De Beers upbeat on Botswana diamond pact after meeting new president
De Beers' CEO said he expected negotiations on a new diamond sales pact with Botswana's government to be wrapped up within weeks.
Malawi launched a $20 million project last week to start exploration for rare earth metals and natural gas in the southern part of the country, reports the African Press Agency.
The government expects the project to help the local economy through increased foreign exchange and other revenues.
With the extraction of rare earths and natural gas, the country forecasts its gross domestic product to jump by 10% to 20% by 2015.
An Australian company was granted the exploration licence.
