23 Mar 2026

The Office of the Receiver has experienced an increase in operational responsibilities, as reflected by the rise in court orders for the seizure, management and return of seized property. 

Presenting the Office of the Receiver budget proposals for the 2026/2027 financial year recently, Assistant Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Mr Augustine Nyatanga indicated that during the current financial year, the number of court orders increased from 66 to 79, demonstrating that criminal justice system’s sustained efforts to deprive criminals of the proceeds and instrumentalities of crime. 

Nonetheless, Mr Nyatanga stated that as at February this year, the portfolio of restrained property under management consisting of real estate, vehicles and plant machinery, livestock, personal effects, furniture, money and business interests, decreased from P169 million last year to P141 million, representing a significant decline of 16.5 per cent.

 He said during 2025, the office returned vehicles, immovable properties and funds following court directives whilst some resulted in final forfeitures to government. 

He noted that the active role of the Office of the Receiver in administering the confiscated assets trust fund increased from P10 million in the previous year to P43 million. 

“This increase of 321.8 per cent, is largely attributable to the final forfeiture, in January this year of funds amounting to P32 million, as well as continued administrative deposits from law enforcement agencies including the Botswana Police Service, Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) and the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC),” he added.

He indicated that no compensation was paid to victims of crime, during the year under review as claims received were still undergoing assessment. 

“The confiscated assets trust fund management committee is finalising guidelines for the disbursement of funds to support victims, for compensation and rehabilitation, as well as capacity building and training initiatives for law enforcement agencies involved in combating money laundering, racketeering and terrorism financing,” he said.

Notwithstanding such developments, Mr Nyatanga highlighted that the Office of the Receiver continued to face challenges relating to storage and high cost of maintaining restrained property, largely due to prolonged litigation which delayed finalisation and disposal of assets.

 He said efforts to secure long-term storage solutions were nonetheless ongoing. 

“In the interim, the office, in collaboration with the Botswana Defence Force (BDF), completed the construction of three shelters providing 60 temporary parking bays. This will significantly reduce deterioration caused by exposure to the sun,” he said. 

He further said as government had engaged an audit firm to conduct a forensic investigation across ministries and government agencies, the ministry was taking deliberate steps to ensure that the Office of the Receiver was adequately resourced to meet the anticipated workload. 

That, he said included provision of appropriate storage and holding facilities for assets under receivership, as well as engaging suitably qualified personnel to manage, preserve and safeguard such assets. 

It was against such a background that the assistant minister proposed a P25 million recurrent budget allocation for the 2026/2027 financial year for the Office of the Receiver, representing 39 per cent over the budget for the current financial year. 

The allocation is primarily intended to meet personal emoluments, rental obligations and operational expenses, including maintenance and preservation of seized property. 

Mr Nyatanga said key drivers for the increase were personal emoluments, furniture and equipment as a result of the approval of additional staffing 24 posts for the Office of the Receiver. Under the development budget, Mr Nyatanga requested an amount of P24 million to be channeled towards execution of two key development projects, being the construction of the Francistown warehouse as well as the Property and Asset Management System. BOPA