This paper discusses the role of social welfare regime in reducing poverty in Botswana. It begins by examining the evolution of social protection from precolonial era to the present day Botswana. The paper demonstrates that social protection schemes have always been part and parcel of Batswana economic and social structure. The analysis further unravels the relationship between a country’s social policy, development strategy and poverty. Here, a review is made of national strategies and policies that are aimed at eradicating poverty. To throw light on the role of social protection and poverty reduction the paper provides a comprehensive description of social protection schemes currently implemented in the country. Social provisions that enhance entry, exit and retention of labor force such as the Workman’s Compensation, Maternity Benefits and Health Insurance Scheme are also discussed. The developmental role of these schemes is briefly highlighted. The paper then describes succinctly how these programs contribute to poverty alleviation and management of idiosyncratic and covariate shocks and risks. The paper further demonstrates whether the welfare regime lean towards universalism or targeting. An analysis is then made using the Household Income Expenditure Survey (HIES) on whether all the poor are targeted by social protection schemes.