Botswana vs Namibia

Botswana and Namibia compared on 10 key figures from official sources. Each value is the latest one published for that country, so the year is shown with it.

• Namibia has about 1.2 times as many people as Botswana: 3.1 million against 2.6 million in 2025.
• GDP per person in Botswana ($7,778) is 60% higher than in Namibia ($4,876) in 2025.
• The economy grew faster in Namibia (1.7%) than in Botswana (-0.7%), a difference of 2.4 percentage points in 2025.
• Consumer prices rose faster in Namibia (3.5%) than in Botswana (2.7%), a difference of 0.8 percentage points in 2025.
• The unemployment rate was higher in Botswana (24.5%) than in Namibia (19.3%), a difference of 5.2 percentage points in 2025.
• A baby born in Botswana can expect to live 1.8 years longer than one born in Namibia: 69.3 years against 67.5 years in 2024.
• The population of Botswana is older: half of its people are over 22.9 years, against 21 years in Namibia in 2023.
• A larger share of people used the internet in Namibia (64.9%) than in Botswana (57.5%), a difference of 7.4 percentage points in 2024.
• CO2 emissions per person in Botswana (2.7 tonnes) are about 2.3 times as high as in Namibia (1.2 tonnes) in 2024.
• Forest covers a larger share of the land in Botswana (27.8%) than in Namibia (9.8%), a difference of 18 percentage points in 2024.