De Beers in key move to Botswana

15 August 2012 Last updated at 08:56 ET


Botswana wants to directly sell 10% of gem stones manufactured locally

The world's leading diamond producer, De Beers, has started the sorting of rough stones in Botswana.
It is the first step in the transfer of some of its operations from London to Gaborone, the company said.
It would turn Botswana into a major international centre, with about $ 6bn (£3.8bn) worth of diamonds expected to flow through the country, it said.
Botswana has long campaigned for its diamonds to be processed, sorted, marketed and sold from the country.
'Milestone'
De Beers' rough stone sorting or aggregation operations

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