Botswana to start offering tourist visa-on-arrival: official

GABORONE, Nov. 17 — Botswana plans to start offering tourists visas on arrival, effective on Nov. 24, the southern African nation’s Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism said Saturday.
In a telephone interview with Xinhua, the deputy Permanent Secretary in the tourism ministry Thabang Botshoma said Botswana is doing everything with her power to ensure that the country’s doors are open to the world.
“President (Mokgweetsi) Masisi made the announcement when addressing the 45th meeting of the High Level Consultative Council (HLCC) on Thursday in Gaborone,” Botshoma said.
Botshoma said the Botswanan leader has given Botswana’s Ministry of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs a grace period until Nov. 24, 2018 to amend the immigration rules and procedures to accommodate the visa-on-arrival process.
According to Botshoma, the development will result in Botswana becoming the latest African nation to relax visa requirements in a bid to improve tourism and the ease of doing business in the southern African country.
Dorcas Makgato, Botswana’s Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs Minister also confirmed the development.
She said her ministry is busy amending some rules and procedures regarding the inflow of visitors into the country.
Makgato said it has been strenuous for tourists, wishing to visit the southern African nation which is endowed with flora and fauna as well as an avalanche of business opportunities, from the countries required to apply for a visa first.
She said tourists were expected to apply for a visa at Botswana’s embassy in their native countries or a country closer to them. And the process would take not less than 14 days to be approved or disapproved, said Makgato.
On its twitter page, Business Botswana expressed much excitement about the offering of a tourist visa at point of entry saying this will improve the ease of doing business in Botswana.

Xinhua