Over 350 participants took part Monday in the first-ever diamond beneficiation pitso – the local term for a round-table discussion – that discussed the future of Botswana's diamond industry and the role the international diamond community will play in it.

The large number of attendees included diamond dealers from all over the world, owners of diamond companies operating in Botswana, government representatives, and other members of the industry. The pitso was the opening event of the International Diamond Manufacturers Association (IDMA) Presidents' Meeting, currently underway in Gaborne, Botswana.

The pitso was co-facilitated by Letsema Mbayi, a researcher and doctoral student on diamond development policies and diamond industry analyst Chaim Even-Zohar and was sponsored by the I. Hennig brokerage firm.

The guest of honor – Botswana's Minister of Minerals, Energy, and Water Ponatshego Kedikilwe - told the audience: "We want to turn the country into a center that integrates all the activities along the diamond supply chain. This activity must beneficiate Botswana's residents. I need your help to ensure our progress in creating an environment that will guarantee effective diamond business, including trading in rough and polished diamonds; advanced diamond manufacturing; and diamond jewelry manufacturing."

Diamond Trading Company (DTC) CEO Varda Shine also spoke, expressing optimism about the future of Botswana's diamond industry, but did not reveal anything about the ongoing negotiations between the DTC and Botswana's government regarding the sale of the country's rough diamonds, including the sale of the country's rough diamonds outside the DTC.

The pitso speeches raised considerable interest among the audience. It was obvious that if all the many questions raised were to be addressed, the discussion would continue until the evening, without exhausting the issue.

On Monday afternoon, the opening session of the IDMA Presidents' Meeting took place. IDMA President Moti Ganz, who initiated the idea of holding the conference in Botswana, said: "We have come here because we are looking to the future. We all say that these days we have to think outside the box. We are doing that. We must realize that today, the producers are the leading voice in the diamond sector and they are the ones who must lead the industry into the future."

Ganz discussed the rise in rough prices, saying that the fact that diamond dealers were buying rough at high prices showed that they believed in the industry's future.

The guest of honor at the conference's opening session, former Kimberley Process Chairman Boaz Hirsch, expressed his appreciation for Botswana's conduct during periods of crisis in the KP. Hirsch requested that for the next IDMA Presidents' Meeting, Ganz organize a session that would address the challenges the Kimberley Process presented for the diamond industry.