Botswana Vice President Ndaba Gaolathe calls on Korean business to invest
Botswana’s Vice President and Finance Minister Ndaba Gaolathe called on South Korean companies to invest in projects in the country at a business seminar in Seoul, South Korea. Botswana plans to attract a total of $37 billion in investment by 2036 as it seeks to reduce its economy’s dependence on diamond mining.
As reported by the Korea Herald, Botswana officials reviewed more than 7,000 project proposals and identified 186 high-impact projects. Priority areas include strategic minerals and their processing, manufacturing, renewable energy, agriculture, healthcare, artificial intelligence and financial services.
Technology and processing
Gaolathe said that South Korea’s technological capabilities and Botswana’s resources could provide a basis for mutually beneficial projects. He stressed that the government seeks not only to attract capital but also to find partners who will bring expertise and help develop local production.
According to him, Botswana offers investors more than just access to natural resources. The authorities want foreign companies to process more raw materials directly in the country, establish production facilities and use it as a platform for entering regional markets.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
Energy and agriculture
Gaolathe named the low productivity of small-scale agriculture as one of the challenges. Despite the country’s area exceeding 550,000 square kilometers, Botswana depends on food imports. At the same time, commercial farms export, among other products, oranges to the United States and Europe, which, in the vice president’s view, demonstrates the sector’s potential.
Botswana also needs about 700 megawatts of electricity and is expanding its power transmission network to enter the regional market. Gaolathe noted that there is a significant electricity shortage in Southern Africa, so demand outside Botswana is important for the economics of large energy projects.
The official added that the government does not intend to make commercially weak projects viable through state support. He acknowledged the existence of bureaucratic obstacles for investors and stressed the need to speed up permitting procedures.
