Abstract
The study aimed to determine whether the establishment of the Commission of Mediation and Arbitration under the Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2025 reflects the Government's political commitment to enhancing an effective and accessible labour dispute resolution system in Botswana. It commenced by examining the nexus between labour disputes and conflict, followed by an exploration of the concepts of labour dispute resolution and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). To position the study within the broader scholarly context, a comprehensive literature review was undertaken, tracing the historical development of Botswana's dispute resolution framework from independence to the present. Adopting a qualitative exploratory approach within an interpretivist phenomenological paradigm, the research collected data through virtual semi-structured interviews with fifteen purposively selected participants from Botswana and the wider SADC region. The findings Issue 2/2026 625 underscore the imperative for Government to demonstrate genuine political will in ensuring the establishment of a credible, efficient, and sustainable labour dispute resolution system under the new legislative framework.