Botswana Country Office

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USAID Programs in Botswana focus on the alleviation of HIV/AIDS in the country, strengthening indigenous organizations as well as the Government of Botswana by bringing technical expertise and financial support to strengthen the county’s response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.   Regional programs also address economic growth and environment, increasing regional trade, enhancing agricultural production, and ensuring sound management of trans-boundary natural resources.  Programs support three Presidential Initiatives: the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), Feed the Future (FTF), and Global Climate Change (GCC).

Health/ HIV AIDS Portfolio

Health Systems 20/20 Program

Implementer:            Abt Associates

Duration:                   September 2006 – September 2012

Project Ceiling:         $900,000 

The 20/20 Program provides technical assistance to the Ministry of Health in institutionalizing National Health Accounts, and costing assistance to NACA for the National Operational Plan as well as support for resource mobilization.

Palliative Care and Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC)

Implementer:            Botswana Retired Nurses Society (BORNUS)

Duration:                   December 2008 – January 2012

Project Ceiling:         $1.4 million

The Palliative Care and OVC project works to increase accessibility, provision of quality care and support services for People living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) and their families in Tlokweng, Kanye and Morwa villages. The services offered include palliative care with focus on medication adherence for adults and children, psychosocial support using various methods including counseling, teen clubs for teenagers on anti-retroviral drugs, early childhood development (ECD) for younger OVC and home work support for older OVC, nutritional support through supporting families to start home gardens. The target population is individuals infected and affected by HIV/AIDS and OVC.  The project is implemented in collaboration with Government of Botswana (GOB) Ministries of Health and Local Government for identification and referral of clients, trainings and implementation of policies and guidelines.

Partnership for Supply Chain Management Systems (SCMS)

Implementer:            Crown Agents 

Duration:                   September 2009-September 2012

Funding Amount:    $30.8 million   

SCMS supports the Government of Botswana's effort through technical assistance to the Central Medical Stores (CMS), the Drug Regulatory Unit (DRU), Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) Unit, National ARV Program (MASA) M&E Unit and Laboratory Services to strengthen the supply chain system for ARV medications, infant formula and HIV test kits and laboratory commodities. SCMS focuses on building a sustainable health commodities supply chain system through human resource capacity development, defined as strengthened institutional, organizational and individual capacities of the Ministry of Health (MOH) to manage predetermined key outcome areas of supply chain management.

Civil Society Strengthening – MAATLA Project

Implementer:            FHI-360

Duration:                   May 2011 – May 2016

Funding to Date:      $5.3 million 

The goal of the Maatla Civil Society Strengthening Program is to significantly and sustainably strengthen the capacity of the civil society sector in Botswana to support HIV/AIDS and related health service delivery.   The program ensures that local non-governmental organizations have the skills and resources to implement high-quality programs for the delivery of a wide range of HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and care services for the long term. It also seeks to develop and implement a model to strengthen district level systems of CSOs and local government to provide and coordinate HIV/AIDS services in the hard-to-reach areas.

Preventive Technologies Agreement (PTA)

Implementer:            FHI 360

Duration:                   August 2009 – August 2014

Funding Amount:    $400,000 

The Preventive Technologies Agreement assists the Ministry of Health to carry out an assessment of MARP (Most at Risk Populations) in Botswana.

Capacity Plus Program

Implementer:            IntraHealth

Duration:                   September 2009 – September 2014

Funding Amount:    $250,000 

The Capacity Plus Program provides support to Government of Botswana to strengthen human resources for heath information systems.

Tuberculosis (TB) CARE Program

Implementer:            KNVC (Royal Netherlands Tuberculosis Foundation)

Duration:                  September 2010 – September 2015

Funding Amount:    $678,000

The TB Care Program provides technical advisors to support TB laboratory and HIV/TB services.

Local Capacity Building

Implementer:             Management Sciences for Health (MSH)

Duration:                   September 2010 – September 2015

Funding Amount:      $500,000 

AOTR:                        Karen Kasan             

Local Capacity Building seeks to improve the quality of health service delivery in Botswana’s facilities. The third phase of the Quality Assurance/Leadership Development Program (QA/LDP), implemented by MSH, began in September 2010 in four health facilities: Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital, Sbrana Mental Hospital, Letsholathebe Hospital and Sekgoma Hospital.  In addition, MSH is completing a Leadership Development Program in two additional health facilities--Princess Marina Hospital and Block Nine (Julia Molefe) Clinic--in Gaborone, which begun during the previous award.  This program compliments the QA technical assistance provided to these facilities under a direct contract with MOH.  In addition, technical assistance for the original six pilot facilities to facilitate the completion of the accreditation process continues. 

Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) and Gender

Implementer:            Project Concern

Duration:                   June 2011 – June 2016

Project Ceiling:         $16.7 million  

The five-year Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) and Gender Program aims to improve the quality of life of OVC, women and their families/households in Botswana, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable adolescents, especially girls.  In doing so, the project seeks to improve developmental interventions for vulnerable children and adolescents; reduce the risk of neglect, exploitation and abuse of vulnerable children, adolescents and women; and to improve development, implementation and coordination of national frameworks and policies that address the needs of children and women.  The project operates in nine districts and aims to serve ­­­18,922 people directly and an additional 25,000 people indirectly.

Most-at-Risk Populations (MARPS)

Implementer:             Research Triangle Institute

Duration:                   October 2008- September 2013

Project Ceiling:         $6.5 million      

MARPS assists the Government of Botswana to improve the quality and quantity of HIV prevention services for most-at-risk populations while building the capacity of civil society organizations (CSOs) to deliver these services.  The project targets three MARPS: female sex workers and their clients, girls in transactional or cross-generational sex, and mobile populations. Interventions include preventive strategies, such as helping vulnerable women avoid the sex trade, teaching condom negotiation skills, and introducing methods to assist women in exiting sex work, as well as working to bring services, such as voluntary counseling and testing (VCT), closer to target populations.

Takalani Sesame Street Expansion Program

Implementer:            Sesame Street Workshop

Duration:                   September 2009 – September 2013

Project Ceiling:         $100,000 

The Takalani Sesame Street Expansion Program provides dubbing and educational broadcasting of Takalani Sesame Street for Botswana children. It addresses early childhood health, numeracy and literacy as well as HIV care, stigma and discrimination issues.

Economic Growth Portfolio

Southern Africa Trade Hub (SATH) 

Implementer:            AECOM

Duration:                   September 2010-September 2014

Project Ceiling:         $82.6 million

USAID’s Southern Africa Trade Hub (SATH) seeks to increase international competitiveness, intra-regional trade, and food security in the SADC region. SATH also supports energy planners to harmonize regional infrastructure planning and adoption of clean energy regulations through support to SADC Infrastructure and Services Directorate and the Regional Electricity Regulators Association (RERA). SATH promotes regional food security by addressing transportation and trade barriers along key regional trade corridors and by strengthening trade of key food security commodities, including maize, soybean, and groundnut. SATH is also partnering with South Africa’s Agriculture Business Chamber (ABC) to leverage South African private sector investments in the region to develop regional agribusinesses.

Environment Portfolio

Southern African Regional Program for the Environment (SAREP)

Implementers:          Chemonics International, (with Bergstan (Pty), Ecosurv (Pty) Ltd., Social Impact Assessment and Policy Analysis Corporation (Pty) Ltd. (SIAPAC), and the University of Florida’s Department of Geography)

Duration:                   May 2010-May 2013(with option for 2 year extension)

Project Ceiling:         $23 million

This program strengthens regional capacities of the Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission (OKACOM), national and local governments, and communities within Angola, Botswana, and Namibia to improve management of transboundary natural resources which are critical for ecosystem services, wildlife, and sustainable development.  The program aims to improve livelihoods; promote more effective ecosystem management; and to strengthen institutions to better manage and govern water and ecosystem resources.  USAID assisted OKACOM to finalize a five-year framework to ensure the sound management of water and ecosystem resources in this Basin.  Through this program, USAID strengthened the capacity of more than 11,000 people living in the region to manage their water resources.  For example, eighteen water user groups were initiated in Namibia and 80 community members were trained in water planning, monitoring, and improved sanitation techniques. Satellite imagery, web-based information and mobile phone technology have been combined for use in policy decision support tools and have resulted in more effective early flood warning systems for priority disaster prone communities who are likely to be most heavily impacted by future climatic change.   

Forest Conservation Botswana (FCB) 

Implementer:                        Forest Conservation Botswana

Estimated USG Funding:   $8.3 Million

Debt-for-Nature Swaps are an innovative way to help strengthen national economies while advancing a sustainable, environmental future.  In 2006, the Governments of Botswana and the United States signed the $8.3 million debt-for-nature agreement to support conservation and restoration of key forest resources in Botswana.  Forest Conservation Botswana was established in 2009 as a not-for-profit corporation to attract and manage new conservation investments in the country. USAID participates actively on the FCB board and provides technical guidance to FCB staff to initiate and manage grant-making activities.  To date, a total of 23 grants have been approved for a total of over $875,000