Debswana Diamond Company has praised its Voluntary Separation (VS) initiative for creating employers out of employees who opted to leave the company.
The initiative was introduced in response to the downturn in the diamond market, giving employees the choice to depart voluntarily.
Speaking at the Botswana Mining Show in Gaborone this week, Debswana Chief Operations Officer Koolatotse Koolatotse said 80 percent of those who left under the VS program have gone on to establish stable businesses, creating additional job opportunities for fellow citizens.
“Debswana is creating employers. Eighty percent of the people who have left Debswana have established businesses employing full-time staff,” Koolatotse said.
“The remaining 20 percent have joined other industries, including sectors outside Botswana.”
He added that, in this way, Debswana has not only created businesses but also exported skills through its Voluntary Separation program.
“In essence, Voluntary Separation does not create job losses; it creates employers,” he said.
As another response to the current diamond market challenges, Koolatotse noted that the shareholders and board of Debswana have allowed the company to allocate 70 percent of its funds and resources to its core business of mining diamonds.
He said Debswana will spend P6 billion annually instead of P10 billion to maintain operations until 2069, with the funds directed toward growth opportunities.
Koolatotse explained that diamond revenue has been declining due to the company’s shrinking market share and competition from synthetic diamonds.
“In addition, the new generation is not necessarily interested in sentimental value,” he said.
“The dynamics have changed. In our Resource Development Plan, completed three years ago, we projected that the life of our mines would extend to 2069. But revenue keeps dropping while costs continue to rise.”
He warned that without these measures, the company could face collapse in 2027 as costs increase and diamond prices decrease.
Beyond mining, Koolatotse said Debswana has established subsidiaries such as Sesiro Insurance Company and Naledi Mining Services. Naledi Mining Services was created to take over mining operations from Majwe Mining, saving Debswana P7 billion—reducing costs from P20 billion to P13 billion.
