The point is that if Botswana does not change course, this will not be the last time that the nation drowns – not in water but in its own short-sightedness. Special Correspondent DOUGLAS RASBASH tackles the unpleasant reality and suggests a way out of another stormy deluge in the future
When looking into the still waters of the floods that have stricken us all, we see a reflection of ourselves that should cause us to think seriously constructively and indeed even self-critically.
We could blame nature for its unprecedented rainfall, blame the government for its lack of foresight, blame planners and engineers for technical ineptitude, and some will even find a line of argument that will blame the old colonial powers for setting the nation’s mindset of being the victim that can only blame and complain.
However, the national tragedy also provides an opportunity to emerge stronger and more confident and purposeful. This item aims to stimulate this process of constructive introspection.
Floods, unlike droughts, are immediate and unforgiving. They do not offer the luxury of slow decay or gradual adaptation. They arrive like an uninvited guest and expose everything – bad urban planning, neglected drainage systems, weak disaster response, and most of all, the short-term thinking that has dominated Botswana’s governance for too long.
A Government too centralised to respond swiftly
One of the most glaring lessons from these floods is the paralysis of Botswana’s overly-centralised government. Decision-making remains locked in Gaborone where officials struggle to grasp local realities. Local governments, which should be at the forefront of planning local infrastructure as well as disaster preparedness, remain underfunded, micromanaged, and incapable of taking swift, independent action.
Communities, left waiting for directives from distant bureaucrats, have suffered needlessly. Would a more decentralised system – where district councils had real power over infrastructure maintenance and emergency responses – have made a difference? Almost certainly. But the current governance model ensures that everything must filter through layers of bureaucracy, often at the cost of human lives and livelihoods.
A culture of development without maintenance
While Botswana prides itself in infrastructure development, how much of that development is actually built to last? Roads, bridges, and drainage systems are designed to impress, not to endure. Maintenance is seen as a lesser priority – perhaps because ribbon-cutting ceremonies do not accompany routine inspections of stormwater drains.
And so, when the rains come, new roads crumble, silted drainage channels overflow, and the country’s development agenda is exposed for what it is: a fixation on expansion rather than sustainability.
It is not that Botswana lacks engineers or resources. It is that the political system rewards new projects over long-term resilience. Maintenance does not win votes. Grand announcements do.
Self-interest over community resilience
The floods have also highlighted a disturbing trend in Botswana’s governance: decision-making driven by elite self-interest rather than community well-being. While ordinary citizens lose homes and livelihoods, those with influence remain insulated.
Major land allocations and construction projects have proceeded in flood-prone areas, with officials either blind to environmental warnings or complicit in ignoring them. The private sector is also complicit. Many developments have ignored basic environmental assessments, often due to cozy relationships between business and government.
But when the floods come, it is the public that foots the bill for recovery.
The sidelining of environmental priorities
For a country that boasts one of the world’s greatest natural wonders – the Okavango Delta – Botswana remains shockingly dismissive of environmental realities. The wetlands and natural floodplains that once absorbed excess water have been compromised by land degradation and ill-conceived developments. Sprawling urban expansion without planning has ignored nature and paid the price.
Meanwhile, Botswana’s climate policies remain largely performative. Officials speak of resilience and adaptation, but when faced with the actual test of climate change – in the form of these devastating floods – they have proven ill-equipped, unprepared, and uninterested in addressing root causes.
Where do we go from here?
The floods have given Botswana an opportunity. A painful one, but an opportunity, nonetheless. It can continue drowning in its own short-sightedness, or it can take bold action. But this requires a fundamental shift in how the country thinks about governance, development, and the environment.
- Decentralisation: Let Local Governments Lead
A government that micromanages from a distance is a government that fails in times of crisis. Disaster response should not have to wait for orders from Gaborone. District councils need funding, authority, and autonomy to make decisions in real-time, without bureaucratic delays in exchange for professionalism and accountability.
- Functioning infrastructure and waterways
The extent of damaged, blocked and comprised draining systems is universal. Clearly, this must change. Local authorities must be capacitated with drainage engineers and modern maintenance equipment.
Furthermore, the integrity of rivers to transport surface water must not be compromised by silting, vegetation or debris. They must have sufficient capacity to respond to heavy rainfall. The Ngotwane River downstream of the dam was practically non-existent.
- Build for Resilience, Not Just Expansion
Infrastructure spending should be guided by climate reality, not political convenience. That means investing in better drainage systems, flood-resistant roads, and water storage solutions – even if they do not make for glamorous election campaign material.
- Climate Proofing and Environmental Protection
The country must stop treating the environment as an afterthought. Building codes must be revised to handle extreme weather, flood-planes must be protected, not paved over to become shopping malls or used to allocate residential and/or business plots.
Construction should be guided by ecological wisdom, not profit-driven expediency. Planners and decision-makers must use hazard mapping and development plans approved by the ministry responsible for lands.
- A Political Culture That Plans, Not Just Reacts
Botswana’s leadership must abandon the dangerous habit of waiting for a crisis before acting. This requires rethinking how policy is made – less reactionary, more proactive. It requires investment in scientific research, long-term urban planning, and climate adaptation strategies that do not just prepare for the next flood but for the next century.
- A Shift in National Mindset
Botswana needs to stop seeing itself as merely a victim of climate change and start seeing itself as an agent of resilience. Other nations have faced similar challenges and adapted. Why not Botswana? The floods should not just be a moment of suffering; they should be a turning point.
Final Reflections
The floods have shown us what happens when a government focuses more on announcements than on action. The question now is whether Botswana will finally learn – whether it will continue to drown in its own short-sightedness. Botswana must shift from reactive disaster response to proactive flood mitigation.
By improving urban planning, water management, and disaster preparedness, the country can reduce future flood risks while turning climate challenges into opportunities for resilience and sustainable development. The water has receded, but the damage remains. The true cost of these floods will not just be measured in destroyed infrastructure, homes and lost businesses. It will be measured in whether Botswana finally learns the lessons that nature has been trying to teach it.
There is a path forward, but it requires courage. Courage to change how the country is governed, courage to abandon outdated development models, and courage to finally think beyond the next election cycle.
Batswana demand a more environmentally-aligned revision to Vision 2036 with emphasis not on impressive but unbankable mega projects but down-to-earth resilience building. The point is that if Botswana does not change course, this will not be the last time it drowns – not in water, but in its own short-sightedness.