Namibian diamond miner Namdeb, a joint venture of Windhoek and diamond giant De Beers, announced it has reached a wage agreement with the Mineworkers Union of Namibia.

The deal followed several weeks of negotiations and a wage dispute that nearly propelled into a strike, and eventually required the intervention of a conciliator.

The intervention resulted in Namdeb and the MUN successfully reaching an agreement on a two-year wage deal with effect from 1 April 2010.

The parties agreed on a 10% wage increase, a 10% remote allowance on midpoint of salary scales and a 9% housing allowance – all average annualised CPI-linked.

Both Namdeb and the MUN expressed satisfaction that the dispute was resolved amicably.