Fairgrounds zoned as Walls Street of Botswana

Fairgrounds has been zoned as a leading financial services centre whose location at the heart of the capital will give investors access to top notch schools, health and entertainment facilities, as well as easy access to the Sir Seretse Khama International Airport (SSKIA) and the country’s major roads.

Special Economic Zones (SEZA) CEO, Lonely Mogara, said Fairgrounds is targeted at FinTech investors interested in Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO), Investment Fund Management, International Banking and International Insurance amongst others.

“The good thing about Fairgrounds is that it is already established with ready infrastructure and a range of property solutions.

All it needs is a facelift. We have completed the Master Planning, Detailed Urban Design Scheme and Cadastral Survey of the SEZ. We will soon proceed to the Detailed Engineering Designs,” he said.

Fairgrounds is also home to leading financial institutions like Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE), Botswana Insurance Holdings Limited (BIHL), Botswana Development Corporation (BDC), Botswana Accountancy College (BAC) and numerous banks’ headquarters.

Speaking at a recent tour of the SEZ, Assistant Minister of Presidential Affairs, Dumezweni Mthimkhulu, said the rapid development of Fairgrounds was in line with Botswana’s ambitions of becoming a continental financial services headquarters.

He added that the country has in recent years attracted a lot of interest from foreign investors, because of its growing market depth and relaxed foreign exchange controls; coupled with targeted policy changes and legal instruments aimed at improving the financial markets’ maturity, openness and accessibility.

“The development of Fairgrounds attests to our commitment to improving our financial market infrastructure and building a competitive and attractive financial investment hub,” said Mthimkhulu.

He also called for SEZA to facilitate domestic participation and aid market development at Botswana’s financial services centre.

“We want local businesses to develop enough capacity to compete with the best in the world, especially now that we are talking about opening up our markets through regional integration,” he said.

At full operation, the Fairgrounds SEZ is expected to attract investment from global brands like JP Morgan, Tym Digital, Bank of China, Mercantile Bank, HSBC, Standard Bank, Deutsche Bank and African Bank.