmative action is therefore required to enhance the economic participation of women.