After eight years of complex negotiations, Botswana and De Beers Group have finalised a landmark diamond sales agreement, marking a crucial milestone for the southern African nation’s mining sector.
The agreement, signed recently in the capital city of Gaborone, includes provisions for a potential five-year extension to the initial term. President Duma Boko, speaking at the signing ceremony, hailed it as a “good deal” that promises to generate substantial employment opportunities for Botswana’s citizens.
Under the renewed partnership, the state-owned Okavango Diamond Company will secure a 40 percent share of Debswana’s production, revised from an earlier provisional figure of 50 percent. Debswana, a joint venture equally owned by Botswana and De Beers, will see its mining licences extended by 25 years, now running until July 2054. The agreement represents a significant step forward in Botswana’s diamond industry, promising long-term value creation through existing mining assets and future expansion projects.
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