Status of Air Pollution in Botswana and Significance to Air Quality and Human Health

Abstract

Background.Air pollution is an important issue in developed and industrialized countries. The most common sources of air pollution are anthropogenic activities such as construction dust, vehicular emissions and mining. For low- and middle-income countries, biomass burning and indoor heating are the leading sources of air pollution. As more of the world undergoes development and human populations increase, industrialization is also increasing, along with the potential for air pollution.Objectives.This article reviews the status of air pollution to raise awareness of air quality and human health in Botswana.Discussion.Since independence, Botswana has experienced one of the highest economic development growth rates in the world. These changes have occurred as a result of economic growth and resource utilization associated with increased industrialization. However, there is growing worldwide concern about the effect and impact of pollution due to industrial growth. Botswana is ranked amongst the most polluted countries with serious air pollution, despite a population of just over 2 million.Conclusions.Rapid development and increased urbanization have had a major environmental impact around the world. This increased growth has the potential to lead to air quality degradation. Significant health threats are posed by industrial and vehicular emissions, especially in urban and peri-urban areas where the population is most concentrated. It is important that the linkage between air pollution and health effects is fully examined across all scales of life, especially in developing countries. In addition, programs should be devised to educate the public about the pollution impacts on health.

Indoor air quality in day-care centres: a global review

“…It is worth mentioning that several studies in other environments, such as residential homes, bakeries and school buildings, have been conducted in Africa (Jafta et al 2017 ). Highlights of the studies are documented in Table S1 , including Uganda (villages) (Nakora et al 2020 ), Malawi (households) (Rylance et al 2019 ), Côte d’Ivoire (homes) (Kouao et al 2019 ), Ethiopia (homes) (Downward et al 2018 ), South Africa (homes) (Jafta et al 2017 ), Botswana (national review) (Wiston 2017 ), Kenya (homes) (Yip et al 2017 ), Nigeria (homes) (Mbanya and Sridhar 2017 ), Nepal, Kenya and Sudan (homes) (Bikram et al 2011 ). In comparison with Nigerian studies, a study carried out in six villages in Uganda showed that PM exceeded the WHO limit (Nakora et al 2020 ), and CO was above the threshold in forty-five households in Kenya (Yip et al 2017 ) and Uganda (Nakora et al 2020 ).…”

Association between Air Pollution and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Developing Countries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Some published meta-analyses have shown positive association between air pollution exposure and T2DM [24][25][26][27][28] . The major sources of air pollutants are vehicular exhaust and construction activities in developed countries and continuous burning activities in developing countries [1,57] . The quantity of ground testing of PM2.5 also varies between developed and developing countries [29] .…”

Relationship of Knowledge on Respiratory Disorders with Lung Function in Masons in East Surabaya

“…Masons have a very high risk of being exposed to air pollution [3,4]. According to research data in 2010, more than 50% of masons are regularly exposed to air pollution such as steam, gas, dust, or smoke in the workplace [5].…”