Botswana Aims Polishing to Rival Key Centers

Polishing in Botswana is underway for the first time and the country aims to be “no less” than Antwerp, Jerusalem and Mumbai, in regards to diamond cutting and manufacturing, according to Botswana President Festus Mogae.

In an interview with Mining Weekly, Mogae said that 16 cutting and polishing facilities had been licensed in Botswana, and that six of them are already operational. The remaining ten will be operational in the next three years.

The president was arguing it seems, not for cutting and polishing firms to move their operations to Botswana, but rather to include Botswana as one of their manufacturing centers. “What we’re saying is that, since they have facilities in New York, London, Antwerp, Mumbai, Thailand and so on, they should also have facilities here,” he said.

At the same time, he also expressed support for the sustenance of the international diamond industry. “We work within the rules of the international community, that’s why we are co-founders of the so-called Kimberley Process,” he concluded.

In a few months, De Beers’ DTC will start supplying local manufacturers with rough diamonds to help jump start the country’s polishing industry.