Botswana to up fight against diamond smuggling

Botswana said that it will continue spending a considerable amount of resources to prevent the illegal mining and selling of diamonds in the country.
"The security of diamonds in the country is paramount and government will continue to spend [more resources] in this endeavour…,” said Botswana president Ian Khama while opening the new Karowe Diamond Mine owned by Lucara.
"If we join hands and work together we can effectively protect our diamonds from falling into the wrong hands."
He also said that the government would continue to review local mining legislation to create a favourable operating environment for mining firms.
"Over the years Botswana has improved its mining legislation to address investor concerns, by making its mining legislation transparent and predictable,” he said.
Meanwhile, Khama said Karowe would likely sell diamonds worth BWP650 million ($84 million) per annum and pay BWP140 million ($18.0 million) to government in royalties and taxes.
"These tax revenues will help government extend services to more Batswana, improving their quality of life," Khama added.
Karowe was expected to produce 400,000 carats in a year over its 15-year life span.

Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished