Drilling in ‘paradise’: environmental governance, local communities and oil exploration in the Okavango Delta, Botswana

Abstract Oil exploration in ecologically sensitive landscapes presents significant environmental governance challenges, particularly where extractive development intersects with wetland conservation and community livelihoods. This study examines how international, regional, and national policy and legislative frameworks regulate oil exploration in the Okavango Delta, Botswana, using a qualitative desk-based review of legal, policy, and documentary sources. The findings indicate that Botswana has a comprehensive but fragmented environmental governance framework in which international and regional instruments establish conservation principles and promote transboundary cooperation but depend largely on domestic implementation. National legislation focuses on licensing, environmental impact assessment, and mitigation measures rather than prohibiting exploration in ecologically sensitive areas, while ecosystem-specific policies and wildlife legislation enhance environmental protection through institutional coordination, enforcement, and community participation. The study concludes that the existing governance framework regulates, rather than prevents, petroleum exploration in environmentally sensitive landscapes and recommends strengthening legal safeguards, institutional coordination, and public participation to better balance petroleum development with environmental conservation.