Author

Mbongeni Mguni
Financial Journalist

Twitter: @MboBW

Email: [email protected]
  • A familiar uncertainty sets over the economy

    To use American slang, the economy, which includes business activity, employment creation and the collective aspirations of Batswana, cannot seem to “catch a break”.The boom economy which stretched from the late 1990s to the late 2000s with...

  • Diamond sales on track to smash six-year record

    The exports in the half-year to June 30 compare favourably to the P38.1 billion full-year sales figure for 2021, which in turn represented the highest level since 2016.Debswana sells 25% of its production to state-owned diamond trader, Okavango...

  • IFC approves P500m loan to Peo Finance

    The IFC will channel the support via a loan to Peo Finance, a micro-finance company which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Capricorn Investment Holdings Botswana. Capricorn Investment is in turn, majority owned by Namibia’s Capricorn Group, which...

  • Ominous signs as inflation expectations rise

    The latest revelations are contained in the BoB’s Business Expectations Survey (BES) released this week which samples the opinions of a cross-section of firms about the business environment from the second quarter of the year and beyond.In raising...

  • BoB counts losses from Russian sanctions

    According to the central bank’s 2021 Annual Report released last week, by the end of last year, the BoB held P9.1 million in bonds and P147.6 million in equities in Russia.However, following sanctions against Moscow by the United States, the...

  • US firm, BURS seal 10-yr ‘track and trace’ deal

    In a statement earlier today, Authentix said the new contract covers the marking and digital tracking of an estimated 500 million product units per year.The track and trace system involves placing a biometric imprint on all alcohol and tobacco...

  • Propaganda drums beat louder as CITES’ summit nears

    What do Reese Witherspoon and Taylor Swift have to do with the debate around conservation and trophy hunting in Southern Africa?From the early 1970s to the 1990s, Mark and Delia Owens, an American couple, travelled to and lived alone in the...

  • New BoB Act: Inside the Ts and Cs

    In its economic briefing on Wednesday, Mmegi was able to put several questions to Bank of Botswana (BoB)’s senior management on the impact of the sweeping amendments to the Bank of Botswana Act made by Parliament earlier in the week.The amendments...

  • BoB relishes greater autonomy as MPs pass amendments

    The new amendments passed without a single objection by bipartisan legislators, also include tighter restrictions on the conditions under which government can borrow from the BoB.The changes also include improved corporate governance at the central...

  • Clouds hang over govt’s pursuit of PPP billions

    At the recent funders’ conference called by government to test the private sector’s appetite to invest in public infrastructure, Finance Minister Peggy Serame painted a bleak picture of the country’s fiscal future.According to Serame, between...

  • Inflation surges to 12.7% on food, fuel prices

    The rate of inflation in June compares to 11.9% in May, which was similarly a 13-year high.“Applying a significant upward pressure on the annual inflation rate in June 2022 were the increasing prices for the major components in the Consumer Price...

  • BPC losses near P500m as power imports rise

    By comparison, the corporation raked in pretax profits of P365.2 million in the 2021–2022 financial year, helped by improved generation at Morupule B and, thus, a reduced need to run the diesel plants at Orapa and Matshelagabedi which can...

  • Russian ambassador: Don’t blame us for food, fuel price crisis

    Mmegi: Has Russia had any engagement with the Government of Botswana since the operation in Ukraine began, and what has been the response of Government?Kemarskiy: Russia has enjoyed excellent relations with Botswana since the establishment of...

  • Abusive nonsense: Alrosa chief’s explosive Kasane speech

    With tensions rising in the tourist town, Alrosa head of International Relations, Petr Karakchiev, apparently delivered a hard-hitting speech riddled with words such as “idiots”, “nonsense” and sarcastic jabs at “profound experts” and...

  • Covid stain remains on economy despite rebound

    Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased by seven percent year-on-year in the first quarter of the year, compared to one percent over the same period last year, according to data released recently by Statistics Botswana.The growth came after a...

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