Singapore companies can also tap on Botswana's expertise to build business links in Southern Africa
Singapore-Botswana total trade has seen an increase from S$10.0m in 2006 to S$19.8m in 2008.
Singapore, Monday, 22 June 2009 - The Singapore Business Federation today facilitated a business dialogue session between the local business community and a delegation from Botswana. The delegation, which included 12 businessmen and officials from the country's Export Development and Investment Authority (BEDIA), were here in conjunction with the state visit of Botswana President Seretse Khama Ian Khama. This event was also graced by Mr. Lee Yi Shyan, Minister of State for Trade and Industry, High Commissioner of the Republic of Botswana, Mrs Naomi Ellen Majinda and Botswana Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, HE Phandu T C Skelemani.
The highlight of the session was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Singapore Business Federation and Botswana Export Development and Investment Authority (BEDIA), witnessed by eight senior local businessmen and representatives from companies from sectors including info-communication, tourism and education.
President Seretse enlightened participants on Botswana's trade and investment policies and affirmed his Government's commitment to private sector development. Addressing those present, he said since Botswana gained independence in 1966, there have been consorted efforts to have an environment that encourages foreign direct investment; and they have also instituted laws that enhance good governance and rule of law. In addition, the President noted the plans to create and upgrade physical infrastructure to boost economic growth have been deliberate and placed as a high national interest.
Total trade between Singapore and Botswana has increased from only S$10.0m in 2006 to S$19.8m in 2008. This ranks Botswana as Singapore's 150th trading partner in 2008. Coupled with growing trade relations, Singapore companies can also tap on Botswana's expertise to build business links in Southern Africa for the country has good access to economic blocs such as Southern African Development Community (Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe) and Southern African Customs Union markets (South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland) via the trans-Kalahari corridor. Within Botswana, Singapore companies can look forward to opportunities in ICT, healthcare and tourism sectors in this new frontier market.
In his welcome address, SBF Chairman Mr. Tony Chew, said, "The Singapore business community is delighted to note that, Botswana is the only country in the African continent with a middle income majority and one of the few with a world class infrastructure and a well educated workforce. Despite being land-locked, the country possesses both the will and the pre-requisites to move up the value chain to develop new industries particularly that of high value services such as tourism, healthcare, education and financial services."
"These are sectors that Singapore is traditionally strong in, and there will be scope for collaboration between both sides. The MOU between BEDIA and SBF will mark the first step in our joint collaboration."
Mr. Chew added that he was pleased to see an upsurge in interest by local companies to explore new African markets, following a coordinated promotion effort by both the Singapore government and SBF.
He informed those present that plans to increase this positive momentum are in the pipeline. He said, "SBF will be setting up an Africa Business Group as a Sub-Saharan Africa business community platform aimed at developing business-to-business linkages between the business communities in Singapore and Southern Africa. Through our Africa Business Group, SBF is committed to provide more facilitation and assistance to business communities from both sides."
The last major engagement between Singapore and Botswana took place during President S R Nathan?s state visit to Botswana in April 2007, which reciprocated President Mogae's state visit to Singapore in November 2006. In conjunction with President Nathan's visit, SBF also led a business mission of 23 delegates from 18 companies and visited Botswana from 29 April to 1 May 2007. Mr. M. Rajaram, then the Vice Chairman of SBF and Chairman of Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry was the head of the delegation.
Quick facts on Singapore-Botswana trade
(For more information, please refer to the Annex)
Year |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
Total Trade |
S$10.0m |
S$15.23m |
$19.8m |
Botswana was Singapore's 150 trading partner in 2008.
ANNEX
Source: CIA World Fact Book
Event: Visit by President of Botswana to SBF
Date / Time: 22nd June 2009, Monday, 2.00 pm - 4.00 pm
Document: Country Brief for Botswana - For Media Release
Country Background
1. Botswana is a landlocked nation in Southern Africa. Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on September 30, 1966. It is bordered by South Africa to the south and southeast, Namibia to the west, Zambia to the north, and Zimbabwe to the northeast.
2. Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name upon independence in 1966. Four decades of uninterrupted civilian leadership, progressive social policies, and significant capital investment have created one of the most dynamic economies in Africa. Mineral extraction, principally diamond mining, dominates economic activity, though tourism is a growing sector due to the country's conservation practices and extensive nature preserves. Botswana has one of the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection, but also one of Africa's most progressive and comprehensive programs for dealing with the disease.
Political Overview
3. Lieutenant General Seretse Khama Ian Khama (born 27 February 1953) is the President of Botswana and the Paramount Chief of the Bamangwato tribe and he succeeded Festus Gontebanye Mogae as the President of Botswana on 1 April 2008.
4. President Khama is the second born son of Sir Seretse Khama (the country's foremost independence leader who was President from 1966 to 1980) and Lady Khama. He was born in Chertsey, Surrey during the period his father was exiled to the United Kingdom due to the opposition by the colonial government and the emergent apartheid regime in South Africa to his marriage to a white woman.
