AE-headquartered ALBADDAD has launched a US$1.9bn master development in Botswana, 51 residential towers, six commercial complexes, five hotels, partnered with BDC.
June 10, 2026 | Riya Malhotra | UAE | Real Estate
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ALBADDAD Holding, the UAE-headquartered group specialising in modular construction, exhibition infrastructure, and large-scale infrastructure delivery, has announced the launch of New Botswana City, a US$1.9 billion master development spanning 1.24 million square metres in the Botswanan capital Gaborone.
The project was unveiled in the presence of Advocate Duma Gideon Boko, President of the Republic of Botswana, and developed in strategic partnership with Botswana Development Corporation (BDC), the principal investment arm of the Botswanan government. The launch represents one of the largest UAE-led real estate development announcements in an African market to date.
New Botswana City has been structured as a three-phase development comprising the full range of components characteristic of UAE-built master communities. The complete project includes 51 residential towers spread across 17 integrated complexes, 18 buildings across six commercial and office complexes, five international hotels, and an integrated boulevard district featuring retail, restaurants, cafés, entertainment, and service amenities.
At full operational capacity, the development is projected to generate between 25,000 and 37,500 direct and indirect employment opportunities, a scale that positions the project as a significant economic intervention in the Botswanan capital.
The flagship anchor and first phase of the city is the ALBADDAD Botswana Global Exhibition & Convention Centre, a 124,000-square-metre integrated events facility valued at US$292 million. ALBADDAD has positioned the convention centre as among the largest and most advanced venues of its kind in Africa, designed to anchor a year-round calendar of international exhibitions, trade fairs, industry forums, and corporate events.
The structural significance of New Botswana City lies less in the project itself than in what it signals about the international direction of UAE real estate capability.
ALBADDAD was founded in the UAE in 1971 and has grown into a global group operating across more than 50 markets, with a workforce exceeding 7,000 and manufacturing facilities spanning approximately 1.5 million square metres. The company has delivered major UAE infrastructure including COP28 Dubai and GITEX Africa, and operates landmark destinations including the Riyadh Front Exhibition and Convention Center.
For an organisation of that scale, exporting a master-community model into a new African market represents a deliberate strategic move, one that aligns with a broader pattern visible across major UAE developers.
Danube Properties has opened a Knightsbridge London office with planned European expansion. Sobha Realty operates internationally across India, the UK, and Oman. Aldar Properties has acquired commercial assets internationally alongside its Abu Dhabi and Dubai pipeline. The UAE real estate sector is no longer just developing for the UAE, it is increasingly exporting its developer capability into international markets.
The development is being delivered through a public-private partnership between ALBADDAD and BDC, the principal investment arm of the Botswanan government. Oteng Keabetswe, BDC's Managing Director, characterised the project as a model for converting strategic national land assets into participation, economic activity, and measurable value for Botswana, with returns expected to flow through jobs, procurement, skills transfer, tax revenues, tourism receipts, and business activity rather than capital gains alone.
Dr Alfateen Hussein Albaddad, Chairman of ALBADDAD Holding, framed the project as the gateway to Africa's trade future, positioning New Botswana City as a destination intended to attract international capital, support entrepreneurship, and strengthen Botswana's SME ecosystem.
For ALBADDAD, the company will oversee the project through its full lifecycle, master planning, development, construction, and long-term operations, drawing on its international network of exhibitors, event organisers, investors, and corporate partners to activate the convention centre and the wider destination.
For UAE real estate professionals: developers, brokers, infrastructure consultants, FM operators, New Botswana City reinforces a structural reality of the 2026 market. UAE-headquartered groups are no longer just operating within the UAE. The intellectual property, manufacturing capability, and master-developer capacity built up over five decades of UAE real estate development is now itself the product being exported.
For Botswana, the development represents one of the most ambitious mixed-use projects ever undertaken in the country, with implementation phased over multiple years.
Sources: ALBADDAD Holding press release, 8 June 2026, announcing the launch of New Botswana City; statements from Advocate Duma Gideon Boko, President of the Republic of Botswana, Dr Alfateen Hussein Albaddad, Chairman of ALBADDAD Holding, and Oteng Keabetswe, Managing Director of Botswana Development Corporation, via the joint announcement; H.E. Mahash Saeed AlHameli, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to the Republic of South Africa and Non-Resident Ambassador to the Republic of Botswana, attended the groundbreaking ceremony; supporting context on ALBADDAD's wider international footprint via the company's corporate communications, including COP28 Dubai, GITEX Africa, and the Riyadh Front Exhibition and Convention Center; context on UAE developer international expansion referenced from prior REM Times coverage of Danube Properties, Sobha Realty, and Aldar Properties.
