Botswana – from the Bechuanaland Protectorate to a stable democracy
The lands of present-day Botswana have been home to San hunter-gatherers for many thousands of years; their rock paintings in the Tsodilo Hills are among the region's oldest cultural treasures. Later, Bantu-speaking farmers and herders settled here, and from them the Tswana chiefdoms emerged, which have shaped the country's society and language ever since.
In the nineteenth century the Tswana came under pressure from Boer settlers pushing north and from the upheavals of regional wars. Several chiefs, among them Khama III, sought British protection, and in 1885 the Bechuanaland Protectorate was established. The chiefs successfully resisted plans to hand the territory to Cecil Rhodes' British South Africa Company or to absorb it into South Africa, so local institutions largely survived colonial rule.
In 1966 Botswana became independent, with Seretse Khama as its first president. At the time it was one of the poorest countries in the world. The discovery of diamonds shortly after independence changed this fundamentally: careful management of the revenues financed roads, schools and health care, and Botswana has since been regarded as one of Africa's most stable democracies. The country has also faced grave challenges, above all the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Today Botswana is shaped by diamond mining, vast wilderness areas such as the Okavango Delta and a tradition of consensus rooted in the kgotla community assemblies.
Do you have stories or memories from Botswana? Share them with the community here in Heimatgeschichte!