Diamond independence and carat control :: Mmegi Online

From 2004 when President Festus Mogae threatened to eject Nicky Oppenheimer’s diamond empire from Botswana, to President Mokgweetsi Masisi’s high-stakes standoff with De Beers in 2024, and now to President Duma Boko’s ambitions to take over the diamond giant, Botswana has longed for greater control of its single most important asset. TIMOTHY LEWANIKA writes

De Beers and Botswana are often lauded “Siamese twins”, double bodies that have mirrored each other from the yesteryears of their matrimony in 1969. Along the path like any marriage, the duo has had spats of their own, with Botswana consistently spewing one demand and desire: more control of the diamond value chain.

A peep into the annals of history shows that the country is still on a trek for a different form of freedom, diamond independence. As this article is being penned, global diamond De Beers is up for sale with the current majority shareholder, Anglo America, eying an exit. Bidders have thrown their horses into the race and Botswana wants to seize this opportunity to gain diamond independence.

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