Botswana considers tourism as part of its economic diversification plans

Botswana is considering tourism as one of the sectors it needs to develop as it looks for ways to diversify away from diamonds.

Diamonds account for about 80% of Botswana’s exports earnings and 25% of gross domestic product as well as one-third of government’s revenues.

“We want to [focus] not just on the minerals space…we want go to tourism, already we are into tourism,” Botswana’s new minister of mineral resources Lefoko Maxwell Moagi told EcoToursim Expert on the sidelines of a mining conference in Cape Town. 

Botswana recently maintained its grip in the number one spot as Africa’s best safari country, according to SafariBookings, Africa’s largest online market place for safari holidays.

The country was said to have unforgettable wildlife-viewing while the Okavango Delta and Kalahari Desert were major drawcards for visitors.

Botswana’s travel and tourism economy grew 3.4% to exceed $2.5 billion in 2018.

It now contributes almost one in every seven dollars in the country’s economy, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.