CHAMWE KAIRA
President Duma Boko announced in his 2026 State of the Nation Address on Monday that Botswana has selected the Global Diamond Consortium as its preferred bidder for Anglo American’s 85% interest in De Beers.
According to a social media post by the Botswana Presidency, the transaction is intended to secure greater strategic influence for Botswana in the diamond industry while expanding opportunities for domestic beneficiation and participation across the diamond value chain.
Boko further said Angola and Namibia will participate alongside Botswana in the transaction, marking an important development in regional cooperation among major diamond producing nations.
He said the investment also presents opportunities in advanced technology through De Beers’ Element Six business, which specialises in synthetic diamond technology.
The announcement signals a new chapter in Botswana’s diamond industry, with the government seeking to secure greater value from the country’s natural resources.
The Namibian government has not officially announced its position on the sale of De Beers by Angola American.
De Beers is a 50/50 shareholder with the Namibian government in the Namibia Diamond Trading Company, Debmarine Namibia and Namdeb land operations.
Last month, Independent Patriots for Change Member of Parliament, Rodney Cloete asked the government to explain Namibia’s position on the proposed sale of De Beers and its potential impact on the country’s diamond industry.
Cloete wanted clarity on Namibia’s diamond sales agreement with De Beers, which expired in May, including whether it was renewed and whether Namibia secured a larger share of production.
De Beers chief executive officer, Al Cook recently said that countries with significant diamond industries, including Namibia, Botswana and Angola, were among those interested in taking equity stakes in De Beers alongside industry consortiums and companies with expertise in the sector.
“The good thing about us is that we have had countries that understand diamonds – Namibia, Botswana and Angola, want to take equity stakes in De Beers. We have consortiums and companies that know a lot about diamonds,” he said.
Cook said he envisaged the company’s future ownership as a public-private partnership combining governments and private investors with deep knowledge of both diamond supply and consumer demand.
Local economist, Robin Sherbourne, in a past interview said given that natural diamonds can compete with cheap mass-produced Chinese LGDs for GenZ consumers, he wondered if it would have been better investments that the government could make for N$3 billion like buying out the Iranians and South Africans from Rössing Uranium.
He also wondered where the government was going to get N$3 billion to buy a stake in De Beers.
