MAUN — A record year at Chobe Holdings Limited is translating directly into value for Batswana, with the Botswana Stock Exchange–listed eco-tourism group directing the overwhelming majority of the wealth it created in the year to 28 February 2026 to its own people, the government and reinvestment at home
The group generated P513 million in value over the year, up from P419 million — and more than 90 thebe in every pula of it stayed and worked in Botswana. Employees took the largest share at 29 percent, the government received 26 percent, and a further 35 percent was reinvested in growing the business.
Only 10 percent was paid out to shareholders — and because Chobe is listed on the Botswana Stock Exchange, even those returns are shared with ordinary Batswana.
“Our listing on the Botswana Stock Exchange means that everyone has the opportunity to own a piece of one of their country’s most enduring and successful industries,” Board Chairperson Myra Sekgororoane said, describing a stake in the group as “an act of economic citizenship” open to every Motswana who chooses to participate.
Backing the people behind the business
Chobe put more than P168 million into the wages, salaries and benefits of its largely Batswana workforce during the year — with P149.5 million of the value it created, or 29 percent, going straight to employees. Management described this as a deliberate commitment to competitive pay in a tight market for skilled guides and hospitality professionals. Every qualifying employee also shares the company’s success through a bonus scheme tied to the dividends on three million shares.
That people-first culture runs deep. Managing Director Lempheditse Odumetse, who began his career as a waiter at Camp Moremi in 1999, now Group MD — a journey the report holds up as proof that Batswana can rise to the very top of the industry.
“These results belong to the Batswana who wake before dawn in our camps and give their best to every guest,” said Odumetse. “Having started with this company as a waiter, I know first-hand that when we invest in our people and the communities around our concessions, we are investing in the long-term strength of the business. That is the Chobe we are building — profitable, proudly Botswana, and rooted in the places we call home.”
A major contributor to the national purse
The group is also a significant contributor to the country’s development. In the past year it paid P129 million to government in taxes, PAYE, resource royalties and licence fees, and collected and remitted a further P69.3 million in Value Added Tax — close to P200 million flowing to the national treasury to help fund public services. As a home-grown, home-listed company, those contributions stay in Botswana rather than leaving with a foreign parent.
Record results power the returns
Underpinning this shared value was the group’s strongest financial performance yet. Revenue rose 12 percent to P714 million, operating profit climbed 21 percent to P240 million, and net profit grew 24 percent to P172 million. Earnings per share increased 25 percent to 195 thebe, and the group’s cash position strengthened from P46 million to P110 million. Onthe back of the result, directors declared a net dividend of 70 thebe per share — up 17 percent — while net assets rose to P655 million.
Growing a Botswana champion
The year also saw the Botswana-headquartered group extend its reach, opening King Lewanika Lodge in Zambia’s Liuwa Plain National Park and the new Maxa Lodge in the Okavango Delta, and securing a concession to build Musesenji Camp in Zambia’s Lower Zambezi, due to open in 2027. Now operating sixteen lodges and camps across three countries, Chobe remains proudly listed at home on the Botswana Stock Exchange.
Giving back to communities
Through its social-investment arm, Chobe Impact, the group committed more than P9 million to community programmes during the year — over P7 million of it disbursed — supporting ten schools, refurbishing Maun’s Nhabe Museum and funding vocational scholarships that have trained 20 young people, 15 of whom now work for Chobe. The group also expanded its use of solar energy across its lodges.
Looking ahead
With advance bookings for the 2027 financial year already exceeding P92 million, management said it enters the new year with strong momentum — and with the same conviction that the rewards of Botswana’s wilderness should be felt first by Batswana.
Chobe Holdings operates under the Desert & Delta Safaris, Ker & Downey (Botswana and Zambia) and Chobe Game Lodge brands, plus the Sedia Hotel in Maun and its own Safari Air charter fleet
