Botswana is a land-locked country in South Africa bounded by Namibia to the West and North, South Africa to the South and East, and Zimbabwae to the North-East. 
Botswana has a total land area of just over 224,500 square miles and a population of around two million making it a very sparsely populated country at around 9 per square mile. The country is flat with around 70% covered by the Kalahari Desert. Botswana has the following other distinct landforms: The Okavango Delta which is the world’s largest inland delta to the North-West – the water from the Okavango river empties onto a swamp instead of draining into a sea, Parts of the Limpopo River Basin to the South-East, and the Makgadikgadi Pan, a large salt pan to the North. The distinct and diverse landforms support such wildlife as the endangered African Wild Dog and African Elephants – the Northern Savannahs have one of the few remaining large populations of African Wild Dogs and the Chobe River Basin has the world’s largest concentration of African elephants. Botswana’s per-capita GDP is around $7500 making it a solid middle income country. 
After independence in 1966, the economy grew at an annual rate of around 9% in the process transforming the country from one of the poorest to one of the wealthiest in Africa. Fiscal discipline and sound management is credited for this transformation. Diamond mining accounts for around one-third of GDP. Service sector is the fastest growing industry. Other sectors include tourism, and agriculture.
The first stamps of Botswana were a set of four released to mark the establishment of the republic of Botswana released on September 30, 1966. The set (Scott #1 to #4) designs were National Assembly Building, Lobatse Abattoir, Dakota Plane, and State House at Gaborone. It catalogs for around $2 MNH and $1 Used. This was followed on the same day by the release of a set (Scott #5 to #18) of fourteen stamps that were overprints on the Bechuanaland Protectorate (Scott #180 to #193). The beautiful varied set catalogs for around $20 MNH or Used. The lower denominations depicted birds whi
le the higher denominations depicted trees, animals and people. The birds depicted are African Golden Oriole, African Hoopee, Scarlet-chested sunbird, Cape widow bird, Swallow-tailed bee-eater, Gray Hornbill, Red-headed weaver, and brown-hooded Kingfisher. Other significant issues of Botswana include:
Last Updated: 07/2011.
Botswana has a total land area of just over 224,500 square miles and a population of around two million making it a very sparsely populated country at around 9 per square mile. The country is flat with around 70% covered by the Kalahari Desert. Botswana has the following other distinct landforms: The Okavango Delta which is the world’s largest inland delta to the North-West – the water from the Okavango river empties onto a swamp instead of draining into a sea, Parts of the Limpopo River Basin to the South-East, and the Makgadikgadi Pan, a large salt pan to the North. The distinct and diverse landforms support such wildlife as the endangered African Wild Dog and African Elephants – the Northern Savannahs have one of the few remaining large populations of African Wild Dogs and the Chobe River Basin has the world’s largest concentration of African elephants. Botswana’s per-capita GDP is around $7500 making it a solid middle income country. After independence in 1966, the economy grew at an annual rate of around 9% in the process transforming the country from one of the poorest to one of the wealthiest in Africa. Fiscal discipline and sound management is credited for this transformation. Diamond mining accounts for around one-third of GDP. Service sector is the fastest growing industry. Other sectors include tourism, and agriculture.The first stamps of Botswana were a set of four released to mark the establishment of the republic of Botswana released on September 30, 1966. The set (Scott #1 to #4) designs were National Assembly Building, Lobatse Abattoir, Dakota Plane, and State House at Gaborone. It catalogs for around $2 MNH and $1 Used. This was followed on the same day by the release of a set (Scott #5 to #18) of fourteen stamps that were overprints on the Bechuanaland Protectorate (Scott #180 to #193). The beautiful varied set catalogs for around $20 MNH or Used. The lower denominations depicted birds whi
le the higher denominations depicted trees, animals and people. The birds depicted are African Golden Oriole, African Hoopee, Scarlet-chested sunbird, Cape widow bird, Swallow-tailed bee-eater, Gray Hornbill, Red-headed weaver, and brown-hooded Kingfisher. Other significant issues of Botswana include:- A beautiful long bird set (Scott #19 to #32) released on January 3rd 1967. The set catalogs for around $60 MNH and about half that for Used. The birds depicted are European Golden Oriole, African Hoopee, Ground-scraper thrush, Blue waxbill, Secretary bird, Yellow-billed Hornbill, Crimson-breasted shrike, Malachite kingfisher, Fish eagle, Gray lourie, Scimitar bill, Knob-billed duck, Crested barbet, and Didrio cuckoo.
A set (Scott #37 to #39) of three stamps released on October 2, 1967 to mark the International Human Rights Year. The set is inexpensive at under a dollar for MNH or Used. It depicts the Human Rights Flame and Arms of Botswana in different designs and denominations.
A Food Staples set (Scott #71 to #74) of four stamps released on April 6, 1971. The design shows the crops and farmers. The set catalogs for around a dollar MNH or Used. The crops shown are Sorghum, a very important crop for the population engaged in sustenance farming, Millet, Corn, and Peanuts.
A set (Scott #106 to #109) of four stamps released on May 8 1974 to mark the tenth anniversary of the University of Botswana (Bechuanaland), Lesotho (Basotoland), and Swaziland. The set catalogs for around a dollar MNH or Used. The designs were Kwaluseni Campus of Swaziland, Roma Campus of Lesotho, and the Maps & Flags of Botswana, Lesotho, & Swaziland. The present-day University of Botswana (UB) established in 1982 was rooted from this larger University system, established with the aim of reducing their reliance on tertiary education in South Africa.
A set (Scott #341 to #344) of four stamps depicting the important minerals of Botswana released on March 19, 1984. The set catalogs for around $15 MNH or Used. The minerals depicted are Diamonds, Lime, Copper & Nickel, and Coal.- A set (Scott #389 to #392) of four stamps in the Flowers of the Okavango Swamps theme released on November 3rd, 1986.
The set catalogs for around $15 MNH and around $10 Used. The depicted flowers are Ludwigia Stogonifera, Sopubia Mannii, Commelina Diffusa, and Hibiscus Diversifolius. - A set (Scott #655 to #658) of four stamps in the tourism theme released on March 23rd 1998. The set catalogs for around $4 MNH or Used.
The designs are Baobab trees, Crocodile, Stalactites, and Tourists. - A set (Scott #757 to #760) of four stamps released on December 1, 2002 in the 2002-2003 AIDS Awareness Campaign theme. The set catalogs for around $5 MNH or Used. The simple design inscribes one of the awareness themes: Voluntary Counseling and testing centers, Prevention of mother to child transmission, Stigma & discrimination, and Orphan care. Tebelopele, which means looking into the future is an organization that acts as Botswana’s Voluntary HIV Counseling and Testing Network is also inscribed.
This is an important set that marks Botswana’s efforts at containing the pandemic – Botswana has the 2nd highest known rates of HIV infection, just below Swaziland and the impact is best summarized by the fact that life expectancy at birth dropped from around 65 to 35 in 2006.
Last Updated: 07/2011.
0 Comments::
Post a Comment