The Botswana government has been urged to ground its final 2026/2027 budget in realistic projections of revenues, expenditures, and deficits. Keith Jefferis, a Botswana-based economist and Managing Director of Econsult, issued this counsel earlier this week, just days ahead of the 2026/2027 budget speech scheduled for Monday, February 9, 2026. While acknowledging the inherent challenges of forecasting the upcoming budget, Jefferis emphasized the critical need for Finance Minister Ndaba Gaolathe to present a fiscal plan...

   Botswana is poised to see a substantial expansion in its foreign exchange reserves this year, following the government’s strategic refinement of its exchange rate policy, a move that delivered encouraging results in 2025. Last year, the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Botswana recalibrated the Pula’s currency basket weights, adjusting them to an equal split of 50 percent each between the South African rand and the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights (SDR). This marked...

  Botswana’s government is poised to implement additional austerity measures in the 2026/2027 financial year, commencing on April 1, 2026. These measures are designed to reallocate government expenditure away from consumption and toward investment, thereby enhancing public financial management and supporting sustainable economic growth.   During the first half of the 2025/2026 financial year, ending in March 2026, Botswana recorded a significantly reduced budget deficit, reflecting the positive impact of austerity policies focused on curbing...

A recent survey conducted by the Bank of Botswana (BoB) reveals a significant and concerning decline in business confidence among companies operating within Botswana during the fourth quarter of 2025. This downward shift in sentiment is primarily attributed to an increasingly fragile economic environment and a noticeable reduction in government expenditure, factors that collectively weigh heavily on the outlook for domestic commerce and investment. The quarterly Business Expectations Survey (BES), a key indicator that gathers...

New trade figures released this week reveal that Botswana has spent a staggering P9.2 billion on food imports from January through August 2025. This surge follows ongoing struggles within the country’s agricultural sector, which continues to underdeliver. Throughout the first eight months of this year, Botswana’s local food production – encompassing farms and food processing industries, has shown little sign of improvement. The data reveals that the country’s cereal imports alone amounted to P1.6 billion,...

Botswana’s households and businesses are finding it increasingly difficult to manage their debt obligations, with loan arrears sharply on the rise. Recent data from the commercial banking sector reveals a concerning trend: a P480 million surge in arrears, climbing from P5.637 billion in January 2025 to a substantial P6.117 billion by the end of February 2025. The latest financial figures released by the banking sector last week paint a detailed picture of this growing financial...

Consumers in Botswana can breathe a sigh of relief as forecasts point to a potential easing of food prices in the third quarter of 2025. The Bank of Botswana (BoB), in its latest Monetary Policy Report, suggests that increased food supplies from commercial farms across Southern Africa could drive this welcome change. The projected harvest is expected to alleviate some of the pressure on the region’s food supply, leading to a decrease in prices. The...

Botswana’s economic trajectory is facing headwinds, potentially leading to slower growth than government forecasts, according to new data and expert analysis. Recent survey results and projections paint a concerning picture, with local economists suggesting that Botswana’s economy may underperform the Ministry of Finance’s initial estimates for the year. A survey by the Bank of Botswana (BoB) reveals that domestic firms anticipate a 1.9 percent expansion, while the research firm Econsult projects a zero percent growth...

The latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) data revealed that Botswana’s annual inflation rate climbed to 2.7% in February 2025, marking a modest increase from January’s 2.5%. This uptick was primarily driven by escalating prices in food, beverages, and miscellaneous goods and services, which encompass insurance and financial services. Significantly, the food and non-alcoholic beverages category, along with miscellaneous goods and services, were the foremost contributors to the annual inflation rate in February 2025, accounting for...

Choppies Group, the prominent grocery retailer, has experienced a notable boost in its financial performance for the half-year ending December 2024. The company reported retail sales revenue of P4.7 billion, alongside a gross profit of P965 million for the last six months of the year. Listed on both the Botswana and Johannesburg Stock Exchanges, this fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) retailer is engaged in various sectors, including milling, manufacturing, and financial transactions. Recent financial results reveal...