21 Jul 2019

Former President, Dr Festus Mogae has said through diamonds Botswana stood transformed from being the poorest to being among the upper middle income countries. Giving a keynote address at a Gala dinner commemorating Debswana Diamond Company 50th Anniversary held at Galaxy Stadium, Dr Mogae appreciated sound leadership and dedication which had been the hallmarks for Debswana’s success in the past, “My comfort most of all lies in the fact that through one of your company values, you pledge to shape the future, which we all desire,” he said. 

He said as a result of this, people would continue to expect sound business acumen and global competiveness from Debswana to accelerate growth to ‘our’ desired state of being a high income country in 2036. 

He noted that the discovery of Diamonds in Orapa was synonymous with the country’s entire developmental path and that mining of Jwaneng kimberlite since 1982 had added an impetus to government’s drive to offer free access to health, free education and water reticulation to the people among other notable developments. 

Dr Mogae said it was by design and not coincidence that Debswana was created to be a vehicle through which the nation mine diamonds, which in turn contributed immensely to national economic development.

 “As a country we remain proud that our efforts have not been in vain. Today Debswana is a beacon of what Botswana is capable of in the global scheme of things,” he said. 

Regarding  some of Debswana’s milestones, he noted that  since Jwaneng Mine became fully operational in 1982, it was so far the richest diamond mine in the world by value, from being a small operation that was managed by expatriate skill some 37 years ago. 

He noted the mine had evolved tremendously and now employed 6 000 people of whom 99 per cent are citizens, a reason enough to celebrate. “A sizeable bulk of Jwaneng Mine supply chain portfolio goes to citizen companies as demonstrated by the P800 million spent on procuring their services in 2019 alone,” he said. 

On production, he shared that the mine had become Debswana’s flagship operation, contributing about 60-70 per cent of Debswana’s total revenue.

 Dr Mogae however emphasised that celebration could not be done, unless production was backed by good safety, adding he was proud that the mine had achieved a comparative scale of the lowest disability rates in the mining industry. 

He said through the company, Botswana had managed not only to compete, but to outshine some of the world’s leading producers of diamonds.

 He shared that, in celebrating the golden jubilee, it was also a reason to pause and reminisce upon the developmental trajectory of the country. 

“In 2006 I personally led the diamonds for development campaign, where I emphasised that our deliberate strategy was to upgrade and manage the mining activities of free market principles, with significant public ownership,” he said. 

Dr Mogae said, the campaign was successful as it demonstrated to global partners that Botswana diamonds were for development. “For our people, every diamond purchase represents food on the table, better living conditions, better healthcare, portable and safe drinking water and more roads to connect to our remote communities,” he said.

 He recalled that his tenure as Presidency; 1998-2008 coincided with the scourge of HIV/AIDS, where government devised several multifaceted ways of overcoming HIV/AIDS, adding that, it simultaneously looked up to Debswana Diamond Company to generate more revenue so that the country could afford medication and other preventative means of containing the scourge. 

“One of the highlights during this era was the decision taken by Debswana in may 2001 to cover total anti-retroviral therapy for free to its employees, their spouses and children up to the age of 21,” he said. 

He further shared that, in the mining industry globally, the 2011 sales agreement with Debeers remained one of the most successful private partnership model ever seen, as in that year the government made a resolute call, in consultation with Debeers to transfer all London based diamond trading activities

 In terms of sustaining the future, Mr Mogae appreciated the recognizable investment and strides which Jwaneng Mine made as a way of stimulating the local economy to sustain for the present and future. 

In his welcome remarks, Jwaneng Mine general manager Koolatotse Koolatotse made an appreciation of the foresight that, Mr Mogae and his predecessors had in realizing that for diamonds to have a meaningful impact on Batswana, a non-discriminatory programme ought to be in place for all citizens to be empowered and trained in various technical fields of mining. 

He made an assurance that, they would not disappoint and would continue to make the country proud by continuing to contribute to the national treasury and making Debswana to be in the top quartile of the mining companies in the world. ENDS