@PopcornBacos same guy who fought tooth and nail to make sure Gaborekwe's body stayed at the morgue for several years and told the nephew to go and hang in front of cameras 😄 now his the messiah of the Judiciary. UDC is confusing us
if we have equal rights to the diamonds mined, why does the ODC only receive 30% of the government's equal share and why now after more than 40 years of mining?
Taking Our Diamonds-Ownership of Debswana Production
Have you heard a national leader say, “these are our minerals”? Did you assume the statement self-evident like that made by Botswana’s President? https://t.co/sTirPJgUwG
Respectively, the speech writer confused De Beers with Debswana shareholding and source of diamonds. The former's diamonds come from Botswana, Canada, Namibia, RSA & previously Russia while the latter are exclusively from Botswana.
Nevertheless, using Debswana, a 50/50 JV between Botswana and De Beers, I comment on the subject of who owns the diamonds mined by Debswana. My comments may provide useful insights on rights of host nations and investors as Botswana’s mineral law is similar to those of other African countries that vest minerals in the State https://t.co/tQ8QpBSwv3
Botswana’s President suggested that based on the State’s sole ownership, the Government might end De Beers’ right to sell part of Debswana production. This begs the question of who owns the production in the first instance. The country’s laws are an ideal starting point.
Following discoveries, De Beers like other companies secured right of first refusal to develop the project. Consistent with Botswana’s law, the State has the right to acquire equity in the company that develops the mine. If the State exercises its right, a JV is formed. Hence Debswana was formed in 1969. It is this JV that applied for and was granted a mining license for 25yrs in 1969 and renewed in 2006. Hence the JV retained the right to mine the deposit.
What this means is that neither the State nor De Beers alone holds mining rights for the Debswana mines. Rather the two shareholders enjoy the rights jointly and equally. Based on this, the short answer to the question of ownership is that the two shareholders own diamonds produced equally. A good way to understand the question of ownership is to think of a mine in terms of a project with a life cycle over which ownership changes hands (see diagram).
From the image, the first stage of the cycle starts with the State granting a company an exploration license. If the company makes a discovery it applies for the right to mine. Having financed mine development costs, mining companies, enjoys the right to sell production, recoup costs and make a profit. Based on the JV agreement, mining and property laws, Debswana partners enjoy this right jointly and equally. Throughout the project life cycle, specific rights and privileges are protected. This includes the production stage and at Debswana this means the right to extracted and sell the diamonds.
However, the State is first among equals and joint ownership of Debswana production should not be misconstrued to mean equal rights across the board. For instance, the Government being the law of the land is able to change laws. The State also regulates mining companies and levies tax. However, the Government must balance its privileges with the need to attract and retain investment, protect property rights and guarantee security of tenure. Companies invest in Botswana based on this knowledge and expectations.
So, state ownership though true, under certain circumstances also belies the reality.
When you make real money, create Trusts, and family management LLCs so your children can have measured access with tax benefits and sheltering.
These 20 year old have no idea what they are doing but want to teach you how to make money.
If you spend more time building your trading strategy with its aim at replacing a portion, then entirely, your living wages... you would outperform 99% of these assholes online pretending they have a clue.
Trade your time and money for market profits.
Then trade those profits for income producing assets and investments.
Wish, Rinse, Repeat.
Defer your image based bullshit.