Botswana explained to kids

Botswana is a landlocked country in southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa to the south and southeast, Namibia to the west and north, and Zimbabwe to the northeast. Its border with Zambia to the north near Kazungula is poorly defined but is, at most, a few hundred metres long. A mid-sized country of just over 2 million people, Botswana is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Around 10 percent of the population live in the capital and largest city, Gaborone. The economy, closely tied to South Africa's, is dominated by mining, cattle, and tourism. Botswana boasts a high HDI and per capita income. Botswana was already inhabited in the Paleolithic Era, and later by the Khoisan and Bantu peoples. It was colonized by the British during the Victorian Era. The British established the Bechuanaland Protectorate in 1885 and the Bechuanaland Crown Colony in 1895. Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966. Since then, it has maintained a strong tradition of stable representative democracy, with a consistent record of uninterrupted democratic elections and the best perceived corruption ranking in Africa since at least 1998. It is a member of the United Nations, the Southern African Development Community, the African Union, and the Commonwealth of Nations.