Botswana–United States relations are the

bilateral relations Bilateralism is the conduct of political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which is activity by a single state or jointly by multiple states, respectively. When ...

between

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. According to the 2024 U.S. Global Leadership Report, 46% of

people approve of U.S. leadership, with 27% disapproving and 26% uncertain. In the 2012 report, it was one of the most U.S. approving countries at 79%. Botswana and the US state of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

are

antipodes In geography, the antipode () of any spot on Earth is the point on Earth's surface diametrically opposite to it. A pair of points ''antipodal'' () to each other are situated such that a straight line connecting the two would pass through Ea ...

United States aid to Botswana

The United States considers Botswana an advocate of and a model for stability in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and has been a major partner in Botswana's development since its independence. The U.S.

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an Independent agency of the U.S. government, independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to communities in partner countries around the world. It was established in Marc ...

returned to Botswana in August 2002 with a focus on

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

-related programs after concluding 30 years of more broadly targeted assistance in 1997. Similarly, the

USAID The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an agency of the United States government that has been responsible for administering civilian United States foreign aid, foreign aid and development assistance. Established in 19 ...

phased out a longstanding bilateral partnership with Botswana in 1996, after successful programs emphasizing education, training,

entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entrepreneu ...

, environmental management, and

reproductive health Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) is a field of research, health care, and social activism that explores the health of an individual's Human reproductive system, reproductive system and sexual well-being during all stages of their life. Se ...

. Botswana, however, continues to benefit along with its neighbors in the region from USAID's Initiative for Southern Africa, now based in

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

, and USAID's Southern Africa Global Competitiveness Hub, headquartered in

Gaborone Gaborone ( , , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Botswana, largest city of Botswana, with a population of 246,325 based on the 2022 census, about 10% of the total population of Botswana. Its metropolitan area is home to 534, ...

. The United States International Board of Broadcasters (IBB) operates a major

Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is an international broadcasting network funded by the federal government of the United States that by law has editorial independence from the government. It is the largest and oldest of the American internation ...

(VOA) relay station in Botswana serving most of the African continent. In 1995, the

Centers for Disease Control The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is headquartered in Atlanta, ...

(CDC) started the BOTUSA Project in collaboration with the Botswana Ministry of Health in order to generate information to improve

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

control efforts in Botswana and elsewhere in the face of the TB and HIV/AIDS co-epidemics. Under the 1999 U.S. Government's Leadership and Investment in Fighting an Epidemic (LIFE) Initiative, CDC through the BOTUSA Project has undertaken projects and has assisted organizations in the struggle against the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Botswana. Botswana is one of the 15 focus countries for PEPFAR, the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief, and has received more than $556 million since the program began in January 2004 through September 2011. PEPFAR assistance to Botswana, which totaled $84.4 million in FY 2011, is contributing to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and care interventions. In 2025, an orphanage in Botswana was shut down as a result of the

funding stoppage.

Agreements

The Governments of Botswana and the United States entered into an agreement in July 2000 to establish an International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) in

. The academy, jointly financed, managed and staffed by the two nations, provides training to

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

and government officials from across the Sub-Saharan region. The academy's permanent campus, in Otse outside of Gaborone, opened March 2003. Over 3,000 law enforcement professionals from Sub-Saharan Africa have received training from ILEA since it began offering classes in 2001.

Principal U.S. Officials

* Ambassador — Howard Van Vranken since May 2023

Diplomatic missions

The U.S. Embassy is in

. OSC (previously ODC) is located at the embassy. CDC is located on Ditlhakore Way in Gaborone. ILEA is located in Otse, about 30 minutes outside of Gaborone. The IBB station is located in Selebi-Phikwe, about 400 kilometers northeast of Gaborone. Botswana has an embassy in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

References

External links