Negotiations over the mining and sale of Botswana diamonds between the Botswana Government and De Beers Diamond Company are expected to be completed by end of June this year, four years after they commenced.
Minerals and Energy Minister, Lefoko Moagi, says the teams working on the negotiations have been instructed by both shareholders to work harder to resolve outstanding issues.
“We look forward to progressing the remaining issues by end of June 2023. The target for both parties is to conclude the negotiations before the end of the extension of the Sales Agreement which expires on 30 June 2023,” Moagi said when responding to a question by MP for Maun West Dumelang Saleshando on Monday.
The legislator had wanted Moagi to provide an update on the negotiations and when they are expected to be complete.
Moagi said the delay in completion of the negotiations was due to the complexity and commercial nature of the issues being discussed.
Last Thursday President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi stated that the time has come for Batswana to demand a larger stake in the marketing and profits of their diamonds saying the old arrangement was due to the country’s state of developments at the time when the deal started.
He said Botswana has developed relevant skills in the diamond mining sector over the years and therefore can independently traverse the terrain.
“Besides the fact that the diamonds are ours, it does not make sense for us to continue to relegate ourselves to participating in the rough stones space only. It is very small relative to the size of business in the value added – it is only logical,” said the President.
He added that during the previous negotiations in 2011, the government was able to get a 10 percent of the diamonds to be sold to a government owned company, the arrangement which gave them a full understanding of the diamond industry leading to a 25 percent stake that ended in 2019.
“I have instructed our team that we are going to get more. The fact of the matter is that the sales agreement ended in 2019, it has ended. We extended it, but because we have learned some new things and we want more for the Botswana Government for the allocation of rough diamonds. We have learned a lot and can make much more money than selling rough diamonds, independently. We know what we are talking about,” he said.
The President said the nation should rest assured that the negotiations will produce a fair deal for the country.
