Mantashe leads ‘diamond’ mission to Botswana
Diamond production was at the top of the agenda when Gwede Mantashe, SA Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, recently met in Gaborone with his Botswanan counterpart, Bogolo Kemewendo.
The ministers discussed regional collaboration on value addition initiatives, including the critical need for infrastructure development in the diamond sector.
After Russia, Botswana is the second largest diamond producer in the world.
The high-level mission is part of a drive to encourage Botswana to join the African Diamond Producers Association (ADPA). In doing so Botswana demonstrates its commitment to presenting a united African front in diamond production and beneficiation.
The Association has the following objectives:
- Cooperation between member countries in policies and strategies concerning prospecting, mining, production, cutting and polishing, as well as development of human resources and acquisition of technologies in the diamondiferous sector.
- Adoption of harmonised legal solutions and the exchange of information between member countries in areas related to mining and commercialisation in which individual states have acquired valuable experience.
- Promotion of mutual technical assistance in the coordination of policies and strategies of development of the diamondiferous sector.
- Transformation of conflict diamonds into diamonds of peace and sustainable development.
Mantashe’s visit included a tour of the Diamond Trading Company (DTC) – a prestigious diamond sorting and valuation facility under the auspices of Debswana, a joint venture between the Botswanan government and the De Beers Group.
