World Countries Info Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new
name upon independence in 1966. The economy, one of the most robust on the
continent, is dominated by diamond mining.
Geography of Botswana
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Location:
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Southern Africa, north of
South Africa |
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Geographic coordinates:
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22 00 S, 24 00 E |
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Area:
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total: 600,370 sq km
water: 15,000 sq km
land: 585,370 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than Texas |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 4,013 km
border countries: Namibia 1,360 km, South Africa 1,840 km,
Zimbabwe 813 km |
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked) |
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Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked) |
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Climate:
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semiarid; warm winters and
hot summers |
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Terrain:
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predominantly flat to
gently rolling tableland; Kalahari Desert in southwest |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
junction of the Limpopo and Shashe Rivers 513 m
highest point: Tsodilo Hills 1,489 m |
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Natural resources:
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diamonds, copper, nickel,
salt, soda ash, potash, coal, iron ore, silver |
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Land use:
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arable land: 0.61%
permanent crops: 0.01%
other: 99.38% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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10 sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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periodic droughts; seasonal
August winds blow from the west, carrying sand and dust across the
country, which can obscure visibility |
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Environment - current issues:
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overgrazing;
desertification; limited fresh water resources |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Geography - note:
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landlocked; population
concentrated in eastern part of the country
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Population of Botswana
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Population:
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1,561,973
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess
mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality
and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 39.2% (male 310,282;
female 302,452)
15-64 years: 56.2% (male 424,613; female 452,801)
65 years and over: 4.6% (male 30,896; female 40,929) (2004 est.) |
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Median age:
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total: 19.2 years
male: 18.5 years
female: 19.9 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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-0.89% (2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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24.71 births/1,000 |
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Death rate:
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33.63 deaths/1,000 |
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Net migration rate:
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0 migrant(s)/1,000 |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 69.98 deaths/1,000 live
births
female: 68.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 70.96 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 30.76 years
male: 30.99 years
female: 30.53 years (2004 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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3.17 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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38.8% (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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330,000 (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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26,000 (2001 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun: Motswana (singular), Batswana
(plural)
adjective: Motswana (singular), Batswana (plural) |
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Ethnic groups:
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Tswana (or Setswana) 79%, Kalanga 11%,
Basarwa 3%, other, including Kgalagadi and white 7% |
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Religions:
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indigenous beliefs 85%, Christian 15% |
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Languages:
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English (official), Setswana |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read
and write
total population: 79.8%
male: 76.9%
female: 82.4% (2003 est.)
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Government
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Republic of
Botswana
conventional short form: Botswana
former: Bechuanaland |
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Government type:
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parliamentary republic |
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Capital:
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Gaborone |
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Administrative divisions:
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9 districts and four town councils*;
Central, Francistown*, Gaborone*, Ghanzi, Kgalagadi, Kgatleng, Kweneng, Lobatse*,
Northwest, Northeast, Selebi-Pikwe*, Southeast, Southern |
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Independence:
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30 September 1966 (from UK) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day (Botswana Day), 30
September (1966) |
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Constitution:
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March 1965, effective 30 September 1966 |
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Legal system:
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based on Roman-Dutch law and local
customary law; judicial review limited to matters of interpretation; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Festus
MOGAE (since 1 April 1998) and Vice President Seretse Ian KHAMA (since 13 July 1998); note
- the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Festus MOGAE (since 1 April 1998) and Vice President
Seretse Ian KHAMA (since 13 July 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state
and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term;
election last held 16 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2004); vice president
appointed by the president
election results: Festus MOGAE elected president; percent of National Assembly vote
- 54.3% |
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Legislative branch:
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bicameral Parliament consists of the House
of Chiefs (a largely advisory 15-member body consisting of the chiefs of the eight
principal tribes, four elected subchiefs, and three members selected by the other 12
members) and the National Assembly (44 seats, 40 members are directly elected by popular
vote and 4 are appointed by the majority party; members serve five-year terms)
elections: National Assembly elections last held 16 October 1999 (next to be held
NA October 2004)
election results: percent of vote by party - BDP 54.3%, BNF 24.7%, other 21%; seats
by party - BDP 33, BNF 6, other 1 |
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Judicial branch:
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High Court; Court of Appeal; Magistrates'
Courts (one in each district) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Botswana Democratic Party or BDP [Seretse
Ian KHAMA]; Botswana National Front or BNF [Otswoletse MOUPO]; Botswana Congress Party or
BCP [Mokgweetsi KGOSIPULA]; Botswana Alliance Movement or BAM [Ephraim Lepetu SETSHWAELO]
note: a number of minor parties joined forces in 1999 to form the BAM but did not
capture any parliamentary seats; the BAM parties are: the United Action Party [Ephraim
Lepetu SETSHWAELO], the Independence Freedom Party or IFP [Motsamai MPHO], and the
Botswana Progressive Union [D. K. KWELE] |
Economy
Botswana has maintained one of the world's highest growth rates since independence in
1966. Through fiscal discipline and sound management, Botswana has transformed itself
from one of the poorest countries in the world to a middle-income country with a per
capita GDP of $8,800 in 2003. Two major investment services rank Botswana as the best
credit risk in Africa. Diamond mining has fueled much of the expansion and currently
accounts for more than one-third of GDP and for nine-tenths of export earnings. Tourism,
subsistence farming, and cattle raising are other key sectors. On the downside, the
government must deal with high rates of unemployment and poverty. Unemployment
officially is 21%, but unofficial estimates place it closer to 40%. HIV/AIDS infection
rates are the highest in the world and threaten Botswana's impressive economic gains.
Long-term prospects are overshadowed by the expected leveling off in diamond mining
production.
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $13.9 billion
(2003 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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7.6% (2003 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $8,800 (2003
est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 4%
industry: 44% (including 36% mining)
services: 52% (2001 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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47% (2002 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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8.1% (2002 est.) |
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Labor force:
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264,000 formal sector employees (2000) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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NA |
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Unemployment rate:
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40% (official rate is 21%) (2001 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $2.3 billion
expenditures: $2.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY01/02) |
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Industries:
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diamonds, copper, nickel, salt, soda ash,
potash; livestock processing; textiles |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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2.4% (2001 est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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409.8 million kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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1.564 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - imports:
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1.183 billion kWh (2001) |
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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16,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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livestock, sorghum, maize, millet, beans,
sunflowers, groundnuts |
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Exports:
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$2.544 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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diamonds, copper, nickel, soda ash, meat,
textiles |
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Exports - partners:
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European Free Trade Association (EFTA) 87%,
Southern African Customs Union (SACU) 7%, Zimbabwe 4% (2000) |
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Imports:
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$1.753 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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foodstuffs, machinery, electrical goods,
transport equipment, textiles, fuel and petroleum products, wood and paper products, metal
and metal products |
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Imports - partners:
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Southern African Customs Union (SACU) 74%,
EFTA 17%, Zimbabwe 4% (2000) |
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Debt - external:
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$360 million (2002) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$73 million (1995) |
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Currency:
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pula (BWP) |
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Currency code:
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BWP |
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Exchange rates:
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pulas per US dollar - 4.95 (2003), 6.33
(2002), 5.84 (2001), 5.1 (2000), 4.62 (1999) |
SOURCES: The CIA World Factbook, U.S. Department of State, Area Handbook of the US Library of Congress
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