5. On 1 April 1998, when Vice-President Festus Mogae succeeded Masire as President, Khama was appointed as the new Vice-President. However, Khama did not hold a seat in the National Assembly, and so could not immediately take office as Vice-President. In early July 1998 he overwhelmingly won a by-election in Serowe North, receiving 2,986 votes against 86 votes for the candidate of the opposition Botswana National Front. On 13 July, he took his seat in the National Assembly and was sworn in as Vice-President.
6. Following the victory of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) in the general election of October 1999, Khama remained Vice-President as well as Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration. Mogae granted Khama a one-year leave later in the year, a decision that the opposition Botswana Congress Party and the Botswana Council of Non-Governmental Organizations sharply criticized. Khama's leave became effective on 1 January 2000. He returned to his duties as Vice-President on 1 September 2000, although he was replaced as Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration at that time.
7. Khama, already a member of the BDP Central Committee, was elected as Chairman of the BDP on 22 July 2003 at a party congress; he defeated the previous Chairman, Ponatshego Kedikilwe, receiving 512 votes against 219 for Kedikilwe. Khama had been backed for the post by President Mogae, and the outcome was viewed as crucial, paving the way for Khama to eventually succeed Mogae as President. Mogae stepped down, as he had long said he would do, on 1 April 2008, handing power to Khama.
8. Botswana graduated to the status of a middle-income country around 2007 and therefore stopped receiving development aid. It is a member of international organizations such as the United Nations, or U.N., and the Organization of African Unity - now the African Union, or AU. In 1996, Botswana completed a two-year term on the U.N.'s Security Council, where it established a record of consensual, constructive participation.
9. Botswana's diplomatic priorities are determined in large measure by its commercial interests. 77% of Botswana's exports are destined for the European Union while 76% of its imports originate from the Southern African Customs Union. As such, it is no coincidence that Botswana places so much of emphasis on good diplomatic ties with EU member states and those of Southern Africa-especially South Africa. From 2001 to date, President Khama increasingly became aware that without political stability, economic prospects would remain bleak. Thus Botswana has increasingly sought to play a role in conflict resolution on the African continent.
Economic Overview
10. Since the early 1980s, Botswana has been the world's largest producer of gem quality diamonds. Diamond mining accounts for over 1/3 of GDP, 75% of export earnings, and 45% of government revenue. Tourism, financial services, subsistence farming and cattle raising are other key sectors, with tourism playing an increasingly important role. About 2/3 of Botswana is taken up by the Kalahari Desert, and most areas are too arid to sustain any agriculture other than cattle.
11. According to Global Insights, the economic diversification continues to elude Botswana's economy despite the country's ability to register growth rates close to 10% in the past three decades. The lucrative diamond industry remains the economic mainstay and is the single biggest contributor to GDP, export earnings, and government revenue.
12. However, the economy's mainstay performer is facing harsh conditions during 2009 with the possible plateau in diamond output becoming a real threat to the country's GDP growth potential, with reports indicating that the diamond production will decline sharply after 2018 because of increasing mining costs and that diamond reserves will be exhausted by 2030. Unless a significant new diamond deposit is found, growth could fall to an average of around 2-3% over the long term.
13. Not only have international diamond prices showed a sharp contraction since the fourth quarter of 2008, but a massive slump in international luxury-good demand, especially from the United States, pulled diamond exports down 70% year-on-year in November 2008. With both domestic and international conditions expected to remain stringent during 2009, Botswana's GDP growth rate is expected to contract by an estimated 8.0% during the year, with the risk weighted to the downside.
14. Potential GDP output is also strained by the high HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in Botswana, which is one of the highest in the world with the prevalence rate among adults potentially exceeding 35 %. The worldwide economic crisis also has a diminishing effect on demand for the backbone of Botswana, diamonds, and will mitigate GDP and export revenues in the near future.
15. Despite all these, inflationary pressures are expected to ease during 2009 where inflation in Botswana is expected to moderate to around 9.5% in 2009 from 12.6% in 2008, touching the upper end of the Bank of Botswana's three-year rolling inflation target of 3-6% by year-end.
16. Price pressures will moderate on the back of slowing imported inflation (sourced primarily from the country's key exporting partner, South Africa), lower transport costs, and falling food prices. The 2009/10 national budget made no provisions for public-servant salary increases. This, combined with the significant slowdown expected in domestic demand conditions during 2009, is expected to keep inflation on its downward path for the remainder of the year.
Bilateral Trade
17. Total trade between Singapore and Botswana has increased from only S$10.0m in 2006 to S$19.8m in 2008. This ranks Botswana as Singapore's 150th trading partner in 2008.
18. This represented a marginal increase of 0.3% in total trade as compared to S$15.23m in 2007. The increase is total trade is driven primarily by the 30.08% increase in imports in 2007.
19. Singapore maintains a positive balance of trade with imports from Botswana representing 0.3% and exports from Singapore constitutes the remaining 99.7%. Exports increased marginally from S$15.19m in 2007 to S$19.76m in 2008.
Singaporean Companies Operating in Botswana
20. The only Singaporean company that we know that is operating in Botswana is Singapore Technologies. ST has an office there for the delivering of ICT and e-government projects.
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