Location | |
Flag | |
Quick Facts | |
Capital | Gaborone |
Government | Parliamentary republic |
Currency | Pula (BWP) |
Area | 600,370 km2 |
Population | 1,639,833 (July 2006 est.) |
Language | English (official), Setswana (official and national) |
Religion | Christian 70%, others including indigenous beliefs 30% |
Electricity | 0 kWh |
Calling Code | +267 |
Internet TLD | .bw |
Time Zone | UTC+02 |
Botswana is a land-locked country located in Southern Africa and bordering on Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name upon independence in 1966. The economy, one of the most robust on the continent, is dominated by diamond mining and tourism. Botswana is famous for its wildlife, areas like the Chobe National Park, Moremi National Park in the Okavango Delta and the Central Kalahari Game Reserve have a very high concentration of game. The bulk of the Kalahari desert falls within Botswana's borders and Botswana is home to most of the world's San (bushman) population.