Colonial Policies and the Cattle Economy, c. 1930–1975

Ellen Hillbom and Jutta Bolt
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Ellen Hillbom: University of Lund
Jutta Bolt: Lund University

Chapter 3 in Botswana – A Modern Economic History, 2018, pp 51-83 from Palgrave Macmillan

Abstract: Abstract Hillbom and Bolt challenge the common view that Botswana experienced only limited colonial influence. They argue that the later colonial period from 1930 onwards instead has had significant long-term impact on the economic structures of Bechuanaland and later independent Botswana. They explain how the 1930s saw the development of a so-called gate-keeping state characterized by financial constraints restricting its development strategies forcing it to focus its limited tax capacity on controlling its borders. They conduct an in-depth investigation analysing how this led to colonial efforts to establish a cattle export sector resulting in an economy characterized by natural resource dependency and struggling with diversification and equity. Finally, with the Tswana cattle-holding elite taking over after independence, political and economic continuity cemented existing structures.

Date: 2018
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pal:palscp:978-3-319-73144-5_3

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-73144-5_3

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