The Politics of Poverty in Botswana

Botswana suffers from high inequalities and a high proportion of its population have incomes that are inadequate to meet basic needs. The poverty datum line is calculated from government surveys on household income and expenditure. The challenge of this essay is to provide a political explanation to Botswana's socioeconomic inequalities. After reviewing the sociological approaches, the essay goes on to provide a political approach that places the ruling party, the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) mostly responsible for socio-economic inequalities in Botswana.