Botswana is seeing a gradual recovery in demand for diamonds in strategic consumer markets, such as the United States (U.S.) and China, said Mining Minister Bogolo Joy Kenewendo on Tuesday (23), attributing this trend in part to a global campaign to promote natural diamonds.
Kenewendo stated that the country, where diamonds typically account for about one-third of government revenue, will maintain a supply-control policy to support the global gemstone market, which remains under pressure despite early signs of a recovery in demand.
The global market is facing a prolonged slowdown due to economic uncertainty and the growing popularity of lab-grown diamonds. Last year, the Debswana Diamond Company—a joint venture between the Government of Botswana and De Beers, responsible for about 90% of the country’s diamond sales—temporarily suspended production at some mines.
“We have depleted existing inventories and are now focused on managing production at the mines,” Kenewendo said. “We will continue to act with discipline. We have done so willingly, because the market depends, to a large extent, on a certain level of discipline on our part,” he added.
Sale of De Beers
Anglo American has put De Beers up for sale as part of a broad corporate restructuring, driven by falling diamond prices and the growth of the synthetic diamond market. The move has sparked interest from Botswana, which already holds a 15% stake in the company, as well as from Angola and Namibia.
The Minister of Mines revealed that negotiations are in the “final stage,” but declined to provide further details due to confidentiality clauses associated with the process.
On Monday, Angola’s Minister of Mineral Resources, Petroleum, and Gas, Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, told Reuters that his government intends to secure “a stake that gives it a say in strategic decisions,” adding that there is “complete alignment” with Botswana regarding the sale of De Beers.
Last week, De Beers CEO Al Cook stated that an agreement could be reached in the coming weeks and indicated that the future ownership structure is expected to take the form of a public-private partnership.
Source: Reuters
