"Beyond the Sparkle" : diversification of mineral-rich economies: The case of Botswana

Modungwa, Bame

"Beyond the Sparkle" : diversification of mineral-rich economies: The case of Botswana

Master Thesis

2018

Publisher

University of Cape Town

Department

School of Economics

Faculty

Faculty of Commerce

Abstract

Botswana is known as Africa's growth miracle, having transformed from one of the poorest countries in the world at independence, into a middle-income economy in a short period of time. The country's success has been reliant on high revenues accrued from its diamond mining industry, however, government expects diamond production to decline rapidly in the next 10 - 15 years. Diamond depletion presents a threat to Botswana's economic growth, development and macroeconomic stability, which has created the urgent need for economic diversification to be realised in the near future. This dissertation explores the concept and theory behind economic diversification for resource abundant countries. Country cases are reviewed alongside the literature on economic diversification, in order to build an analytical framework on economic diversification for mineral-rich economies. The drivers of diversification are classified under three themes: the enabling environment approach, the interventionist approach and the sector-driven approach. Botswana's efforts to diversify are evaluated against these themes, highlighting the prospects and barriers to success. The dissertation concludes that the quest for economic diversification is not an easy one, particularly in countries such as Botswana with single-resource dependence. Moreover, in order for Botswana to succeed, it will require a policy mix incorporating aspects of the three themes. The government of Botswana (GoB) must ensure that they develop an enabling environment to incentivise increased export development; they should invest in physical and human capital in order to facilitate private sector growth, and they should set policies and targets to support sectors that show potential to become internationally competitive.

Keywords

Economic Development

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