Paradox of plenty: Zim squanders, Botswana delivers?

By Reward Magadhi | 3h ago

For Botswana, diamonds have helped build a stable and relatively prosperous society. For Zimbabwe, by contrast, the same riches have served to entrench corruption and impoverish its people.

Natural resources, when managed wisely, can be transformative.

For Botswana, diamonds have helped build a stable and relatively prosperous society. For Zimbabwe, by contrast, the same riches have served to entrench corruption and impoverish its people.

This is the paradox of plenty: where wealth from natural resources exacerbates inequality and stagnation rather than promoting growth.

Zimbabwe is rich in gold, diamonds, platinum, and lithium. Yet, instead of these assets spurring development, they have become symbols of dysfunction.

The Marange diamond fields, discovered in 2006, were initially hailed as an economic miracle. Hopes quickly turned to despair.

By 2016, former president Robert Mugabe admitted that $15 billion in diamond revenues had simply vanished. Investigations revealed a web of mismanagement involving senior officials, military elites, and foreign companies, such as the Chinese-owned Anjin Investments.

Opaque deals ensured that foreign entities profited handsomely while Zimbabwe’s treasury received a pittance.

The communities displaced by mining activities were left to bear the environmental and social costs, with none of the promised benefits.

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Gold has proven equally elusive as a tool for economic development.

Small-scale miners, ostensibly empowered by government policies, operate under systems that reinforce political patronage. Officials grant miners access to gold resources, only to require that the proceeds be funnelled back through networks controlled by political elites.

Smuggling further exacerbates the problem. In 2021, Henrietta Rushwaya, president of the Zimbabwe Miners Federation, was arrested attempting to smuggle 6kg of gold worth US$366 000 to Dubai.

This case was not an outlier. It is estimated that Zimbabwe loses US$1,5 billion annually to gold smuggling, with Dubai serving as a key hub for illicit trade.

The scale of corruption is staggering. Tendai Biti, Zimbabwe’s former Finance minister, estimates that between 2017 and 2019 alone, $14 billion was lost through mismanagement and corruption in government institutions.

“Zimbabwe faces the biggest existential crisis as a country because we are now run by bandits and thugs,” he remarked.

His words underline how the mismanagement of resources perpetuates systemic poverty and weakens governance.

While Zimbabwe falters, Botswana offers a counterpoint. The country has long been admired for its judicious use of natural resources, particularly diamonds.

Now, President Duma Boko is taking a more assertive stance. His administration is renegotiating diamond deals with De Beers, the global diamond giant, to secure terms that better benefit the people of Botswana.

Boko has promised greater transparency, more equitable revenue-sharing, and increased local processing to create jobs and retain value within the country.

“We must ensure our diamond wealth builds a future for all Batswana, not just a privileged few,” Boko said recently.

His words resonate across a continent too often plagued by leaders who offer grand rhetoric but little follow-through.

Botswana’s people—and the world—are watching to see whether Boko delivers on his promises.

Botswana’s approach offers valuable lessons for Zimbabwe and other resource-rich nations grappling with the paradox of plenty.

First, transparency is non-negotiable. Botswana’s efforts to renegotiate its contracts openly and fairly stand in stark contrast to Zimbabwe’s opaque deals, which disproportionately favour foreign firms, particularly those from China.

Second, empowerment must be genuine. Zimbabwe’s system of enriching elites at the expense of small-scale miners must be dismantled. Institutional strength is another critical factor. Botswana’s robust regulatory frameworks help protect its resources from the corruption and smuggling that plague Zimbabwe.

Without similar reforms, Zimbabwe will continue to lose billions in revenue.

Moreover, Botswana’s commitment to value addition—processing diamonds locally rather than exporting them raw—ensures that more wealth stays within its borders. Zimbabwe would do well to adopt a similar approach for its gold, lithium, and diamonds.

Perhaps most importantly, Botswana reinvests its resource wealth into public services, such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure.

Zimbabwe must do the same if it hopes to channel its resources toward national development rather than personal enrichment. Public accountability key.

Zimbabwe’s natural wealth is immense, but so are the challenges of managing it effectively. The country has become a cautionary tale of how resource mismanagement fuels corruption, poverty, and environmental degradation.

Meanwhile, Botswana demonstrates that another path is possible. Resources, when managed wisely, can be a blessing, not a curse.

For Botswana, the stakes are high. If Boko fails to align his rhetoric with action, his country could become yet another African nation where resources enrich a few and impoverish the many.

For Zimbabwe, the stakes are even higher. Breaking free from the paradox of plenty requires bold leadership, transparent governance, and an unwavering commitment to the people.

The time for change is now.

Zimbabwe must ensure that its resources build a brighter future — not merely line the pockets of the powerful.