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Is Botswana Getting A Raw Deal From De Beers Diamonds - The World News |top| Link
While the government has touted the deal as a positive step towards "long-term prosperity" and job creation, critics were quick to note that the final agreement fell short of the provisional 50% share that had been discussed in 2023. For a country that supplies an estimated 70% of De Beers’ rough diamonds but owns only 15% of the company itself, the new arrangement is seen by many as too little, too late.
To gauge if Botswana is getting a raw deal, one must look at the historical trajectory. In 1967, when the Orapa pipe was found, Botswana had 12 kilometers of paved road. Sir Seretse Khama, the founding president, made a prescient deal with Harry Oppenheimer. He accepted a lower immediate royalty in exchange for the "reserved right" to buy into the asset later. While the government has touted the deal as
After years of threatening to walk away, former President Mokgweetsi Masisi and new President Duma Boko helped solidify a new agreement (finalized February 25, 2025) designed to address these concerns. In 1967, when the Orapa pipe was found,
De Beers, founded by Cecil Rhodes in 1888, has been a major player in the diamond industry for over a century. The company's dominance in the industry has been well-documented, and its influence extends far beyond Botswana. In the 1960s, De Beers began exploring for diamonds in Botswana, and in 1971, the company discovered the Orapa diamond mine, which would become one of the largest diamond mines in the world. After years of threatening to walk away, former
The claim that is getting a "raw deal" from De Beers has been a central theme in recent high-stakes negotiations, driven by the country's desire to capture more value from its natural resources
The Okavango Diamond Company’s allocation of rough diamonds instantly jumped from 25% to 30%, with a contractual trajectory to scale up to 50% over the next decade . This effectively gives Botswana a massive, independent commercial footprint in the global diamond market.
