An assessment of the evolution of the public sector in Botswana

Abstract

The Botswana public service started in the pre-colonial era with its administration operated from Mafikeng in South Africa. After independence, the administration moved to Gaborone. The management of the public service evolved steadily throughout the last 50 years from being led predominately by white expatriates to a Batswana lead public service as it exists in 2016. As the Public service evolved, the government introduced public sector reforms in an effort to improve service delivery. This paper looks at the evolution of the public service, starting from the pre-colonial era to the current times. A staged approach is used to describe these eras. Pre-colonial rule and administration was dominated by chiefs whose powers were reduced as Resident Commissioners took over. The second stage comprises of the early independence era and lastly the paper looks at the contemporary public service and reflects on how it will evolve in the next fifty years.