Overview In 2020, Botswana was the number 124 economy in the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the number 114 in total exports, the number 120 in total imports, the number 102 economy in terms of GDP per capita (current US$) and the number 85 most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI).

Exports The top exports of Botswana are Diamonds ($4B), Gold ($87.2M), Insulated Wire ($81.9M), Bovine ($46M), and Carbonates ($40.1M), exporting mostly to Belgium ($951M), United Arab Emirates ($934M), India ($901M), South Africa ($574M), and Singapore ($277M).

Imports The top imports of Botswana are Diamonds ($1.83B), Refined Petroleum ($604M), Electricity ($148M), Tanks and Armored vehicles ($148M), and Cars ($118M), importing mostly from South Africa ($3.46B), Namibia ($498M), Belgium ($465M), United Arab Emirates ($294M), and Canada ($235M).

Location Botswana borders Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe by land.

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The following section uses the most recent trade data from partners of Botswana.

Disclaimer: data is presented based on availability and only countries that use the harmonized system are being shown.

*All data is converted to USD using January 2020 exchange rates when data is reported in local currency.

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The data obtained is mirror data. The trade of countries that do not report current data can be reconstructed based on data reported by partner countries with current data available.

*All data is converted to USD using January 2020 exchange rates when data is reported in local currency.

Historical Data

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Top Export (2020): Diamonds, $4B

Top Destination (2020): Belgium, $3.46B

In 2020, Botswana exported a total of $4.58B, making it the number 114 exporter in the world. During the last five reported years the exports of Botswana have changed by -$1.36B from $5.94B in 2015 to $4.58B in 2020.

The most recent exports are led by Diamonds ($4B), Gold ($87.2M), Insulated Wire ($81.9M), Bovine ($46M), and Carbonates ($40.1M). The most common destination for the exports of Botswana are Belgium ($951M), United Arab Emirates ($934M), India ($901M), South Africa ($574M), and Singapore ($277M).

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Fastest Growing Export Markets (2019 - 2020)

Fastest Growing Import Markets (2019 - 2020)

Botswana Exports Services (2019): $924M

Botswana Imports Services (2019): $1.17B

In 2019, Botswana exported $924M worth of services. The top services exported by Botswana in 2019 were Personal travel ($568M), Other business services ($152M), Transportation ($53.1M), Government services, n.i.e. ($41.8M), and Financial services ($38.8M).

The top services imported by Botswana in 2019 were Other business services ($262M), Transportation ($260M), Personal travel ($227M), Government services, n.i.e. ($144M), and Royalties and license fees ($106M).

Economic Complexity

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Most Specialized Products by RCA Index

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Botswana has a high level of specialization in Diamonds (202), Salt (33.8), Carbonates (20.6), Bovine (18.8), and Synthetic Reconstructed Jewellery Stones (13.6). Specialization is measured using RCA, an index that takes the ratio between Botswana observed and expected exports in each product.

Most Complex Products by PCI

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The highest complexity exports of Botswana according to the product complexity index (PCI) are Weapons Parts and Accessories (0.43), Cement Articles (0.38), Plastic Pipes (-0.11), Synthetic Reconstructed Jewellery Stones (-0.24), and Pearl Products (-0.49). PCI measures the knowledge intensity of a product by considering the knowledge intensity of its exporters.

Export Opportunities by Relatedness

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The top export opportunities for Botswana according to the relatedness index, are Raw Cotton (0.048), Manganese Ore (0.048), Gold (0.047), Other Oily Seeds (0.046), and Raw Sugar (0.045). Relatedness measures the distance between a country's current exports and each product. The barchart show only products that Botswana is not specialized in.

The product space is a network connecting products that are likely to be co-exported. The product space can be used to predict future exports, since countries are more likely to start exporting products that are related to current exports. Relatedness measures the distance between a product, and all of the products a country currently specializes in.

Relatedness Space

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This network shows the products most related to the production structure of Botswana. These are products that tend to be co-exported with the products that Botswana exports. Higher relatedness values ​​indicate greater knowledge, which predicts a greater probability of exporting that product in the future.

Diversification Frontier

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The Complexity-Relatedness diagram compares the risk vs strategic value of a country's potential export oppotunities. Relatedness is predictive of the probability that a country increases its exports in a product. Complexity, is associated with higher levels of income, economic growth, less income inequality, and lower greenhouse emissions.

Economic Complexity Ranking

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During the last 20 years Botswana's⁩ ⁨economy has become relatively less complex, moving from the ⁩⁨nullth to the 85th⁩ position in the ECI rank.

These economic complexity rankings use 6 digit exports classified according to the HS96 classification. We consider only countries with population of at least 1 million and exports of at least $1 billion, and products with world trade over $500 million. To explore different rankings and vary these parameters visit the custom rankings section.

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