Education in Botswana is free for the first 10 years, which completes the cycle through middle school. The first 7 years of this are at primary school, where the pupil-teacher ratio is approximately 13 to 1.The medium of education is Setswana for the 1st 4 years, thereafter English.
The Ministry of Health in Botswana is responsible for overseeing the quality and distribution of healthcare throughout the country. Life expectancy at birth was 55 in 2009 according to the World Bank, having previously fallen from a peak of 64.1 in 1990 to a low of 49 in 2002.
Botswana is semi-arid, due to the short rain season. However, the relatively high altitude of the country and its continental situation gives it a subtropical climate.