Botswana - Gross capital formation (% of GDP)

Gross capital formation (% of GDP) in Botswana was 32.99 as of 2020. Its highest value over the past 60 years was 50.94 in 1972, while its lowest value was 6.02 in 1960.

Definition: Gross capital formation (formerly gross domestic investment) consists of outlays on additions to the fixed assets of the economy plus net changes in the level of inventories. Fixed assets include land improvements (fences, ditches, drains, and so on); plant, machinery, and equipment purchases; and the construction of roads, railways, and the like, including schools, offices, hospitals, private residential dwellings, and commercial and industrial buildings. Inventories are stocks of goods held by firms to meet temporary or unexpected fluctuations in production or sales, and "work in progress." According to the 1993 SNA, net acquisitions of valuables are also considered capital formation.

Source: World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files.

See also:

Year Value
1960 6.02
1961 7.40
1962 8.80
1963 9.81
1964 12.28
1965 13.26
1966 21.82
1967 25.45
1968 30.74
1969 38.25
1970 45.32
1971 50.44
1972 50.94
1973 50.90
1974 47.87
1975 41.90
1976 33.77
1977 33.46
1978 36.36
1979 37.22
1980 40.05
1981 43.41
1982 37.66
1983 29.39
1984 29.44
1985 22.99
1986 21.49
1987 15.50
1988 23.58
1989 36.11
1990 37.37
1991 33.21
1992 30.42
1993 28.78
1994 25.98
1995 27.13
1996 23.44
1997 24.05
1998 37.94
1999 25.63
2000 29.55
2001 29.89
2002 30.19
2003 30.14
2004 34.99
2005 27.18
2006 28.54
2007 29.58
2008 41.68
2009 30.83
2010 38.05
2011 35.45
2012 38.08
2013 29.41
2014 24.96
2015 29.07
2016 22.07
2017 23.83
2018 27.32
2019 29.83
2020 32.99

Limitations and Exceptions: Because policymakers have tended to focus on fostering the growth of output, and because data on production are easier to collect than data on spending, many countries generate their primary estimate of GDP using the production approach. Moreover, many countries do not estimate all the components of national expenditures but instead derive some of the main aggregates indirectly using GDP (based on the production approach) as the control total. Data on capital formation may be estimated from direct surveys of enterprises and administrative records or based on the commodity flow method using data from production, trade, and construction activities. The quality of data on government fixed capital formation depends on the quality of government accounting systems (which tend to be weak in developing countries). Measures of fixed capital formation by households and corporations - particularly capital outlays by small, unincorporated enterprises - are usually unreliable. Estimates of changes in inventories are rarely complete but usually include the most important activities or commodities. In some countries these estimates are derived as a composite residual along with household final consumption expenditure. According to national accounts conventions, adjustments should be made for appreciation of the value of inventory holdings due to price changes, but this is not always done. In highly inflationary economies this element can be substantial.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Gross domestic product (GDP) from the expenditure side is made up of household final consumption expenditure, general government final consumption expenditure, gross capital formation (private and public investment in fixed assets, changes in inventories, and net acquisitions of valuables), and net exports (exports minus imports) of goods and services. Such expenditures are recorded in purchaser prices and include net taxes on products.

Aggregation method: Weighted average

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt Indicators

Sub-Topic: National accounts