the role of tourism in natural resource management in the okavango ...

southeast (Figure 5.1). Botswana occupies a total area of 581 730 square kilometres
(Republic of Botswana Statistical Bulletin, 2001).
Botswana has, for an African country, a relatively small population, with most of the
country's 581 730 square kilometers consisting of sparsely populated desert or
semi-desert. The climate in Botswana can be described as semi-arid. Temperatures
are high in summer, but often reach sub-zero levels during winter months. The
distribution of rainfall is uneven throughout the country both in space and time. The
rate of precipitation is much lower than that of evaporation and transpiration, and
water is therefore scarce, with rivers that are ephemeral and mostly subterranean.
Ground water exists at varying depths throughout most of Botswana. The
northwestern Ngamiland District which contains the Okavango Delta and Panhandle
is an exception in that major rivers in this area are somewhat perennial (Ndubano,
2000).
The eastern strip of Botswana, which is the best-endowed and most developed
region, and where the towns and cities are fairly populous, possesses approximately
80 percent of the population (MacGregor Hutcheson, 2004). Rainfall in this region is
relatively stable, ground water not very deep, and the soil is reasonably fertile and
available for farming. The availability of water in Botswana is a dominant factor
influencing the pattern of human settlement (Republic of Botswana Demography
Survey, 1998).
Botswana is divided into nine districts, each with its own administrative center.
These include the Southern, South East, Kweneng, Kgatleng, Central, Ngamiland,
Chobe, Ghanzi and Kgalagadi districts (Africa Contemporary Record, 2000).
5.2.2 Demographic Characteristics
Citizens of Botswana are properly referred to as Batswana (singular, Motswana) and
the language is Setswana. According to the CIA World Factbook, the population of
Botswana is estimated at 1 561 973 (July 2004 est.). This estimate explicitly takes
into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS, which has resulted in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth
rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would
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