Is Botswana Getting A Raw Deal From De Beers Diamonds - The World News [repack] «Deluxe»

For decades, the sparkling relationship between the arid nation of Botswana and the diamond giant De Beers has been hailed as the "perfect marriage." Diamonds built Botswana’s middle class, funded its free education, and transformed it from one of the poorest countries on Earth into Africa’s most stable, upper-middle-income economy.

Botswana and De Beers have a long-running, high-stakes partnership: Debswana, the 50:50 joint venture, has powered much of Botswana’s post‑independence prosperity by mining and marketing the country’s gem‑quality diamonds. Recently that relationship and the structure of diamond sales have come under scrutiny as market shocks (lab‑grown diamonds, tariffs, weaker demand) and renegotiated sales arrangements change who captures value.

If Botswana's finances are strained, De Beers itself is bleeding. The parent company posted an underlying EBITDA loss of $511 million in 2025, driven by weak Chinese demand, competition from lab-grown diamonds, and softening global prices. Even before that, in the first half of 2025 alone, De Beers saw its revenue drop 13% to $1.95 billion as a slump in the crucial Chinese market eroded demand. For a company that has historically dictated the market's terms, this financial distress is a humbling turn.

This public link is valid for 7 days and shares a thread, including any personal information you added. This link or copies made by others cannot be deleted. If you share with third parties, their policies apply. Can’t copy the link right now. Try again later. For decades, the sparkling relationship between the arid

To understand the current friction, one must look at the current sales agreement, set to expire soon. The prevailing myth is that Botswana (through its state-owned entity, Okavango Diamond Company) and De Beers are equal partners—a 50/50 joint venture known as Debswana.

Diamonds undergo an exponential value surge after they leave Botswana as rough stones. Once cut, polished, and set into luxury jewelry in New York, Antwerp, or Shanghai, their retail value skyrockets.

De Beers argues the partnership remains "the most successful resource-based partnership in history." A spokesperson in London told The World News : "Botswana has received over $6 billion in dividends and royalties. We have built hospitals, roads, and a diamond hub in Gaborone. The idea of a raw deal is simply not factual." If Botswana's finances are strained, De Beers itself

For decades, the partnership between the Government of Botswana and De Beers Group was hailed as the world’s most successful public-private partnership. Founded via the 50-50 joint venture , the arrangement successfully lifted Botswana into an upper-middle-income nation.

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More significantly, the has explicitly warned Botswana against increasing its stake in De Beers. The IMF points to Botswana's precarious fiscal position—a projected budget deficit of 11% of GDP, rising public debt, and an economy already dangerously over-dependent on a single, declining industry. The argument is simple: taking on billions in debt to buy a majority share of a struggling diamond company in a shrinking market is a gamble the country cannot afford. For a company that has historically dictated the

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.

Introduction Botswana’s transformation from one of the world’s poorest countries at independence in 1966 to a middle-income African state is widely credited to diamond revenues. Discovered in the late 1960s, diamonds became the engine of Botswana’s economy through a partnership with De Beers, the dominant global diamond company for much of the 20th century. That relationship—centered on the Debswana joint venture (50/50 ownership between the Botswana government and De Beers)—has produced sustained government revenues, infrastructure development, and macroeconomic stability. Yet critics argue Botswana has not captured the full value of its natural resource wealth and continues to receive an unfair share relative to global diamond profits. This essay assesses whether Botswana is “getting a raw deal” from De Beers by examining the historical arrangement, revenue flows, governance and policy choices, value capture beyond mining, market structure and bargaining power, recent contractual changes, and alternative measures of fairness.

Following years of arguing they received a raw deal, Botswana is leveraging a landmark 2025 sales agreement to pursue majority control of De Beers amidst Anglo American's restructuring. As of April 2026, the government is seeking to acquire an 85% stake to transition from a junior partner to controlling owner of the diamond giant. For more details, visit Bloomberg .

At the heart of this success story is Debswana, a 50/50 joint venture between the Government of the Republic of Botswana and De Beers. For years, the operational model was straightforward: Debswana mined the stones, and they were funneled into De Beers’ global sightholder system, largely processed in London.

The agreement mandates further investment in local downstream capabilities, ensuring more cutting, polishing, and tech-driven diamond services are anchored locally in Gaborone. The Risks: Did Botswana Push Too Hard?