The objective of the Botswana InvestmentClimate Assessment (ICA) is to evaluate the investmentclimate in Botswana in all its operational dimensions andpromote policies to strengthen the private sector. Theinvestment climate is made up of the many location specificfactors that shape the opportunities and incentives forfirms to invest productively, create jobs, and expand. Thesefactors include macroeconomic and regulatory policies; thesecurity of property rights and the rule of law; and thequality of supporting institutions such as physical andfinancial infrastructure. The main sources of informationfor the ICA are two firm-level surveys. The first surveycovered Small, Medium, and Large Enterprises (SMLEs) withfive or more employees in retail trade, manufacturing, andother services. The second covered micro enterprise withfewer than five employees in the same sectors. Informationfrom the survey is supplemented with information from othersources, including the doing business report; analyticalreports by the World Bank, the international monetary fund,other international organizations and the Government ofBotswana; and academic papers and reports. Although theanalysis in this report suggests that there are some areaswhere the investment climate might be improved, it isimportant to note none of these problems with the possibleexception of worker skills appear to be particularlydebilitating. This suggests that other factors are probablyalso playing a role. One such factor is likely to be thesmall size (in terms of population) and remoteness of theeconomy. Another factor is the effect that is themacroeconomic effects of the large mining economy has on thecompetitiveness of the rest of the economy. Improving livingstandards and cutting poverty depends on broad-basedeconomic growth, which will only take place when firmsimprove worker productivity by investing in human andphysical capital and technological capacity. But firms willonly invest when the investment climate is favorable.
PDF
download
878987797
028-85220240
