Botswana’s status as top mining jurisdiction reinforced

Botswana’s status as top mining jurisdiction reinforced

After a peaceful election, Botswana ranks high in top mining jurisdictions.

By Leon Louw founder of WhyAfrica and editor of the WhyAfrica magazine    

Botswana’s smooth transfer of power to a new government will give its status as Africa’s number one mining jurisdiction a further boost, as interest in Africa’s mining sector continues to skyrocket.

Botswana’s opposition party, the Umbrella for Democratic Change, dethroned the Botswana Democratic Party which ruled the country since independence in 1966.

Seamless transfer of power

Botswana’s newly elected leader, Duma Boko, said after the victory that Africa can draw vital lessons from his country’s smooth transfer of power. Boko praised outgoing President Mokgweetsi Masisi for ensuring a seamless transfer of power.

The Botswana Democratic Party could only win four out of 61 National Assembly seats. Economic difficulties and a growing unemployment figure contributed to Masisi’s downfall.

Fraser Institute ranks Botswana high

Last year, the Fraser Institute’s Annual Survey of Mining Companies ranked Botswana as the top mining jurisdiction from both a global and African perspective having ranked in the top 10 of best mining destination in the world and number one jurisdiction in Africa. It’s position in the global rankings is likely to improve further this year.

The Fraser Institute’s Mining Survey is an informal survey that attempts to assess the perceptions of mining company executives about various optimal and sub-optimal public policies that might affect the hospitality of a jurisdiction to mining investment.

According to the Fraser Institute the top ten ranked jurisdictions in the world were Utah and Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Botswana, Nevada, Quebec, Arizona, Finland, Wyoming, and Alberta.

Highest ranked in Africa   

The United States and Canada have the most jurisdictions (4 each) in the top 10 followed by Africa (1) and Europe (1). Overall, the survey highlighted that Botswana is the highest ranked jurisdiction in Africa based on policy, ranking 4th (of 86) on the PPI in 2023. “Botswana’s lower PPI score (-5.6 points) reflects increasing concerns about skilled labour (+15 points), infrastructure (+9 points), its geological database (+9 points) and uncertainty concerning protected areas (+9 points),” said the researchers.

It also said that Botswana dropped several places in the Investment Attractiveness Index and ranks 15th (out of 86) after ranking among the top 10 jurisdictions in 2022.

Morocco in second place

Fraser Institute researchers indicated that Morocco is the second most attractive jurisdiction in Africa for both overall investment and policy only. The survey also said Morocco’s PPI score increased by a little over 6 points and it now ranks 12th (of 86) this year, climbing

South Africa’s policy score increased by almost 11 points. However, its position dropped somewhat, and it ranks 64th out of 86 jurisdictions after ranking 53rd out of 62 in 2022.

The survey said Zimbabwe, one of the lowest-ranked African jurisdictions on policy (78th out of 86) and one of the least attractive jurisdictions for mining investment globally (81st out of 86), experienced a 24-point increase in its policy score in 2023.

Botswana’s status as top mining jurisdiction reinforced