Botswana Ground Force
The Botswana Ground Forces is the army of the country of Botswana, and the land component of the Botswana Defence Force.
Chiefs of the Defence Staff Ground Force (1966–present)
The former heads of the Botswana Ground Force Armed Forces were referred to while in office as either General Officers Commanding or Chiefs of the Defence Staff.History
The Botswana Defence Force was raised in April 1977 by an Act of Parliament called the 'BDF Act NO 13 of 1977. At its formation, Lieutenant General Mompati Merafhe became its first Commander. The former President of the Republic of Botswana, Lieutenant General Seretse Khama Ian Khama, then Brigadier, was the Deputy Commander.Unusually for an African military force, and chiefly attributable to its being founded after Botswana's independence, the Botswana Ground Force was not formed from colonial units formed by a colonising power, but rather were formed from the remains of the Botswana Mounted Police Unit, previously known as the Bechuanaland Mounted Police, a unit of the British South Africa Police.
The contemporary roles of the Defence Force are broad for a conventional military, suggesting that the government of Botswana and the BDF subscribe to a wide view of ‘security’ and consider the Defence Force an appropriate agency for attaining much of it, an issue that has been discussed even in the BDF's own internal media. It is expected that the BDF in general is meant to be an apolitical instrument of the state.
The current stated mission of the Botswana Ground Force is:
To defend the country and provide for the security of Botswana, participate in external security cooperation activities, and contribute in domestic support operations, with the aim of:
- Ensuring national security and stability
- Protecting the people and their properties
- Protecting the constitution of Botswana to guarantee the rule of law
- Defending Botswana's territorial integrity on land and in the air
- Preserving Botswana as a free, independent and sovereign state
- Aiding civil authorities in domestic support operations
- Strengthening Botswana's international relations by participating in regional and international security cooperation activities
Structure and organisation
The various units of the Botswana Ground Force are as follows:
- 1st Armoured Brigade
- 1st Infantry Brigade
- 2nd Infantry Brigade
- 3rd Infantry Brigade
- 1st Commando Regiment
- Four independent infantry battalions
- Two armored-artillery brigades
- One combat engineering regiment
- 1 air defense battalions
- Army river-wing
Ranks and insignia
Enlisted:
- Recruit
- Private
- Lance corporal
- Corporal
- Sergeant
- Staff sergeant
- Warrant officer II
- Warrant officer I
- Regiment/battalion sergeant major
- Brigade sergeant major
- Major command sergeant major
- Force sergeant major
- Officer cadet
- Junior under officer
- Under officer
- Senior under officer
- Second lieutenant
- Lieutenant
- Captain
- Major
- Lieutenant colonel
- Colonel
- Brigadier
- Major general
- Lieutenant general
Equipment and vehicles
In 2016 the Ministry of Defence of Botswana ordered 45 Piranha 8×8 armoured vehicles made by General Dynamics Switzerland.
Make | Type | Origin | Photo | Quantity. |
SK-105 Kurassier | Tank | 52 | ||
SK105 4K7-FA recovery tank | Tank | 10 | ||
FV101 Scorpion | Light Tank | 60 | ||
FV 103 Spartan | Infantry fighting vehicle | 6 | ||
MOWAG Piranha | Infantry fighting vehicle | 50 | ||
Cadillac Gage Commando | Armoured personnel carrier | 50 | ||
ATMOS 2000 | Howitzer | 16 | ||
BM-21 Grad | Multiple rocket launcher | 20 | ||
BTR-60 | Armoured personnel carrier | 1 50 | ||
Véhicule Blindé Léger | Armoured car | 64 | ||
RAM 2000 | Armoured car | 35 | ||
ACMAT | Armoured car | 150 | ||
RMMV TG MIL range of trucks | Militarised commercial trucks | 200 | ||
Oshkosh M1070 | tank transporter | ? | ||
Soltam M-71 | Howitzer | 18 | ||
MICA | surface-to-air missile | ? | ||
L118 Light Gun | Artillery | 24 | ||
120mm Mortar | Artillery | ? | ||
L16 81mm mortar | Artillery | ? | ||
BGM-71 TOW | Anti-tank missile | ? | ||
MILAN | Anti-tank missile | ? | ||
Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle | recoilless rifle | ? | ||
RPG-7 | Rocket-propelled grenade launcher | ? | ||
Javelin | surface-to-air missile | 5 Launchers | ||
9K38 Igla | surface-to-air missile | ? | ||
M167 VADS | Anti-aircraft Gun | 10 | ||
Type 65 | Anti-aircraft Gun | 10 |
Small arms
River-wing equipment
- 2 × Boston Whaler Raider-class PCs
- 15 × Panther airboats
Citations