Botswana diamond slump hits miners living on the edge of survival

Orapa, Botswana – It is simply a twelvemonth since Motshwegwa Rakhudu mislaid his occupation aft 14 years moving arsenic an installer astatine Debswana diamond mining operations successful bluish Botswana. He says helium had been connected rolling three-year renewable contracts with Enabler Hires (Pty) Ltd, and expected the statement would proceed done to 2027.

Instead, helium was retrenched and made redundant without warning.

“The daze was excessively much,” Rakhudu, (not his existent name), told Al Jazeera.

“In aboriginal 2025, I took a indebtedness of 26,000 pula (about $1,900) to bargain a car due to the fact that I believed my occupation was secure. By mid-May, I was retired of work.” He said the abrupt retrenchment near him struggling with indebtedness and household responsibilities, including schoolhouse fees, with nary compensation received.

“Being caught unprepared has been precise difficult. Jobs are scarce, and adjacent erstwhile enactment is disposable extracurricular mining, the wage is overmuch lower. I americium inactive looking for work,” helium said.

Rakhudu said helium has considered farming oregon starting a tiny business, but lacks the capital. Selling his car, helium added, would lone screen the outstanding loan.

“I would privation to spell into farming, but if I merchantability the car, the wealth volition lone wide the loan,” helium said.

Al Jazeera contacted Gaotlhobogwe Radikwata, a elder absorption authoritative astatine Enabler Hires (Pty) Ltd, for remark connected the retrenchments.

“I americium not going to reply your questions adjacent if you person maine you are from Al Jazeera. Who gave you my number? I ne'er shared my contacts with journalists. I americium not astatine liberty to stock information,” she said.

Jobs vanish arsenic diamond accumulation slows

The retrenchments travel arsenic Botswana’s diamond sector, the backbone of its economy, slows sharply.

Debswana Diamond Company, a associated task betwixt the authorities and De Beers, chopped accumulation by astir 27% successful 2024 to 17.9 cardinal carats amid anemic planetary demand, and plans further reductions to astir 15 cardinal carats successful 2025. The institution accounts for astir 90% of Botswana’s diamond sales.

That slowdown has rippled done the wider economy. Botswana’s output contracted by astir 5.3% successful the 2nd 4th of 2025, the sharpest autumn since the pandemic, driven mostly by declining diamond production, according to Reuters.

Diamonds relationship for astir 70% of export net and astir a 3rd of authorities revenue, according to Reuters and S&P Global Ratings, which successful 2025 downgraded Botswana’s sovereign recognition standing to BBB-, citing sustained unit from the planetary diamond downturn and weakening fiscal revenues.

Household unit builds crossed mining communities

For workers, the interaction is nary longer abstract.

“The diamond downturn is nary longer conscionable a concern issue. It is simply a quality contented affecting workers, families, contractors and full mining communities,” said Mbiganyi Gaekgotswe, General Secretary of the Botswana Mineworkers Union.

He said uncertainty present defines mundane life.

“The archetypal question connected everyone’s caput is whether they volition inactive person a occupation adjacent year,” helium said. “Will contracts beryllium renewed? Will overtime beryllium reduced? These are not abstract concerns. They impact schoolhouse fees, loans, aesculapian bills and household responsibilities.”

Even wherever jobs remain, unit is rising arsenic wages stagnate portion nutrient and transport costs increase.

Beyond diamonds: searching for caller growth

Restructuring has already filtered done contractors and work providers, with much workers shifted onto short-term agreements, said Dominic Obusitse Mapoka, Chairperson of the Botswana Diamond Workers Union.

“Workers who stay employed are progressively connected short-term oregon impermanent contracts,” helium told Al Jazeera. “This makes it hard for families to program due to the fact that they bash not cognize whether contracts volition beryllium renewed.”

He said galore gain betwixt $190-250 a month, portion the outgo of surviving continues to increase, with knock-on effects for tiny businesses tied to mining activity.

Since independency successful 1966, Botswana’s diamond wealthiness has transformed what was erstwhile among the world’s poorest countries into a middle-income economy, financing infrastructure, nationalist services and sustained growth.

But that occurrence has besides near it heavy exposed to planetary shocks. The assemblage is present nether unit from anemic demand, contention from lab-grown diamonds and reduced luxury spending successful cardinal markets, according to S&P Global Ratings.

The downturn exposes the risks of economical concentration, said Levy Ndou, a governmental idiosyncratic astatine Tshwane University of Technology.

“When citizens beryllium heavy connected 1 sector, a autumn successful planetary request becomes precise damaging.”

He called for faster diversification into agriculture and beef production, alongside stronger determination commercialized links.

Botswana’s Minister of Labour and Home Affairs, Pius Mokgware, said the authorities is responding by trying to sorb occupation losses, including expanding copper mining and opening caller projects. He added that diversification efforts are besides targeting agriculture, tourism and Information and Communication Technology.

Minister of Minerals and Energy, Bogolo Joy Kenewendo, did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

Tshepo Modibedi, President of the Small Scale Miners Association of Botswana, said smaller operators stay mostly excluded from the diamond worth chain, which is dominated by ample firms.

While not straight progressive successful diamonds, the downturn inactive spreads done households nationwide, helium said.

“Lab-grown diamonds and strict regulations are challenges,” helium told Al Jazeera. “But they could besides beryllium opportunities, if argumentation becomes much inclusive.”

For Rakhudu, however, structural shifts successful the planetary diamond marketplace stay distant from regular survival.

“I americium inactive looking,” helium said. “I conscionable privation different accidental to work.”