writes DOUGLAS RASBASH
Africa-Press – Botswana. Botswana needs a new governance architecture based on functionality, synergy, systems thinking and, importantly, one organised to deliver a new style of thematic National Development Plans.
It is often said that political ambition is constrained only by MDA bureaucracy (Ministries, Departments and Agencies). With only 2.7 million people, to have 18 ministries and many other MDA is government overkill. While the incoming new government has made a few changes, they are at best superficial.
As presently constituted, the civil service is not conducive to progressive, coordinated and holistic governance.
The difficulty to fully implement National Development Plans on time, within budget and yielding expected outcomes is testament to the challenges. For context and rationale, Botswana’s ministerial structure — inherited largely from colonial administrative models — has grown fragmented over time, with overlapping mandates, institutional silos, and insufficient integration of cross-cutting priorities such as climate resilience, digital transformation, or economic innovation.
In the 21st century, this fragmented model constrains service delivery, policy coherence, and public accountability. The government’s ambition to deliver a transformed, inclusive, and sustainable economy demands a new governance architecture based on functionality, synergy, and systems thinking and, importantly, one organised to deliver a new style of thematic National Development Plans.
As of April 2025, ministries under the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) government are:
Ministry of State President;
Ministry of Finance;
Ministry of Health;
Ministry of Child Welfare and Basic Education;
Ministry of Lands and Agriculture;
Ministry of International Relations;
Ministry of Youth and Gender Affairs;
Ministry of the Environment and Tourism;
Ministry of Defence and Security;
Ministry of Justice and Correctional Services;
Ministry of Infrastructure and Housing Development;
Ministry of Employment, Labour Productivity and Skills Development;
Ministry of Communications, Knowledge and Technology;
Ministry of Mineral Resources, Energy and Water Affairs;
Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development;
Ministry of Trade and Industry;
Ministry of Tertiary Education, Research, Science and Technology; and
Ministry of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs
While this restructured cabinet reflected the UDC’s commitment to a streamlined and responsive government, it errs more to conformity than progressivity. Intuitively, youth and education belong with each other but are separated in the current executive. Exporting agro-processed food obviously needs trade, industry and finance to work together, as the Phikwe Citrus project demonstrates.
Foreign affairs, migration and defence clearly share a common goal of ensuring the integrity and security of the nation. Land, the environment, and development planning are inextricably linked, and through Local Government, fit together to make Botswana a society that works for all.
Reform Objective
The reform process applied systems thinking, which considers interdependencies and feedback loops, shared policy outcomes, citizen journeys and institutional ecosystems, not isolated functions but opportunities for structural and cultural integration. The main tool being used is a synergy matrix based on 24 government MDA functions. Each matrix cell contains an assessment of the synergy between a pair of ministerial functions.
The assessment considers functional overlap and interdependence; shared resources, infrastructure, or data systems; joint contribution to national outcomes; cultural and institutional alignment and potential for innovation and adaptive capacity. The first iteration of the Botswana Governance Synergy Matrix is presented.
The matrix revealed natural clusters of ministries with high internal synergy, informing the reconfiguration into five functionally coherent departments. That is the idea behind a new approach to restructuring MDAs — by using data to guide the formation of five powerful, purpose-built “super ministries.” Rather than dividing government functions along outdated lines, this method simulates how well different functions work together.
A synergy matrix scores the degree to which any two functions complement each other — whether in education and youth, land and the environment, or trade and infrastructure. The level of complementarity between MDAs has been presented in the table and the average scores used. In this item, scores are provided for illustrative purposes but in reality should be determined in workshops to ensure full participation.
By maximising the synergy in the matrix, clusters of functions that naturally belong together can be identified. These clusters provide the basis for five new Departments of State, each with a strong internal logic and shared purpose. The result? Less duplication, more coordination, and sharper delivery. The aim is not just to merge for the sake of it but to build ministries that are genuinely fit for the challenges of today — whether that is climate resilience, digital transformation, or inclusive economic growth.
This approach helps break down bureaucracy and builds a leaner, smarter, more responsive state. It is not guesswork but a structured way of asking: which functions belong together, and how can we design a government that works better as a whole? By aligning structure with synergy, we can move from inherited inefficiencies to intentional effectiveness — and build a government that makes sense for the future, not the past.
📊 Summary Table
Cluster
Ministries
Pairs
Average Synergy
Total Synergy
🟦 Economic Transformation
6
15
6.60
99
🟩 Human Capital & Wellbeing
5
10
7.20
72
🟨 Infrastructure & Enabling
5
10
6.10
61
🟥 National Security
4
6
6.88
42
🟪 Governance & Constitutional
4
6
6.85
41
Total 315 / 470
Proposed Structure: Five Departments of State
The final organisation of governance should maximise the total synergy. This entails multiple stakeholder participation to score the synergetic matrix and many iterations of the synergy maximising algorithm. Early results from the process have given an indication of the functionality of the five super ministries or Departments of State as shown in the table below.
Department of State
Core Functions and Clusters
1. Human Development & Social Equity
Education, Health, Labour, Youth, Gender, Social Protection, Sport, Arts, Culture
2. Economic Transformation & Innovation
Finance and Economics, Trade, Tourism, Agriculture, Lands, Science & Technology , Minerals
3. Economic Infrastructure & Enablers
Transport, Energy, Water, ICT, Public Infrastructure
4. Security, Diplomacy & Regional Cooperation
Defence, Immigration, Nationality, Foreign Affairs, Intelligence, Security, Disaster Risk Management
5. Governance, Justice & Public Service
Justice, Traditional Leadership, Local Government, Land, Environment, National Development Planning.
From silos to synergy
Consolidating government portfolios into five strategically designed super ministries can offer transformative benefits in governance, service delivery and national development. A key advantage lies in efficiency. By merging overlapping departments, governments can leverage shared administrative systems, reduce duplication, and pool resources for greater impact. Streamlined mandates cut through bureaucratic clutter, enabling faster decision-making and cost savings.
Coherence is another major benefit. Integrated policy development across related sectors ensures that strategies are aligned, complementary, and mutually reinforcing. For example, a single super ministry handling transport, energy, water, communications and infrastructure can ensure that all portfolios that drive development are under one roof. This integrated approach improves the effectiveness and consistency of policy delivery. Above all this new executive organisation is better aligned to the main themes of national development planning of society, economy, development, security and governance.
Implementation Considerations
One can almost sense the dismay of some readers, especially civil servants, at having to cope with such an upheaval in the hallowed structure of the executive branch of government. But in their hearts, they know that it is a good move. Implementation will require legislative alignment, change management and transition support. It will be necessary that over the implementation period, there is a dedicated Reform Implementation Unit with a technical and HR advisor for stakeholder engagement that involves Parliament, civil servants, unions, and the public.
Let us be bold enough to suggest that implementation could be carried out cluster by cluster in a phased rollout from, say, January 2026 to December 2028. This reform is not another bureaucratic reshuffle but a bold and necessary leap towards a smarter Second Republic.
Source: Botswana Gazette
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