Chobe Connect Targets Regional Investment

Organisers say the event is intended to position Chobe District as an emerging investment hub within Botswana and the broader Southern African region. The conference is framed around Botswana’s national development priorities, including economic diversification, private sector-led growth, regional integration and the implementation of the Botswana Economic Transformation Programme (BETP). Chobe District occupies a strategic location where Botswana meets Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia, giving it cross-border connectivity to regional markets.

The area is also known for its tourism assets and agricultural activity, particularly around Pandamatenga. Approved BETP projects and the planned Pandamatenga Special Economic Zone (SEZ) are expected to support agro-industrial development, tourism regeneration and logistics-driven regional trade. According to SEZA Acting Chief Executive Officer Tapiwa Masie, the forum was conceived as a platform to accelerate development in strategically positioned regions of the country.

“This was conceived as a strategic forum that has to bring together government, policy makers, investors, industry leaders and other stakeholders that will help us accelerate development of Botswana’s most strategically positioned regions that is Chobe,” Masie said during a press conference announcing the event. Masie said the conference would highlight opportunities in agribusiness linked to the Pandamatenga Special Economic Zone, which is focused on agricultural production and value chains. “It is meant to showcase agribusiness opportunities in the Pandamatenga special economic zone, an agricultural based special economic zone,” Masie said.

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Masie added that the initiative was partly inspired by Chobe’s geographic advantages. She said the district sits along the Kasane–Kazungula corridor, which connects Botswana to the wider Southern African Development Community market. The area also combines agricultural potential with established tourism attractions.

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