Botswana vs Namibia
Botswana vs Namibia: Adult literacy
Adult literacy: 81.2% in Botswana in 2003 and 87.6% in Namibia in 2023, by UNESCO estimates. In 1991 the value was higher in Namibia, by 7.2 percentage points, or 1.11 times that in Botswana.
% of adults · UNESCO
What the numbers say
- Namibia has been higher in every year both have figures for since 1991.
- The world as a whole: 75.1% in 1991.
Every year
% of adults · UNESCO
| Year | Botswana | Namibia | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | – | – | 87.7 |
| 2023 | – | 87.6 | 87.6 |
| 2022 | – | – | 87.4 |
| 2021 | – | – | 87.2 |
| 2020 | – | – | 87 |
| 2019 | – | – | 86.8 |
| 2018 | – | 88.3 | 86.8 |
| 2017 | – | – | 86.5 |
| 2016 | – | 88.1 | 86.3 |
| 2015 | – | – | 86 |
| 2014 | – | – | 85.6 |
| 2013 | – | – | 85.2 |
| 2012 | – | – | 84.9 |
| 2011 | – | 88.3 | 84.7 |
| 2010 | – | – | 84.4 |
| 2009 | – | – | 83.8 |
| 2008 | – | – | 83.5 |
| 2007 | – | – | 83.1 |
| 2006 | – | – | 82.5 |
| 2005 | – | – | 82.6 |
| 2004 | – | – | 82.6 |
| 2003 | 81.2 | – | 82.2 |
| 2002 | – | – | 81.7 |
| 2001 | – | 84.9 | 81.4 |
| 2000 | – | – | 81.1 |
| 1999 | – | – | 80.9 |
| 1998 | – | – | 80.5 |
| 1997 | – | – | 79.3 |
| 1996 | – | – | 77.3 |
| 1995 | – | – | 76.9 |
| 1994 | – | – | 76.4 |
| 1993 | – | – | 76 |
| 1992 | – | – | 75.5 |
| 1991 | 68.6 | 75.8 | 75.1 |
| 1990 | – | – | 74.6 |
| 1989 | – | – | 74.1 |
| 1988 | – | – | 73.6 |
| 1987 | – | – | 71.9 |
| 1986 | – | – | 71.3 |
| 1985 | – | – | 70.7 |
| 1984 | – | – | 70.2 |
| 1983 | – | – | 69.5 |
| 1982 | – | – | 68.9 |
| 1981 | – | – | 68.4 |
| 1980 | – | – | 67.8 |
| 1979 | – | – | 67.2 |
| 1978 | – | – | 66.5 |
| 1977 | – | – | 65.9 |
| 1976 | – | – | 65.6 |
| 1975 | – | – | 65.4 |
Each country on its own
Good to know
- The share of people aged 15 and over who can read and write a short, simple statement about their everyday life.
- Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics, via the World Bank.
- The faint line is the world as a whole, as the same source counts it.
How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time
Botswana vs Namibia
Health
- Life expectancyBotswana: 69.2 years in 2023Namibia: 67.4 years in 2023
- Child mortalityBotswana: 3.3 per 100 live births in 2024Namibia: 4 per 100 live births in 2024
- Infant mortalityBotswana: 28.4 per 1,000 live births in 2023Namibia: 27.2 per 1,000 live births in 2023
- DepressionBotswana: 3.97% in 2017Namibia: 3.46% in 2017
- Suicide rateBotswana: 10 per 100,000 people in 2017Namibia: 11.8 per 100,000 people in 2017
People
- PopulationBotswana: 2.48 million people in 2023Namibia: 2.96 million people in 2023
- Population growthBotswana: 1.64% a year in 2023Namibia: 2.37% a year in 2023
- Fertility rateBotswana: 2.73 births per woman in 2023Namibia: 3.21 births per woman in 2023
- Urban populationBotswana: 68% in 2025Namibia: 50.9% in 2025
- Median ageBotswana: 22.9 years in 2023Namibia: 21 years in 2023
- People aged 65 and overBotswana: 4% in 2023Namibia: 3.6% in 2023
- Net migration rateBotswana: -2.6 per 1,000 people in 2023Namibia: 3.9 per 1,000 people in 2023
Economy
Education
Politics
Conflict
Military
- Military spendingBotswana: 3.11% of GDP in 2025Namibia: 2.77% of GDP in 2025
- Military spending in US dollarsBotswana: $595M in 2025Namibia: $386M in 2025
- Military spending per personBotswana: $242 in 2025Namibia: $134 in 2025
- Military share of state spendingBotswana: 8.9% of government spending in 2025Namibia: 7% of government spending in 2025
- Armed forces personnelBotswana: 9,000 people in 2020Namibia: 16,000 people in 2020
- National powerBotswana: 0.02% of world capability in 2022Namibia: 0.02% of world capability in 2022
- Armed forces, share of workersBotswana: 0.92% of the labour force in 2020Namibia: 1.67% of the labour force in 2020
- Arms importsBotswana: 11 million TIV in 2024Namibia: 0 TIV in 2025