Botswana 🇧🇼
Botswana is a country in Africa with a population of 2,630,296. Its capital is Gaborone. The official currency is BWP, and the main languages are English, Tswana.
Quick facts
- Capital: Gaborone
- Continent: Africa
- Population: 2,630,296
- Area: 581,730 km²
- Density: 4.5 people per km²
- Currency: BWP
- Languages: English, Tswana
- ISO code: BW
Where Botswana sits
Botswana 🇧🇼 is one of 54 countries in Africa, with its capital at Gaborone. It covers 581,730 square kilometres — 47th in the world — and is home to about 2,630,296 people, 142nd globally.
The countries it shares a continent with include Nigeria, Ethiopia, Egypt, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania. If you are learning geography region by region — which works far better than alphabetically, because memory for places is spatial — those are the ones to learn alongside it.
How Botswana compares
Raw figures are hard to hold on their own, so it helps to anchor them. In population, Botswana sits closest to Namibia and Qatar. In land area, its nearest counterparts are Kenya and Madagascar.
At 4.5 people per square kilometre it is far below the world average of 59.4. It ranks higher by area than by population, so it is more spacious than its population alone suggests.
English is an official language in 58 countries here, among them Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas and Barbados, and 53 others. The BWP is used by Botswana and no one else.
To see Botswana next to every other country, sort the country rankings by population, area or density; its currency and languages are listed alongside every other country's in world currencies and world languages.
How to remember Botswana
Pula means 'rain' in Setswana and is also the name of the currency, which matches the rain-blue of the flag. Gaborone is in the southeast, close to the South African border.
The flag of Botswana: light blue, black and white
🇧🇼 The flag is a light blue flag with a black horizontal stripe edged in white across the middle. Blue stands for water and rain, which is precious in a dry country. The black and white stripes stand for people of all backgrounds living together, and they look like the stripes of a zebra, the national animal.
Region and neighbours
Botswana is a landlocked country in southern Africa, much of it covered by the Kalahari Desert. It shares land borders with 4 countries: South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Its border with Zambia, at a single point on the Zambezi River, is one of the shortest borders in the world. Botswana is landlocked, with no coast on the open ocean.
- South Africa 🇿🇦 — capital Pretoria
- Namibia 🇳🇦 — capital Windhoek
- Zimbabwe 🇿🇼 — capital Harare
- Zambia 🇿🇲 — capital Lusaka
Three facts about Botswana
- The Okavango Delta, where a river spreads out into the Kalahari instead of reaching the sea, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Botswana has the largest population of African elephants of any country.
- Botswana became independent from Britain in 1966.
Sources: Wikipedia: Botswana, Wikipedia: Flag of Botswana, Wikipedia: Gaborone, CIA World Factbook.
Quiz yourself on Botswana
- African capitals quiz — match Botswana to Gaborone
- African flags quiz — spot the Botswana flag among its neighbours
- Landlocked countries quiz — Botswana has no sea coast
Quizzes that include Botswana
Three angles are worth covering for any country — where it is, what its flag looks like, and what its capital is. For Botswana those are:
- Africa map quiz — place it on a blank map
- Africa flags quiz — identify its flag among its neighbours
- Africa capitals quiz — match it to Gaborone
- Botswana capital quiz — five quick questions starting with Botswana
- Daily Map Challenge — five countries to find on a blank world map, the same five for everyone each day
Doing all three for one continent before moving on is far more efficient than learning flags globally, then capitals globally, then the map.
Read more about Botswana
- Capital of Botswana: Gaborone — the capital in detail, with size and density rankings
- All 54 countries of Africa
Nearby countries
- Algeria 🇩🇿 — capital Algiers
- Angola 🇦🇴 — capital Luanda
- Benin 🇧🇯 — capital Porto-Novo
- Burkina Faso 🇧🇫 — capital Ouagadougou
- Burundi 🇧🇮 — capital Gitega
- Cabo Verde 🇨🇻 — capital Praia
- Cameroon 🇨🇲 — capital Yaoundé
- Central African Republic 🇨🇫 — capital Bangui
- Chad 🇹🇩 — capital N'Djamena
- Comoros 🇰🇲 — capital Moroni
- Congo 🇨🇬 — capital Brazzaville
- Democratic Republic of the Congo 🇨🇩 — capital Kinshasa
Frequently asked questions
What are the colours of the Botswana flag?
The flag of Botswana is a light blue flag with a black horizontal stripe edged in white across the middle. Blue stands for water and rain, which is precious in a dry country. The black and white stripes stand for people of all backgrounds living together, and they look like the stripes of a zebra, the national animal.
Which countries border Botswana?
Botswana shares land borders with South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Its border with Zambia, at a single point on the Zambezi River, is one of the shortest borders in the world.
How can I remember the capital of Botswana?
Pula means 'rain' in Setswana and is also the name of the currency, which matches the rain-blue of the flag. Gaborone is in the southeast, close to the South African border.