On 9 August, I argued in this newspaper that Botswana should understand medicine shortages through evidence rather than assumptions, because patients experience one health system not separate ministries, warehouses, budgets, contracts or professional jurisdictions. Since then, Parliament has unanimously adopted the National Health Insurance Policy on the 19th August 2026, and the Ministry of Health has announced a ten-year partnership with Abu Dhabi Health Data Services (ADHDS) covering medicines, medical products and wider health-system cooperation, including digital health, genomics and supply-chain support.
Both developments deserve recognition. The Minister of Health, Dr Stephen Modise, has framed NHI as a question of dignity and equity, whether people can obtain quality care regardless of where they live or what they earn. That is the right ambition. It also makes the next question unavoidable:
There's more to this story
But to keep reading, we need you to subscribe.
Investigative journalism is an indispensable part of a healthy society, but it's also expensive to produce. We are reliant on subscriptions to fund our work, and while you can enjoy most of our stories for free, a small number of premium features are reserved for subscribers.
You can subscribe for one week, a month or a full year - the choice is yours.
Save 77% on an annual subscription. Click here to find out how.
Existing subscribers can log in to keep reading here.
