"Despite concerted efforts by many African economies to diversify, the continent still remains primarily a commodities exporter. A commodity price shock owing to poor demand might mean less revenue for government and a disruption of government capital projects. The global economic slump made an example of Botswana in this regard when the diamond was relegated to the bottom of, or off, the international customer’s shopping list.
The shift in demand for African products especially by the European Union and the United States, accounting for almost 60% of Africa’s exports, did not help Botswana either. Many businesses went bust while those that trudged on were saddled by unsettled obligations and desperately needed recapitalization. With owed financial institutions demanding their dues it made little sense to ask them for more.
“In such circumstances three traditional options for raising capital are borrowing from the bank, listing on the stock exchange to raise capital or approaching a rich uncle for help,” VPB, founder and managing director, Anthony Siwawa told The Business Diary in an exclusive interview."
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