Overseas Private Investment Corporation (Overseas Private Investment Corporation, OPIC) , the US government's financial institution, has signed a loan guarantee of $ 125 million to help develop the Botswana diamond industry.
This is the first tranche of a wider guarantee of OPIC loan of $ 250 million from Barclays Bank of Botswana, branch of Barclays Africa Group, together with Lazare Kaplan International (LKI), acting through its subsidiary, Botswana Finance LLC.
OPIC notes that the loan will facilitate and make more effective the procedure for obtaining loans for the local diamond cutting enterprises.
As states of OPIC, this will contribute to diversification of the economy, as diamond cutting enterprises to provide access to Botswana's long-term financing, and will also contribute to the development of the financial sector.
"Given the critical importance of the diamond industry for their economies, Botswana and other southern African countries are pursuing a policy of local beneficiation, aimed at obtaining additional economic benefits from its diamond resources, - OPIC notes. - Access to financing is an important component of diamond manufacturing sector. "
Diamonds mined in Botswana, previously sorted, processed and output to the market in other countries, and the transfer to him of contributing to obtaining value-added functions are Botswana priority.
A number of cutting and polishing companies in Botswana were closed due to weak diamond market and the lack of credit.
At the moment, the country has only 19 companies that produce diamonds, where only 2,000 people are employed.
In value terms, the volume of rough diamonds supplied by producer of diamonds in Botswana has dropped to $ 502.16 million last year, compared with $ 936.36 million in 2014, reflecting the difficult period that the industry is experiencing.
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