The drive to diversify: Ronald Watts, who worked under Seretse Khama before he was sworn in as President in 1966, reflects on the achievements of Botswana and the challenges it faces.

To RISE FROM being one of the poorest and least developed countries in the continent to being, over several years, the largest exporter of rough diamonds in the world has been amazing. The retention of this underground wealth of minerals, which also includes copper, nickel, gold and coal, owes much to Khama III who, in 1885, chose British protection rather than absorption by the Boers. Things would have turned out very differently however if Cecil Rhodes had known about the mineral deposits. It is certain they would not have stayed underground until after Independence!

Diamonds in other parts of Africa have contributed to great instability, massive corruption and armed conflict. Botswana has avoided these disasters through strict control of the mining areas and the concentration of sales through one body--the Debswana company. A World Bank report rated Botswana as 19th out of 145 of the world's most open economies, and one of the best to do business with. There is no doubt that foreign investment will play a key role in the future.

With massive power cuts occurring all over Southern Africa in recent months a key need at present is for more generation of electricity from a range of sources. Botswana's coal reserves could play an important role to supplement increased hydro-electric power generation in countries such as Zambia and South Africa. CIC Energy of Canada is working with the Botswana government and South Africa's Eskom and it is hoped that increased capacity will be available in time for the World Cup in 2010.

A major problem for Botswana is the cost of distributing electricity to a small and relatively widely scattered population. No country is more in need of increased use of solar power, or has so much potential. The scattered population is also important for the control of disease, and in particular the twin scourges of HIV and TB. It is still not widely known that many of those who are infected with both these devastating conditions can be cured of their TB when they carefully adhere to a six-month course of drugs. Recent studies under the BOTUSA Project showed some of the highest HIV and TB rates amongst pregnant women in the world. Small health centres in rural areas, such as in Serowe as started by the writer's wife in 1960, are critical to providing both the necessary drugs and the back-up of staff to follow through with patients.

School of Medicine

A major development in the field of health is the School of Medicine which is being developed on the campus of the University in Gaborone. The aim is to "have a clinical teaching platform embracing selected sites at all levels of the national healthcare delivery system", according to the South African consultants who are currently recruiting staff. If this new initiative can raise levels of healthcare throughout the country it will provide a major boost for the people of Botswana.

Back in 1966 this country had an economy based largely on cattle exports which had been devastated by a severe drought the year before which killed half of the herd. Droughts, diseases like Foot and Mouth and the recent escalation in the price of animal feeds all help to reduce the contribution of farming to the national economy. However, while mining companies are interested in how long mineral reserves will last, in Botswana's case it is urgent for national objectives to be long-term in nature. Agriculture may well have to pick up its former role of providing employment for most of the people in the distant future. And with so much of the country being semi-desert it is essential that what is called the Kalahari Aquifer is fully explored. This covers an area from the Limpopo to the Congo rivers and is reputed to have "large bodies of water" above an impermeable layer of rock.

One resource which one hopes will last well into the future is the wildlife, which is being increasingly threatened in neighbouring countries like Zimbabwe. Botswana has wisely avoided mass tourism and concentrated on small, exclusive camps such as those run by Conservation Corporation Africa*. They have two large camps in the Okavango Delta. Guests are transported in traditional canoes (mokoros) propelled by "expert polers many of whom are born in the Delta."

In addition to these static camps CCA has now built a reputation for "Under canvas" tours to remoter areas. CCA has developed tourism exclusively for game viewing in areas that have been ruined by excessive hunting. They claim that Chobe National Park "is home to what is arguably the world's largest concentration of elephants." Keeping a good stock of wildlife like this is an excellent insurance for the future when the minerals like diamonds have all been exploited!

* ccafricasafaris.com