Plastic Pollution Policy: Botswana announced a phased ban on single-use plastic bags, with government working with manufacturers to retool for recyclable and biodegradable options while protecting jobs. Climate & Health Watch: With El Niño likely to bring hotter, drier conditions in 2026/27, health authorities are warning of rising heat-stress risks, water scarcity pressures, and related illnesses. Wildlife Monitoring: SANParks and EWT launched a lion survey in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park using vehicle counts and camera traps to map numbers and movements for better long-term conservation. Transboundary Animal Health: Botswana intensified foot-and-mouth disease controls and donated 100,000 FMD vaccine doses to Lesotho to support regional response and protect livestock livelihoods. Trade & Environment Compliance: Botswana exporters face potential EU market exclusion unless they meet strict deforestation rules, pushing supply-chain compliance as a market-access priority. Conservation Science: New research says Angola’s peatlands are at least four times larger than thought, storing major carbon and helping regulate water flows that reach the Okavango Basin and Botswana. Mining & Communities: Voices from mining regions in Africa highlight deforestation, water impacts, and the lack of proper consultation as communities grapple with rare-earth and other extraction. Capital Markets Boost: BDC and the Botswana Stock Exchange signed an MoU to improve investment readiness and mobilise long-term capital for enterprises, including ESG readiness. Transport Infrastructure: The Trans-Kalahari Railway moved into procurement after feasibility work, aiming to improve freight access to Botswana’s mineral corridors and strengthen the Port of Walvis Bay role.