Botswana's New President Duma Boko Appoints Key Cabinet Members
TLDR
- Newly elected President Duma Boko appoints economist Ndaba Gaolathe as Finance Minister in Botswana's new cabinet.
- President Boko, from the UDC coalition, assumes power after winning 36 of 61 parliamentary seats in recent elections.
- Botswana's economic challenges stem from a diamond market decline impacting national revenue.
Botswana’s newly elected President Duma Boko named six key cabinet members, including economist and Deputy President Ndaba Gaolathe as finance minister, marking a shift in the country’s leadership.
Boko, leader of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) coalition, took office after his party secured 36 of 61 parliamentary seats in the October 30 elections, unseating the long-dominant Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), which retained only four seats.
The UDC’s victory comes amid an economic slowdown in Botswana, driven by a downturn in the diamond market, which constitutes a significant portion of the country’s revenue.
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Key Takeaways
Botswana’s political shift to the UDC coalition reflects public dissatisfaction with the BDP's handling of the economy, especially in light of a decline in diamond revenues. As the world's largest producer of rough diamonds by value, with mining largely managed by Debswana (a partnership between the government and De Beers), Botswana faces economic challenges that Boko’s new cabinet, led by finance minister Ndaba Gaolathe, will need to address. In addition to Gaolathe, Boko appointed Phenyo Butale as minister of international relations, Stephen Modise for health, Nono Kgafela-Mokoka for child welfare and education, Micus Chimbombi for lands and agriculture, and Lesego Chombo for youth and gender affairs.
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