Botswana on Verge of Zero-Tariff Diamond Deal, President Says

By Rob Bates | October 03, 2025

Botswana is close to reaching an agreement with the United States that will allow its diamonds to be imported duty-free, the country’s president, Duma Boko, told the BBC.

“[The negotiations] are in an advanced stage,” Boko said. “We are on the verge of reaching an agreement.”

The United States currently collects a 15% tariff on all imports from Botswana.

Any possible tariff deal would presumably only apply to diamonds that are cut and polished in Botswana and then imported unset into the United States. Diamonds mined in Botswana but cut and polished in India will likely continue to be subject to a 50% import tax.

Currently, only diamonds cut and polished in Belgium and Canada can be imported duty-free to the United States.

Boko also implied that Botswana would accelerate its efforts to cut more diamonds domestically.

“[African countries have allowed] minerals mined on the African soil to be carted away in the raw,” he said. “The approach now for Botswana, and for the rest of the African continent, has to be that processing of these minerals must take place in-country, must take place within the continent, so that value is extracted, so that each country and Africa as a whole becomes a hub for value addition.”

(Photo: Getty Images)