Before you start

Passport and your residence permit, as a non-citizen
A Gaborone address for fixed broadband
An unlocked handset

Step-by-step

1
Register the SIM at an operator's own shop
BOCRA mandates registration but the operators do it. Take your passport and permit to a Mascom, Orange or beMOBILE store — the malls at Riverwalk, Game City and Airport Junction all have them. An identity document must be handed over for the number to be activated.
In personWho: YouDay 1–3
2
Choose a network on coverage where you will actually be
All three networks cover Gaborone well. The differences appear on the roads out to Lobatse, Molepolole and Francistown and in the Delta if you travel. Ask colleagues who make the same journeys you will.
In personWho: You
3
Sort out fixed broadband early
Fixed fibre and fixed-wireless are available across much of Gaborone through the retail providers on the national backbone. Ask the landlord what is already connected to the property, because installation on a house with no existing drop takes weeks.
OnlineWho: You
4
Consider a South African SIM as well if you cross often
Roaming into South Africa is expensive and a cheap prepaid South African SIM is what most frequent cross-border drivers carry. It costs almost nothing and saves an unpleasant bill after a weekend in Johannesburg.
In personWho: You
5
Set up mobile money if you will use it
Mobile money is widely used in Botswana for transfers and bill payment and is tied to your registered SIM. Set it up on the number you intend to keep.
Mobile appWho: You
6
Plan for power interruptions rather than outages
Botswana's electricity supply is more reliable than most of the region, but interruptions happen and Gaborone summer thunderstorms take lines down. A small UPS for the router is cheap insurance rather than a necessity here, which is itself a useful signal about the country.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport
Residence permit
Proof of address, for fixed broadband

Things most newcomers don’t know

Registration is done by the operators, not by the regulator, and going to BOCRA wastes a morning.

BOCRA mandated compulsory SIM registration and enforces it, but explicitly directs the public to register with their communications service provider rather than with the Authority. People arriving from countries where a government agency handles identity registration for SIMs sometimes go looking for a government office. The answer is a Mascom, Orange or beMOBILE shop with your passport and permit.

Source: Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority

A cheap South African prepaid SIM is standard kit for anyone who crosses the border.

The Tlokweng border is fifteen kilometres away and trips to Zeerust, Rustenburg or Johannesburg are routine. Roaming charges from a Botswana network in South Africa add up quickly, and a prepaid South African SIM in the second slot costs almost nothing. Nearly every Gaborone resident who drives across regularly carries one, and newcomers usually work it out after the first bill rather than before.

Source: community-reported

Reliable power is one of the quiet advantages of living here.

Anyone arriving from Lagos, Accra or even parts of South Africa will notice that the electricity mostly stays on. Botswana has had supply problems historically and storms still take lines down, but there is no equivalent of dumsor or load-shedding as a permanent planning constraint. That materially changes remote work: you can treat a fibre connection as a connection rather than as something that depends on a generator.

Source: community-reported

Data costs more than in West Africa, and the trade is consistency.

Botswana's mobile data is priced above Nigerian or Ghanaian levels — a small market with three operators and no price war does not produce cheap bundles. What you get instead is service that behaves the same on Tuesday as on Friday, in a city where coverage is uniform rather than district-by-district. For remote work that predictability is worth more than the price difference, but it is worth knowing before you budget.

Source: community-reported

Common mistakes to avoid

Going to the regulator to register a SIM instead of an operator's shop.
Roaming into South Africa on a Botswana SIM rather than carrying a local prepaid.
Signing a lease without checking whether fibre is already connected to the property.
Choosing a network on Gaborone coverage alone when you will drive to Francistown or Maun.
Assuming West African data prices and under-budgeting for connectivity.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.