BDP push to amend Botswana’s constitution may backfire

Significance

The bill was defeated, serving both to highlight an unpopular issue shortly before the nation goes to the polls and to create divisions within the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP).

Impacts

• The failure of the political opposition to mount a co-ordinated campaign helps the BDP’s election prospects.
• Renewed BDP efforts to muzzle former President Ian Khama further dim the prospects of any kind of detente with the party his father founded.
• The decline of diamond mining makes economic diversification a pressing priority for the new government.