Botswana There was a strong feeling that civil society organizations in the country have become more of ‘government NGOs’ since most of them are now funded by the Botswana government. This is a new phenomenon, which started in earnest in 1994 and after the country was declared a middle-income country and NGO- funders left the country in large numbers. It was concluded that public funding should not be synonymous with government funding and that civil society is entitled to public funding like everyone else and has every right to expect it from the government. SCORES: Individual scores: 3, 2, 3, 2, 2, 3, 2, 2, 3, 2 Average score: 2.4 Overall score for sector 1: 2.2 African Media Barometer - Botswana 2005 11