Leader of the Opposition (Botswana)

In Botswana, the Leader of the Opposition is the person who leads the official opposition in Botswana. The position is awarded to the leader of the political party with the largest number of seats in the National Assembly that is not in the government. The position was created shortly before the independence of Botswana, after the first elections under universal suffrage in the then territory of Bechuanaland.

As in most countries that are governed under the Westminster parliamentary system, the leader of the Opposition is an elected member of the National Assembly who enjoys numerous particular prerogatives. They are considered the main spokesman for the majority opposition party in the National Assembly and has the right to make official statements in the National Assembly on important national and international issues on behalf of the majority opposition. They have longer speaking times than ordinary members during debates on the State of the Union Address, the Budget Address, or any other major government policy statement, and can be the first to respond to the State of the Nation address, budget speech, or any other major statement of government policy.

By virtue of his position, the leader of the Opposition is an ex officio member of two Parliamentary Committees; the Selection Committee and the Business Advisory Committees. He also holds the positions of Second Vice President of the Botswana Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, Executive Member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Parliamentary Forum and is an Executive Member of the Inter-Parliamentary Union Committee. The current Leader of the Opposition is Dithapelo Keorapetse. He succeeded Dumelang Saleshando as Leader of the Opposition on the 12th of July 2022.