08 May 2026

“There is no greater honour and prestige in this world and in this life, than to serve in the supreme capacity of the President of one’s country. President Festus Gontebanye Mogae carried out the functions of this office with dignity, with finesse, with amazing humility.” The words of President Advocate Duma Gideon Boko, addressing the nation upon the passing of the third President of the Republic, Dr Festus Mogae, reverberated across the length and breadth of Botswana’s semi arid terrain, as the nation mourned it’s likeable former leader, affectionately nicknamed ‘LeFesto.’ Those words aptly described Dr Mogae, who passed away on Friday morning aged 86 having served the nation with much honour. The words also reflected the admiration and respect the nation had for its dearly departed leader. In an interview, historian Dr Jeff Ramsay told BOPA that Dr Mogae was a key player in Botswana’s post-independence development policy formulation, as a civil servant and politician. As Botswana transitioned from being one of the world’s poorest and underdeveloped states at independence, on the journey to middle income status, under founding President Sir Seretse Khama, and his deputy and eventual successor, Sir Ketumile Masire, one of the key architects of the nation’s development path was Mogae. “He was instrumental in crafting the National Development Plans (NDPs), and attracting global support for the country’s developmental process. He was a great believer in the NDP method, in its planning and implementation with great discipline,” Dr Ramsay said. Born 21 August 1939 in Serowe, Dr Mogae completed his formal schooling at Moeng College then did tertiary studies in the United Kingdom, acquiring a BA (Honours) in Economics at Oxford University, and an MA in Development Economics at Sussex University. In 1969 he joined the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, working under the then Vice President and Minister of Finance Masire, rising to the position of Permanent Secretary in 1975. Dr Mogae then served as the Executive Director for Anglophone Africa at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and as the Governor of the Bank of Botswana (1981-1982) then Permanent Secretary to the President (1982-1989). He became the country’s Minister of Finance and Development Planning in 1989, then in 1992 the Vice President, before assuming the presidency over the period 1998-2008. “During his presidency, Dr Mogae sought to transfer some of the earlier success of the NDP plans and the economic growth of the diamond boom years, with a greater emphasis on export driven growth, diamond and other mineral beatification. I would not say these plans were entirely successful, owing to the challenges that arose from the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and less reflected, challenges in the global diamond market,” Dr Ramsay said. Dr Mogae pushed for the establishment of Diamond Trading Company Botswana (DTCB), and for the De Beers diamond sales and aggregation to be moved from London to Gaborone with P170 million invested in the construction of the requisite infrastructure at the DTCB building in Gaborone. “In the face of the growing international reputation of blood diamonds, President Mogae pushed the Diamonds for Development campaign. Realising that Botswana was at least a thousand kilometres by land away from the sea in all directions, he sought greater partnerships with neighbouring states such as South Africa, with whom Botswana signed a Joint Permanent Commission on Cooperation (JPCC) in 2003,” Dr Ramsay said. Dr Mogae’s time in government is highly noted for the success of leading the nation in combating the HIV/AIDS pandemic, which seemed on the brink of reversing all national gains. Under his leadership, Botswana got international praise for its anti-HIV/AIDS programme, which included free treatment, mass testing and intensive public education. Coordinator of the Botswana Government Communications and Information System (BDCIS) during the Mogae presidency, Dr Ramsay says he recalls Dr Mogae as a “wonderful boss” to serve under, and “a respectable human with a good sense of humour.” Dr Ramsay also said President Mogae was a non-aligned leader who would spend long hours on the phone with Cuban leader Fidel Castro, whose country Botswana stood in solidarity with at the United Nations in the face of the American embargo. At the same time, Dr Mogae cultivated and maintained Botswana’s long standing good relations with Western powers, hosting United States President Mr George Bush in his visit to Botswana in 2003. “When we travelled on long distance trips, we would stopover in Tripoli, Libya and refuel there, and President Mogae would spend time with Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. He cultivated relations he felt would benefit Botswana, from China to the West. President Mogae believed in the Non-Aligned Movement and the African Union, in the vision of continental economic partnerships tha contemporary leaders such as Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and Olesegun Obasanjo of Nigeria were championing,” Dr Ramsay revealed. Some of the continental linkages that were envisioned during Dr Mogae’s era, such as the Kazungula Bridge, and further development of the Trans-Kalahari corridor to include a railway may not have moved from conceptual stage during his tenure, but Dr Ramsay said they also reflect the former President’s legacy. He received numerous awards from different institutions and countries, among them the Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, for his commitment to good governance, economic progress and leading Botswana’s battle against HIV/AIDS. Since leaving office, he has served as an elder statesman. Dr Mogae was appointed the Chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluating Commission (JMEC) in 2015, overseeing the implementation of the Agreement on the Resolution on the Conflict in South Sudan, until 2018. Alongside former Presidents Mbeki (South Africa) and Joaquim Chissano (Mozambique), Dr Mogae mediated the Malawi-Tanzania border dispute along Lake Malawi (known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania) and he also served as the United Nations Special Envoy on Climate Change. Dr Mogae was married to former First Lady Barbara Gemma Mogae (nee Modise), and they were blessed with three daughters, Nametso, Chedza and Boikaego. “We thank him most profusely. As he transitions in honour and grace to the world yonder, may the nation be comforted, may the family receive comfort and love,”President Boko said. ENDS