BOTSWANA
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. Formerly a British colony, Botswana gained its independence in September 1966. The capital of the country is Gaborone. It has the oldest continuous democracy system and the lowest corruption rate in Africa.
MAIN CITIES
Gaborone
Francistown
Molepolole
RELIGIONS
Christian 79.1%
Badimo 4.1%
Muslim 1%
Other 15%
POPULATION
2,351,627
LANGUAGES
English (official) 2.8%
Setswana 77.3%
Sekalanga 7.4%
Others 15%
ETHNIC GROUPS
Tswana people 79%
Kalanga people 11%
Bushmen 3%
Others 7%
CURRENCY
Botswanan pula
TOP 10 ATTRACTIONS IN BOTSWANA
CHOBE NATIONAL PARK
Chobe National Park is Botswana’s first national park, and also the most biologically diverse park in the country. Chobe National Park is in northern Botswana, near the vast inland Okavango Delta. It is Botswana’s third largest park. The park is known for having a large population of animals such as elephants, Cape buffaloes, lions, antelopes, hippos and different species of birds.
TSODILO HILLS
The Tsodilo Hills are a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001. It has the highest concentrations of rock art in the world. It is also known for its rock shelters depressions and caves. Over 4,500 paintings are preserved in an area of only 10 sq km (6.21 sq mi) of the Kalahari Desert. The site shows proof of human activities over at least 100,000 years.
TULI BLOCK
Tuli Block is a narrow fringe of land at Botswana’s eastern border wedged between Zimbabwe and South Africa. It consists mainly of privately owned game farms offering safari tourism. The eastern section up to and including Redshield has been declared a game reserve, known as the Northern Tuli Game Reserve. It is one of Botswana’s prime destinations.
MOKOLODI GAME RESERVE
Mokolodi game reserve is a private not-for-profit game reserve in southern Botswana. It has been founded in 1994 by The Mokolodi Wildlife Foundation. The nature reserve is inhabited by a wide variety of bird and reptile species, some of which are rare and vulnerable to the threat of extinction. The reserve contains also animals such as giraffe, zebra ,southern white rhinoceros and more.
MAKGADIKGADI SALT PAN
The Makgadikgadi salt pan, is situated in the middle of the dry savanna of north-eastern Botswana. It is one of the largest salt flats in the world. Recent studies of human mitochondria DNA shows that modern Homo sapiens first began to evolve in this region around 200,000 years ago. The pan is seasonally covered with grass and water which makes it a refuge for birds and animals in this arid area of the world.
OKAVANGO DELTA
The Okavango Delta is an inland delta, precisely an alluvial fan that covers between 6000 to 15 000 square kilometers of Kalahari Desert in northern Botswana and owes its existence to the Okavango River. All the water reaching the delta is evaporated and does not flow into any sea or ocean. It became the 1000th site to be officially inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in June 2014.
NXAI PAN NATIONAL PARK
Nxai Pan National Park is located in north-eastern Botswana, just north of the Maun-Nata main road. During the rainy season, it is home to the seasonal Zebra Migration. The National Park is also home to the cluster of millennia-old baobab trees. It is one of the best places in Botswana to visit if you would like to see predators as well.
KGALAGADI TRANSFRONTIER PARK
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a vast nature and wildlife reserve in the Kalahari Desert region of Botswana and South Africa, bordering Namibia to the west. The area is characterized by red dunes and dry rivers with a diversity of wildlife. There are lodges and camps that offer game-viewing drives and guided walks with park rangers. A place where you really get close to nature.
MOREMI GAME RESERVE
Moremi Game Reserve is in northern Botswana, in the Okavango Delta, which becomes a lush animal habitat during seasonal floods. This unique ecosystem, characteristic of the Okavango Delta, allows for a diverse spectrum of wildlife. The Moremi Game Reserve is home to many species of birds, including the African Fish Eagle, Crested Crane and Ibis.
KHAMA RHINO SANCTUARY
Khama Rhino Sanctuary is a community based wildlife project in Botswana that was established in 1992 to assist in saving the vanishing rhinoceros and restore the historic wildlife populations while providing economic benefits to the local Botswana community through tourism and the sustainable use of natural resources. The reserve is home to over 30 White Rhinos and a few Black Rhinos.