“There is wide consensus among academics and political analysts that Botswana has been hailed as one of the “old democracies” in Africa, but that there have been reports of political wrangling in the country. Landsberg maintains that the southern African region, of which Botswana is part, is relatively more democratic when compared with the rest of the continent. It is exactly thirty-eight years into Botswana’s democracy and although Botswana has a relative enabling constitutional and legislative framework, there are signs of isolated infringements upon the constitution by the ruling party. The paper argues that although there have been a number of positive developments regarding electoral democracy in Botswana, much needs to be done particularly in the area of electoral reform. In addition, it attempts to outline recent major developments in Botswana and the current political dynamics obtaining on the ground with specific emphasis on the following electoral processes: constitutional reforms; electoral reforms; human rights and the Basarwa people; the economy and service delivery.”
