Biodiversity, water conservation, equity: Debswana and sustainability
Mbongeni Mguni | Tuesday June 17, 2025 13:29
Debswana’s tagline “Mining Diamonds, Enriching the Nation,” belies the fact that the company takes great care to ensure that this effort is carried out in the most ethical and sustainable way possible, through the efforts of a diversified and empowered workforce.
Under the company’s Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy, which falls within Debswana’s Building Forever sustainability framework, several initiatives are taking place to ensure that operations contribute positively to communities and uphold strong corporate governance standards.
Botswana is a semi-arid country and Debswana’s operations are located in some of the drier areas, with sensitive natural ecosystems and high inter-dependence between species. While other corporates strive to meet the most basic of the country’s biodiversity regulations, Debswana goes a step further and is actively involved in fostering the growth of the country’s fauna and flora, both near and beyond its operations.
A little known-fact is that for every hectare of land used for mining, Debswana has committed six hectares (14.8 acres) to conservation.
“Our commitment to biodiversity is evident through our investments in game parks at Orapa and Jwaneng, which serve as sanctuaries for wildlife and hubs for education, research, and community engagement,” said Mompoloki Pitlagano, Senior Manager - Environment, Social and Governance at Debswana. “These parks support a diverse range of species and contribute to ecological research and conservation efforts. “Additionally, Debswana is ISO14001:2015 Environmental Management System certified, where impacts are identified, mitigation measures are identified and implemented.”
Established in 1985, Orapa Game Park covers 9,000 hectares, providing a safe haven for 58 mammal species, including giraffes and zebras, alongside 86 reptile and 300 bird species.
On the other hand, Jwana Game Park, spanning 19,085 hectares, was founded in 1987 and shelters 23 mammal species, including cheetahs and white rhinos, with an additional 117 bird species thriving within its ecosystem.
“By managing these parks, Debswana demonstrates its commitment to environmental conservation ensuring that while mining extracts resources, it also protects and nurtures Botswana’s wildlife for future generations,” Pitlagano explained.
But why would a major corporation like Debswana bother itself with biodiversity initiatives which are far distant from its core mandate of mining.
“Debswana recognizes that its mining operations are deeply connected to Botswana’s environment and natural heritage. “The company is committed to responsible mining practices that minimize its impact on biodiversity. “The company acknowledges the importance of safeguarding the country’s rich biodiversity, including its iconic wildlife and fragile habitats,” explained Pitlagano.
The areas where Debswana conducts its operations are also far removed from major dams and established distribution systems. Mining operations generally use large amounts of water and under its ESG initiatives, the company is making several efforts to reduce its consumption, with a target of reducing freshwater withdrawal by 30% by 2030.
“Water conservation is another critical focus, especially in water-scarce Botswana,” explained Pitlagano. “The freshwater reduction started with a comprehensive water modelling of the respective operations to determine the relevant efforts required to achieve the set goal in each context. “The projects explore various opportunities of recycling and reusing water and some of the projects include Stormwater management infrastructure, Evaporative covers and dry fines project which is expected to contribute most water savings.”
Another key aspect of the ESG strategy involves the best practice Debswana applies as a corporate citizen in the area of employment, specifically in applying the principles of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).
Debswana plays a significant role in Botswana's economy, particularly in job creation and economic empowerment. The diamond company is one of the largest private sector employers in Botswana, with a workforce of approximately 5,000 employees and 6,000 contractors.
The principles and policies Debswana applies in employment therefore reverberate across the country and are taken as best practice by other corporates.
Under the DEI strategy, Debswana has a vision to become a diverse, equitable and inclusive organisation that delivers excellent results and supports psychological safety and belonging of all employees to achieve their full potential.
To this end the organisation pursues six diversity dimensions spanning the primary elements of gender, age, family status, physical/mental ability, sexual orientation, and religion/race/ethnicity.
“As part of this strategy Debswana is committed to availing opportunities for differently abled individuals to find a home across all the company’s operations. “Management’s target is to achieve a 4.5% representation of differently abled persons across the various differently abled categories by 2028. “Positive progress continues to be recorded towards the delivery of this aspiration, and the organisation continues to invest in the modification of existing built infrastructure and the acquisition of relevant assistive technology to reasonably accommodate our differently abled employees in order to drive true inclusion,” Pitlagano said. The number of differently abled persons within Debswana has therefore significantly increased from 29 at the end of 2022 to 116 to date where differently abled employees occupy roles across the different levels of work in the company i.e from frontline to executive level and across the various disciplines.
Outside of its own workforce, Debswana is also hard at work driving citizen empowerment throughout its ecosystem. One of Debswana’s key initiatives is the Citizen Economic Empowerment Programme (CEEP), which aims to increase citizen inclusion within its supply chain.
The programme has already disbursed P15.9 billion to citizen companies and is projected to created approximately 20,000 jobs in five years.
Beyond mining, Debswana is investing in alternative industries such as agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism, fostering entrepreneurship and supporting Small, Micro, and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) to create jobs and build a more resilient economy.