Botswana - Culture Smart!

Botswana is a country of contrasts. More than 80 percent of its land is described as desert, yet it is far from barren. The red sand of the Kalahari conceals boundless wealth in the form of coal, methane, copper, and diamonds. Culturally, the people are overwhelmingly Bantu, but with more than twenty different ethnic groups and over thirty languages spoken, the society is by no means homogeneous. In the years since independence the country and its economy have made extraordinary strides, and Botswana is rightly seen as a model of democratic, planned development. But, for all that, traditional African values lie close to the surface.

Culture Smart! Botswana introduces you to the lives of the people. It looks at the history that has shaped the society and shows the importance of traditional customs and values for both travelers and business people alike. It describes how the Batswana live, work, and play, and how to avoid the pitfalls of cultural misunderstanding.