While Botswana has earned a reputation for sound economic management, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Dr Tshokologo Kganetsano, says maintaining this status requires constant vigilance.
Officiating at the National Dialogue on Illicit Financial Flows, Dr Kganetsano said that for Botswana, the fight against illicit financial flows is not merely a compliance obligation.
“It is a strategic national imperative,” said Dr Kganetsano. “Our country has earned a reputation for sound economic management, prudent stewardship of public resources and strong democratic institutions.”
While these achievements have positioned Botswana as one of Africa’s most respected economies, he emphasised that maintaining this reputation requires constant vigilance.
“Criminal networks, corrupt actors and illicit enterprises continuously adapt to technological advances, regulatory gaps and cross-border vulnerabilities,” he said. “Our response must, therefore, be equally dynamic, coordinated and forward-looking.”
As financial systems become increasingly interconnected and sophisticated, so too do the methods employed by those seeking to exploit them, noted Dr Kganetsano.
“Criminal networks, corrupt actors and illicit enterprises continuously adapt to technological advances, regulatory gaps and cross-border vulnerabilities,” he said. “Our response must, therefore, be equally dynamic, coordinated and forward-looking.”
Even so, he stressed that the fundamental question is not whether illicit financial flows exist, but whether the country is doing enough to detect, prevent and disrupt them.
Further, he said it should be established whether local institutions are sharing information effectively, whether regulatory and enforcement frameworks are keeping pace with emerging risks, and whether there is sufficient transparency regarding the beneficial ownership of companies and legal arrangements operating in Botswana.
According to Dr Kganetsano, addressing these questions requires recognition of an important reality: no single institution can successfully combat illicit financial flows on its own.
“Financial crimes do not respect institutional mandates or national borders,” he said.
“They frequently involve complex networks that span multiple jurisdictions and sectors, moving through financial institutions, corporate structures, procurement systems, trade channels and digital platforms.”
Effective responses, therefore, require strong collaboration between government agencies, financial institutions, law enforcement bodies, regulators, the private sector, academia and international partners, he said.
“One of the most powerful tools available to us in this fight is transparency,” Dr Kganetsano said.
“Transparency strengthens accountability, promotes trust and limits opportunities for abuse. This is particularly true in relation to beneficial ownership.”
Globally, illicit financial flows often rely on opaque corporate structures designed to conceal the identity of individuals who ultimately own, control or benefit from assets and transactions.
By strengthening beneficial ownership transparency, Dr Kganetsano believes Botswana can significantly reduce opportunities for corruption, tax evasion, money laundering and other forms of financial crime.
He said transparency ensures that those who seek to hide behind complex legal arrangements cannot do so with impunity.
“Equally important is the need to strengthen domestic institutions and deepen inter-agency cooperation,” he said.
“The fight against illicit financial flows requires strong analytical capabilities, effective supervision, intelligence-led investigations and robust enforcement mechanisms.”
As Botswana prepares for the forthcoming AML/CFT/CPF Mutual Evaluation process, the finance PS said the country has an opportunity not merely to demonstrate technical compliance with international standards, but also to demonstrate genuine effectiveness.
A Research Fellow at the Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis (BIDPA), Dr Marumo Omotoye, offered practical lessons that could help curb illicit financial flows, highlighting whistleblowing systems as an institutional tool for combating illicit financial flows.
He highlighted that the objective should not be compliance for its own sake, but the creation of a resilient financial system that protects the domestic economy, safeguards public resources, promotes investor confidence and contributes to national development.
The true measure of success, he said, will be Botswana’s ability to translate policies, laws and frameworks into tangible outcomes that benefit citizens.
A Research Fellow at the Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis (BIDPA), Dr Marumo Omotoye, offered practical lessons that could help curb illicit financial flows, highlighting whistleblowing systems as an institutional tool for combating illicit financial flows.
“Whistleblowing systems represent a valuable yet underappreciated component of institutional architecture,” Dr Omotoye said.
He noted the need to strengthen governance by reducing information asymmetries and facilitating the early detection of illicit financial flows.
“Botswana’s commitment to good governance provides a strong foundation for building more robust whistleblowing frameworks that reinforce institutional resilience and advance sustainable development,” he said. Dr Omotoye said there are key reforms that Botswana should undertake, including strengthening legal protections against retaliation, victimisation and dismissal, and establishing a centralised, secure national reporting platform.
He said there is also a need to integrate whistleblowing explicitly into national anti-illicit financial flows strategies and to adopt technology to strengthen organisational whistleblowing efforts.
