Africa-Press – Botswana. The new diamond sales and mining licence agreement between government and De Beers will contribute towards attaining Botswana’s Vision 2036 aspirations of sustainable economic development through a knowledge-based economy.
Addressing a kgotla meeting in Sese on July 5, the President, Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi, said unlike the old contract, the key areas of the new agreement positioned Botswana as the second-highest diamond producer by volume and the highest producer by value in the world. He said the amount of diamonds sold through the Okavango Diamond Company had increased from 10 to 30 per cent, with provision for a gradual increase until 50 per cent in the tenth year of the contract.
He said in addition to Botswana becoming part of the exploration processes undertaken by De Beers, the latter would establish a Diamonds for Development Fund in Botswana, with an annual investment of P1 billion for the 10-year period. He said the Fund was intended to diversify the country’s economy by developing the local diamond industry.
“We have realised that Batswana were more focused on mining rough diamonds, with little knowledge of other processes such as sales. As a way of driving the knowledge-based economy, the government has taken a decision to close such gaps and get our young people to be involved in all the diamond processes until it reaches the end consumer,” he noted.
Such changes would not only enhance the economic development of the country but would also create more employment for citizens. However, he underscored the need for patience during the transitional period since such economic changes were not immediate. “As government we are committed to eradicating poverty and bringing developments to various areas of the country, but I urge you to be patient because it takes time for such developments to materialise,” he said.
Dr Masisi applauded Botswana’s negotiating team, led by the Permanent Secretary to the President (PSP), for a splendid job during the negotiation process. He said the team had made the country proud and they continued to receive accolades from other countries. “We continue to receive compliments from other countries and some have indicated their interest to benchmark from us,” he noted.
On other issues, President Masisi told Sese residents that following the submissions of the recommendations for the enquiry on the constitutional review, a White Paper was expected to be presented to the ongoing Parliament session for subsequent action. However, presenting the paper to the National Assembly did not mark the end of the consultations.
He called on Batswana to be calm since divergent views were expected in a democratic setting.
He also noted that in an endeavour to decentralise services and improve service delivery, sub-districts were recently upgraded to districts. He said councillors would no longer travel long distances to attend council meetings, and local leaders would be able to make prompt decisions concerning their districts.
The upgrading of the sub-districts did not come with a budget for fully-fledged districts, hence infrastructures such as buildings and vehicles would improve gradually.
In his welcome remarks, Kgosi Justice Motlhalane had requested government to consider increasing the Constituency Community Projects funds to accelerate developments. “The P10 million is not enough because P5 million goes to Jwaneng while the remaining is divided among 19 villages under Mabutsane District,” he said.
Kgosi Motlhalane also decried the high crime rate in his village, which he attributed to the influx of people looking for job opportunities in the mining town. He said the satellite police station was not enough, hence they needed a police station with more officers.
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