Botswana President Duma Boko has delivered a powerful address that directly questioned why Africa, and countries such as Zimbabwe in particular, remain poor despite vast natural resource wealth and a youthful population.
The setting was the Fifth Session of the Zimbabwe–Botswana Bi-National Commission in Harare where Boko challenged the persistent disconnect between Zimbabwe’s mineral endowment and its ongoing socio-economic hardships.
Speaking boldly in the presence of his counterpart President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Boko stressed that Africa’s mineral wealth, demographic advantage and strategic resources should translate into broad-based prosperity, arguing that the continent’s current economic condition contradicts its natural endowments.
“We’re endowed with natural resources. The African continent is the richest continent on the face of the earth. It has young people.
“The average age is 19 years 3 months, on the African continent. A continent of 1.4 billion people. Over 60% of them being young people full of youthful energy marauding, bristling with purpose.
“And we are a poor continent. No, we cannot be. And we have natural resources in staggering abundance and variety. How can we be poor,” he said, calling for what he described as a “new thinking” across Africa.
Boko registered his support for Zimbabwe’s bid for a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council.
But during his speech, he questioned the legitimacy of Africa’s global economic positioning, arguing that the continent should not engage the international system from a position of dependency.
“How can we go out into the world as beggars, asking them to give us a seat at the table of the United Nations?” he said.
Boko’s remarks are particularly relevant to Zimbabwe, a country endowed with extensive mineral resources including gold, platinum, lithium, chrome, coal and diamonds.
The mining sector is one of the country’s largest sources of export earnings, with thousands of deposits identified nationwide.
However, despite this resource base, Zimbabwe continues to face deep economic challenges, including high poverty levels, inflationary pressures, unemployment and food insecurity.
Development indicators show that a significant share of the population survives on low daily incomes, while rural communities remain highly vulnerable to climate shocks.
The debate over resource wealth and poverty in Zimbabwe has also been shaped by long-standing concerns about illicit financial flows and mineral leakages from the formal economy.
A major reference point in this context is the 2023 Al Jazeera Investigative Unit series, widely known as “Gold Mafia”, which exposed alleged networks involved in gold smuggling and money laundering operations linked to Southern Africa, including Zimbabwe.
The investigation detailed how gold was reportedly moved through complex cross-border networks, with proceeds allegedly routed through offshore systems and shell structures to obscure origins and ownership.
The exposé also highlighted how gold, one of Zimbabwe’s key export commodities, can be used as a vehicle for laundering unaccounted funds through international markets, particularly via transit hubs such as Dubai.
While the allegations have been subject to official denials and ongoing scrutiny, the investigation intensified focus on governance within Zimbabwe’s mining sector and raised questions about the extent to which mineral wealth benefits the broader economy.
Despite the broader governance and economic concerns raised in the background of Boko’s remarks, the Harare Bi-National Commission also focused on strengthening bilateral cooperation between Zimbabwe and Botswana.
The two countries signed multiple agreements covering defence cooperation, immigration, policing of cross-border crimes such as livestock theft, correctional services, civil aviation safety, trade and investment promotion, and cultural collaboration.
