GABORONE
\nBotswana\u2019s former president Festus Mogae, who led the southern African country for a decade from 1998, winning praise for the fight against HIV\/AIDS, has died at the age of 86, the presidency said on Friday.
\nAn economist who studied in Britain, he oversaw strong economic growth during his two five-year terms in office.
\n\u201cAs a nation, we grieve the loss of a remarkable leader and servant of the people whose commitment to Botswana remained unwavering throughout his life,\u201d current President Duma Boko said.
\nThe government declared three days of national mourning, with flags to be flown at half-mast.
\nMogae came to power as the country\u2019s third president after Ketumile Masire stepped down, having previously served as his vice president.
\nHe was succeeded by Ian Khama in 2008, a former military chief and son of Botswana\u2019s first president.
\nMogae is credited with tackling HIV\/AIDS openly at a time when Botswana faced one of the world\u2019s highest infection rates.
\nIn 2008, he won the prestigious Ibrahim Prize for his leadership in sustaining the country\u2019s stability and prosperity during the crisis.
\nAfter leaving office, he chaired the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission, playing a key role in overseeing South Sudan\u2019s peace process.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
GABORONE Botswana\u2019s former president Festus Mogae, who led the southern African country for a decade from 1998, winning praise for the fight against HIV\/AIDS, has died at the age of 86, the presidency said on Friday. An economist who studied in Britain, he oversaw strong economic growth during his two five-year terms in office. \u201cAs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":545453,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-545430","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n