Botswana Development Corporation (BDC) and Debswana Diamond Company have formalised a strategic partnership through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at accelerating industrialisation, economic diversification, and long-term resilience of Botswana’s economy.
The agreement establishes a collaborative platform between the two institutions to unlock new industries, particularly within and adjacent to the mining value chain. The partnership brings together Debswana’s scale, operational expertise, and anchor demand with BDC’s structured investment capability and multi-sectoral portfolio approach to develop commercially viable and scalable opportunities.
The MoU was signed at the Debswana Corporate Centre by Debswana Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Motsomi, and BDC Managing Director, Oteng Keabetswe
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Keabetswe described the partnership as a decisive step in Botswana’s economic transformation journey. He noted that while the diamond sector has historically underpinned the country’s growth, the focus must now shift towards leveraging that legacy to build the next generation of industries.
“At BDC, we have undertaken a deliberate strategic repositioning into an impact driven, catalytic investment institution. This partnership allows us to move beyond isolated investments and instead build industries systematically through structured collaboration,” he said.
For his part, Motsomi said the agreement marks a significant step toward building a resilient future for Debswana. He noted that the partnership is intended to ignite new business opportunities aligned with the company’s evolving strategy, which seeks to transform how it operates going forward.
“Today marks a pivotal moment for Debswana and the Botswana Development Corporation as we formalise our shared commitment to explore areas of mutual interest and leverage synergies that will advance economic diversification and commercialisation in line with our respective organisational mandates,” he said.
The collaboration is informed by global best practices, where leading development finance institutions and sovereign investment entities have successfully partnered with national champions to transform their economies. Similar models have enabled the development of globally competitive industries across sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, financial services, and technology.