CHAMWE KAIRA
Botswana is currently considering proposals for a self-funding mega-project for the construction and development of a rail corridor linking Namibia and Botswana’s western copper-belt region through Ghantsi, minister of finance Ndaba Nkosinathi Gaolathe has disclosed.
He said when he presented the 2025 budget that Botswana’s existing rail infrastructure is neither adequate nor up to standard; even so, it is not fully utilised or optimised.
“The administration is considering options for a rail operational model best suited for our circumstances. All options being considered will require changes to the current legislation on the role of Botswana Railways,” he said.
Gaolathe said the railway infrastructure forms the backbone of industrial and logistical operations as well as a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable mode of transportation.
He said to this end, a total budget amounting to P156 million will cater for rail projects, which include rehabilitation of the Limpopo Corridor, Botswana Railway Workshop Equipment, and feasibility studies for Mmamabula–Lephalale and Mosetse-Kazungula Railway.
The Southern African Customs Union continues to be the largest contributor, with an estimated revenue of P24.36 billion.
The second largest contributor is non-mineral income tax, which is projected to attain nineteen billion and ten million Pula.
VAT collections are projected to register twelve billion and one hundred million Pula.
Meanwhile, revenue income from the Bank of Botswana is projected at seven hundred million Pula (P700 million) in the financial year 2025/2026.
The remaining amount is estimated to be three billion, five hundred and eighty million Pula.
Gaolathe said the proposed budget for the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure amounts to P1.94 billion. This represents a 7.6 percent decline over the previous year’s approved budget of P2.10 billion.
“The decline is mainly due to the transfer of the housing component from this ministry to the newly established Ministry of Water and Human Settlement. The proposed budget will cover operating costs at district offices, procurement of fuel for government vehicles, maintenance of roads, buildings, vehicles and other plants. The allocation will also cover salaries and allowances for the newly assembled Catalyst Project Team, subventions to SOEs under the ministry, provision for housing rentals, road transport operations and the agency fees,” he said.
He added that the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure has been allocated the largest share of the budget, amounting or 18.1 percent for the financial year 2025/2026, to fund the construction of road networks that will facilitate the smooth transportation of goods and services, enhance market access, boost trade and attract investments.
