Botswana’s diamonds get a direct route to Dubai under new trade corridor
Dubai link will connect Botswana’s diamonds, copper and farm exports with global buyers
Dubai: Botswana’s diamonds, copper, minerals and agricultural products will gain wider access to global buyers through a new trading corridor connecting Dubai and Gaborone.
DMCC and the Botswana Stock Exchange Group have signed an agreement to establish what they described as Africa’s first multi-commodity sister-hub corridor, linking Botswana’s emerging commodities exchange with Dubai’s trade, finance and logistics network.
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The partnership will cover diamonds, copper, coal, soda ash, critical minerals, beef and agricultural products, while creating a dedicated Botswana trade presence within DMCC’s commodity ecosystem.
Diamond tenders will open the corridor
One of the first commercial initiatives will connect the Okavango Diamond Company with the Dubai Diamond Exchange through coordinated tenders.
The first tenders are expected in late 2026, creating a direct commercial route between Botswana’s diamond production and Dubai’s trading market.
The agreement will also support joint work promoting natural diamonds through the Luanda Accord and the Natural Diamond Council.
Access to finance and global buyers
The two organisations will work together across trade finance, logistics, vaulting, digital infrastructure, professional training and knowledge exchange.
The corridor is intended to connect Botswana’s producers more directly with international buyers, investors, institutional capital and Islamic finance markets.
DMCC and the Botswana Stock Exchange Group will also explore the use of DMCC FinX to widen access to financing for Botswana-origin commodities.
The planned work includes Shariah-compliant instruments and the tokenisation of physical commodity parcels into real-world assets, opening another potential route for institutional investment into African commodity supply chains.
Botswana Minister of Minerals and Energy Bogolo Joy Kenewendo said the agreement supported the country’s plans to extract greater value from its resources.
New commodities vault planned
The partnership will examine the development of recognised standards and infrastructure supporting commodity trading across Africa.
A Botswana Mercantile Exchange vault planned for Gaborone is targeted to become the first facility certified under the DMCC Global Good Delivery Standard.
The framework is designed to support cross-border trade, commodity financing and transparency across emerging markets.
The agreement was signed in Singapore following the 41st World Diamond Congress, where DMCC also launched its Future of Trade 2026 report.
