Botswana profile =>
Botswana, one of Africa's most stable countries, is the continent's longest continuous multi-party democracy. It is relatively free of corruption and has a good human rights record. It is also the world's largest producer of diamonds and the trade has transformed it into a middle-income nation. Botswana protects some of Africa's largest areas of wilderness. It is sparsely populated, because it is so dry. The Kalahari desert, home to a dwindling band of bushman hunter-gatherers, makes up much of the territory and most areas are too arid to sustain any agriculture other than cattle. International campaign groups say the authorities are forcing the bushmen off their ancestral lands in order to make way for diamond mining - the mainstay of Botswana's economy. The government denies this, saying it is trying to settle the nomads in order to offer them better services. Botswana is trying to reduce its economic dependence on diamonds, moving to boost local business and ...