Botswana’s national election this Wednesday will see incumbent President Mokgweetsi Masisi of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) face three challengers who will be looking to upstage him.

Masisi, in power since 2018, seeks a second term and is the favourite, bolstered by a new diamond sales deal with De Beers.

However, his tenure has been marked by economic challenges, and he has faced criticism for not diversifying the economy enough or creating sufficient jobs.

In its manifesto, the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) is calling for “change”.

In a BBC article, journalists Innocent Selatlhwa and Damian Zane say this is an acknowledgement that things need to be done differently in the Southern African country.