Lesotho and Botswana have launched a Bi-National Commission and signed a trade and investment agreement, following a two-day official visit by Prime Minister Samuel Matekane to Gaborone this week.
Prime Minister Samuel Ntsokoane Matekane concluded an official visit to Botswana on 18 June 2026, presiding alongside President Duma Gideon Boko over the inaugural session of the Botswana-Lesotho Bi-National Commission (BNC) in Gaborone.
The BNC was established under an agreement signed in Maseru in July 2025, replacing a joint commission on economic and technical cooperation that had been in place since 2003. The inaugural session was preceded by a senior officials meeting from 15 to 16 June, a ministerial meeting on 17 June, and a business forum held the same day.
During the session, the Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC) and the Lesotho National Development Corporation (LNDC) signed a memorandum of understanding on trade and investment. The two governments also reported progress on negotiations covering 38 further memoranda of understanding across multiple sectors.
“The BNC serves as an effective platform for deepening cooperation in key sectors including trade and investment, energy, water, agriculture and livestock development, natural resource management, education and training, youth empowerment, environment, tourism, sport, culture and creative industries, as well as good governance, law enforcement, defence and security.”
A joint communique issued at the conclusion of the visit said both leaders reaffirmed their support for the Lesotho-Botswana Water Transfer Project and agreed in principle to rename it the Lesotho-South Africa-Botswana (LESABO) Water Transfer Project, subject to consultation with the Orange-Senqu River Commission (ORASECOM). The renaming reflects the tripartite character of the project.
On agriculture, the communique noted that Botswana contributed 100,000 doses of Foot-and-Mouth Disease vaccine to Lesotho in support of efforts to contain the disease regionally. Both governments said they would deepen cooperation on animal health and veterinary services.
Matekane also toured the Diamond Trading Company Botswana during the visit, with the communique citing interest in collaboration on mining governance, value addition and mineral beneficiation.
President Boko acknowledged progress on Lesotho’s constitutional reform process and praised Matekane’s leadership on democratic governance and political stability. Both governments said they would align positions at the Southern African Development Community, Southern African Customs Union, African Union, and African Continental Free Trade Area forums.
The second session of the BNC will be held in Lesotho in 2027, on a date to be set through diplomatic channels. President Boko accepted an invitation from Matekane to lead the Botswana delegation at that session.
Staff Reporter · Lesotho Tribune
