Botswana's Parliamentary Democracy Revisited

Botswana's Parliamentary Democracy Revisited is a comprehensive, honest and thought-provoking examination of Botswana as a world-renowned model of long-established democracy and political stability. This edited volume, written by distinguished scholars and experts based mainly at the University of Botswana, offers a challenging and fascinating assessment of Botswana's unique democracy, significantly advancing our understanding of the country and its politics. The contributors have utilised their varied, rich and practical expertise (in politics, democracy, law, governance, political economy, sociology and international relations) to produce a deeply scholarly yet accessible and refreshing account of Botswana. The interdisciplinary approach adopted stimulates debate while offering interesting insights into Botswana's past and present, and also into its unravelling challenges and prospects. The book, which comes in four parts (primary institutions in parliamentary democracy; secondary institutions; political participation; and the regional and global context) offers a thorough and path-breaking analysis of critical aspects of Botswana's unique democracy. It also provides a conclusion and possible lessons to be gleaned from the country's experience of a sustained multi-party democracy. (This democracy is unique not as an exception or a 'miracle', but in the sense that each democracy exists in a cultural context.) The novelty of the work lies in its comprehensive and robust probe into every aspect of Botswana's democracy. The book stands alone in its interrogation of institutions of parliament; the executive and the judiciary; the electoral system; the nature of local governance; and the media, the church and the private sector. It also portrays an active role for Botswana in international relations, unconstrained by its small-power status. Moreover, issues of gender and ethnicity are explained in a delicate and sensitive manner. The book is intended to have a wide appeal for scholars, students and the general public. It is user-friendly, and will prove valuable to both undergraduate and graduate students within Botswana, the Southern African sub-region, Africa and beyond.