Diamond industry growing, despite new industry players

By Josia Shigwedha, via News on One 

With emerging industries in the energy sector such as oil and gas, the diamond industry’s position as a key contributor towards the growth of the sector and economy could be at stake. But this may not be the case as the Namibia Diamond Trading Company (NDTC) Chief Executive Officer, Brent Eiseb, stated that the intake of the precious gemstones for sorting and marketing has increased by nearly 20 percent last year, when compared to 2022.

While speaking at the inaugural graduation of the Diamantaire Enterprise Development Programme (EDP) in Windhoek today, Eiseb stated that the diamond industry is doing well in processing the additional carats they receive from mining companies.

Eiseb said that they have sorted, valued, and marketed more than 2 million carats during the 2023 financial year, which is close to a nearly 20 percent increase compared to the carats’ intake in 2022. The company is doing well in terms of being able to process the additional carats that we receive from Namdeb Holdings. In addition to that is being able to ensure that we sort, value, and be able to sell that within the stipulated time because it’s important for the mining operations namely Namdeb and Debmarine to realise that the revenue within the stipulated time,” said Eiseb.

When asked if the emergence of oil and gas does not threaten the diamond industry, Eiseb responded that despite the oil boom, the diamond industry has positively contributed to the gross domestic product.

“Whatever happens in the oil and gas space is really to complement whatever the diamond industry has been able to achieve and what we want to achieve in the future because ultimately it is about growing the economy and ensuring that we create opportunities particularly for Namibians to be part of the mainstream economy. We see that as a welcoming move in terms of growing the Namibian economy and creating additional opportunities for Namibians,” stated Eiseb.

For 2023 NDTC paid N$84 million in corporate taxes while paying N$1.5 billion in corporate taxes since the company’s inception in 2007.