The Ministry of Minerals and Energy in partnership with Debswana, this week convened a mining value chain development workshop, in a move set to accelerate Botswana’s economic transformation.
The workshop brought together key mining companies operating in Botswana, reflecting a united push to unlock the vast potential within the country’s mineral value chains.
The highlight of the gathering was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) by seven companies: Kopano Copper Mine, Debswana Diamond Company, Botswana Chamber of Mines, Morupule Coal Mine, Botswana Railways, Tshukudu Metals and Botswana Ash who seek to boost local manufacturing capacity and strengthen related industries.
The companies have agreed to work together to identify products which are in high demand in the mining sector and to explore opportunities for producing them within Botswana.
They also committed to supporting the growth of local production through procurement initiatives.
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This also seeks to establish a framework for generating and referring investment opportunities in the manufacturing and services sectors, to identify mining-related services and consultancies with potential for development and export, and to support companies ready for enrolment in the Botswana Investment and Trade Centre’s Botswana Exporter Development Programme.
A key component of this collaboration includes developing a national repairs and rebuild ecosystem, along with the necessary training facilities to sustain it.
Speaking at the workshop, minister of Minerals and Energy Bogolo Kenewendo said thriving industries can be built, thousands of jobs created leading to a meaningful economic diversification using the mining sector as a strategic base and anchor for broader industrial development.
“The industry shares a national commitment to building a stronger, more competitive, and more inclusive economy. That is one that captures greater value from the country’s mineral resources and supports long-term industrial success. As a nation we have experienced economic strain whenever the diamond industry faces challenges, making it necessary not only to diversify into other minerals but also to diversify across the value chain and supply chains. Therefore there is a need for the country to move decisively from a model centred solely on extraction to one that champions manufacturing, equipment production, repair and rebuild capabilities, and broader industrial capacity building,” said Kenewendo highlighting that while mining continues to anchor the economy, global trends demand evolution.
Over the years, Botswana has transformed from one of the poorest countries in the world to a middle-income country as a result of the diamond industry.
The industry accounts for over 30 percent of gross domestic product and is the largest employer in the private formal sector.
Nonetheless economic vulnerabilities remains a challenge with the local economy still heavily dependent on a single commodity, insufficiently diversified and pressure on the national fiscus.
