Botswana: Why Is Botswana Rethinking Its Deal With De Beers?

Christened ‘Debswana’, its 50-year-old mining pact with de Beers is showing signs of strain – for some rather unexpected reasons.

When on 12 February this year, President Mokgweetsi Masisi announced at a political rally of his of ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) supporters that he was “shaking a giant” and “these are our diamonds, and we want a larger share for us”, it brought into the open the tensions between the government and De Beers, the multinational conglomerate and largest miner in…