De Beers and Botswana Were Made for Each Other

The diamond company should patch up its close relationship with the African country.

- John Gapper

When Mr Al Cook, chief executive of De Beers, promised earlier in 2025 "an intense period of engagement" with Botswana to ensure a smooth sale of the diamond mining and sales company, he sounded sincere.

De Beers has known all about the financial value of engagements since its 1947 "A diamond is forever" campaign.

But De Beers' relationship with the African country that supplies three-quarters of its diamonds is now badly strained. Botswana's President Duma Boko complained in July that the country was "broke" because the company was "not doing its job" of selling at high prices. "Maybe we should take over and sell them ourselves," he said.

De Beers and Botswana have been intertwined since the country's independence in 1966 and the foundation of its diamond mining industry the following year. While Mr Boko's attack sounded like the end of the affair, both sides know it would be painful to separate.

Nor would it be right for either. The sale of De Beers by its parent Anglo American moved a step closer this week with a proposed merger between the latter and Teck Resources of Canada. Anglo Teck, as the US$50 billion (S$64 billion) entity will be known (surely Anglo Canadian would have been more resonant?), will focus on copper and iron ore mining.