1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background The National Cybersecurity Strategy sets out how Botswana intends to create a resilient, safe and secure ICT operational environment. The strategy is aimed towards the members of the public, industry, international partners and the Government. The strategy aims to provide awareness to members of the public on threats, risks in the cyberspace and interventions. For the Government and Industry, it’s a call to arms, for them to take action and provide necessary resources. The strategy also lays out its principles, which will help Botswana to collaborate and cooperate with interested international partners with similar values. The rapid proliferation and adoption of ICT services and infrastructure in Botswana is transforming how citizens, the private sector, and the Government interact, inform themselves, participate and contribute to the well-functioning of society. However, this has also resulted in the introduction of new types of risks, in the form of cyber threats or attacks. These threats affect service provision and trust in the use of ICT. The increase in cybercrime sophistication and occurrence requires a proactive approach to ensure that risks are continually assessed and mitigations put in place. While most Batswana have taken up technology, there has not been a corresponding rise in public education and awareness on cyber security issues. Cybersecurity has been identified as a critical issue in Botswana. The National Development Plan 11 covering the years 2017-2023, states that cyberspace threats and risks should be dealt with during the NDP implementation. The NDP 11 further notes that since cybersecurity threats are imminent and worrisome, it is appropriate for legislation to combat cybersecurity to be developed during NDP 11. Under NDP 11 headings of ICT and Secure Cyber Space, secure cyber space is identified as one of the factors that would support the economy, in particular key priority areas of water, agriculture, power, tourism and job creation. Botswana has done relatively well in providing formal education to its population and provision of necessary infrastructure that facilitates communications and service delivery through Information and Communication Technologies. The country, however, has limited capacity on Cyber Security expertise. The issues of Cyber Security require a multi-stakeholder approach due to the diverse nature of the cyberspace. Currently, in Botswana there is no coordinated framework for addressing the cyber security issues among the various stakeholders. One of the objectives of this strategy is to clarify the roles of the various key stakeholders, both public and private, in addressing the country’s cybersecurity challenges. ICT sector or cyberspace depends on Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) that can be accessed via internet or otherwise, and also goes beyond territorial boundaries. This makes protecting this infrastructure more complex, given that it also brings in third parties in the form of other countries. It is for this reason that 8 | Page National Cybersecurity Strategy