Botswana Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in botswana, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Licensing Requirements for Professional Services
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Licensing for professional services in Botswana is profession-specific and governed by various regulatory bodies, with general requirements including a valid business license and potential citizen-specific regulations.  Each sector has its own governing authority responsible for registering and monitoring professionals. For example:

  • The Law Society of Botswana (LSB) regulates legal practitioners.
  • The Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA) and the Botswana Accountancy Oversight Authority (BAOA) oversee accountants.
  • The Botswana Health Professions Council (BHPC) ensures compliance and standards for health professionals.
  • The Botswana Medicines Regulatory Authority (BoMRA) regulates pharmaceutical products and licenses manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers.
     

Required documentation for professional licensing varies by profession but generally includes certified copies of academic and professional certificates, professional references, a copy of a national identity card for citizens or a valid passport for non-citizens, a CV summarizing career and duties, and for non-citizens, a valid work and residence permit or waivers.  In addition to professional-specific licenses, businesses must register and obtain a trade license to operate legally.

The 2003 Trade Act reserves certain business sectors for citizens, which may limit foreigners’ ability to operate independently in those areas.

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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