Botswana is a situated in Central Africa and can be regarded as one of the rapidly progressing countries in the region. When the country gained independence in 1966, the economy of the state was in shambles. However, soon after the discovery of the diamond mines in the country, the country has registered rapid progress. Though the economy is driven mainly by the diamond mines, Botswana is primarily an agricultural region. And despite having one of the best credit ratings in the area, the country still faces a great deal of poverty. Other major problems being faced by the Botswana government are the rural urban migration and the Aids problem which has seriously afflicted the whole region.

One of the issues which the government is facing regarding the poverty problem is the creation of the slum areas near the outskirts of its cities. This is a serious problem because the land board of the government has all ready assigned lands to the people and so there should not be too many issues. Given the fact that population of Botswana is not really bloated, it makes the situation even more complex. It is a problem for the government because the creation of slum areas leads to the devaluation of the property. The main reason that can be attributed to these slums is the rural urban migration and the fact that people to whom these land have been allotted are selling it for higher prices on account of them being nearer to the city. The Land Reform Board is looking into this problem. Poverty reduction has been very slow and has actually decreased from about 59% to 47% between the years 1985 and 1994. ‘It further reported that 55 percent of the rural population was found to be below the poverty datum line compared to 46 percent in urban villages and 29 percent in urban areas.’ Given this, the urban population has registered an increase of about 90% i.e. it has almost doubled over a period of about 10 years. This is all very disturbing news for the agricultural sector since people are leaving this line and going for the urban lifestyle and to make matters worse, even the poverty levels there are higher.

A problem which plagues most developing nations these days is the curse of HIV/AIDS. This is also true of Botswana, ‘especially amongst the sexually and economically active portion of the society.’ Though the problem is a growing one, Botswana also has one of the most progressive organized plans for dealing with the situation in the whole region. Hopefully then, the situation will not get out of hand.

Basically Botswana is a developing nation which has a great deal of potential to do well economically. Its situation is helped by the fact that it has a lead over its neighboring countries which would give it an upper hand in dealing with them. Its poverty problems can be solved through better land reforms and attracting greater investment from abroad.