THE DRIVERS OF PRIVATE SECTOR INVESTMENT IN BOTSWANA: AN EXPLORATORY REVIEW

Abstract

This paper reviews the drivers of investment by the private sector in Botswana for the period from 1980 to 2018. The paper discusses the investment policies that the government has adopted over the years, the incentives, as well as the institutions that have been established to promote private sector investment. The Botswana government’s economic development strategy is aimed at promoting economic growth through the private sector. Some of the key determinants of private investment, which have been analysed, include economic growth, public investment, credit to the private sector, gross domestic savings, trade openness, interest rates, inflation and foreign direct investment. Since the 1980s, the private sector investment has been fluctuating between 34.5 percent and 12.1 percent, with the highest level being recorded in 1980 and the lowest in 1996. The study shows that economic growth averaged 6.4 percent, public investment was 10.3 percent, credit to the private sector was 18.3 percent, gross domestic savings was 35.9, trade openness was 101.4 percent, interest rate was 3.6 percent, inflation was 8.9 percent and lastly, foreign direct investment was 2.6 percent during the study period.