Free public education, health in Africa? Yes, it's possible

In what is considered a case study of proper management of natural resources for a developing country, Botswana uses revenues from mining and tourism to fund free education and public health care, so citizens understand for instance why they must follow the country’s development and environmental policies.

Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi, Botswana’s foreign affairs and international cooperation minister, recently discussed the country’s “consolidated fund” in a video interview with Devex Associate Editor Richard Jones on the sidelines of the Annual Democracy Forum in Gaborone, Botswana. Venson-Moitoi, who has held various cabinet-level positions since 1999, said that the recognition that resources can be depleted necessitates “very careful management.”

Watch the above clip where she shares more lessons learned from balancing interests in energy, extractives and tourism in her country.