De Beers upbeat on Botswana diamond pact after meeting new president

Botswana’s new President Duma Boko has criticized his predecessor’s handling of the negotiations with De Beers, saying the relationship could have been damaged and the company had considered walking away.

“Both sides are very confident that we will reach alignment on those agreements very shortly. The teams are actively negotiating,” De Beers CEO Al Cook said in a video clip posted on Facebook by Botswana’s presidency.

“We see negotiations concluding in days and weeks, not months and years,” Cook added.

Boko won last month’s election by a landslide, defeating the party that had ruled the southern African country for nearly six decades.

Former president Mokgweetsi Masisi touted the merits of the deal his administration agreed with De Beers last year, under which Botswana’s share of diamonds from its Debswana joint venture with the company would gradually increase over the next decade.

Cook said the spirit of the meeting with Boko was one of “renewed energy”.

“What we agreed is that the world’s leading diamond country, the Republic of Botswana, and the world’s leading diamond company, De Beers, will stand shoulder-to-shoulder in marketing and creating desire for natural diamonds,” he said.

Separately on Thursday, Boko picked former minister of trade and industry Bogolo Joy Kenewendo as minister of minerals and energy in his new cabinet.

Botswana’s economy is still largely dependent on the export of diamonds, and a downturn in the global diamond market means economic growth is projected to slow sharply this year.

Mounting economic grievances, particularly among young people, were a key reason behind Boko’s election win, analysts say.

(By Brian Benza and Tannur Anders; Editing by Alexander Winning and Sharon Singleton)