The year 2007 was yet another record breaking one for Debswana. Through ‘pulling together for organizational excellence’, Debswana employees, through the able guidance of their Board and Shareholders were able to achieve commendable milestones and targets.
The Managing Director of Debswana, Blackie Marole officially launched the 2007 Annual review on Tuesday 27 May 2008, at Debswana House. Speaking at the launch of the Annual Review, Marole said that Debswana’s team of over 6000 people is talented, ambitious and driven towards its five year strategy (North Star) goals. “It is through their excellent performance that the company exceeded its target in production,” he explained.
Our People, Our Safety:
Marole talked about the safety and injury trend at the Debswana operations, which shows a tremendous decline between 2003 and 2007. Safety records have improved, with a significant decrease in Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) and Total Injury Frequency Rate (TIFR).
“At Debswana we value the safety of our employees and this will always remain a core concern to our everyday business practice. Even though we recorded some injuries in the past year the target is to have zero injuries. The Mines are firmly focused on safety and will continue to work towards the principle of “zero harm” on our operations,” he said.
Production Highlights:
Diamond production during the year under review stood at an impressive 33.8 million carats, which is slightly less than the 2006 production of 34.3 million carats.
Diamond sales volumes on the other hand reached a record 34.9 million carats, compared to 33.9 million carats in 2006 due to high opening stock levels for the year.
Financial Highlights:
Group revenue increased to P18 billion in 2007, compared to P17.4 billion in the past year. This represented a 3% increase, which is attributable to increased sales volumes and 6% depreciation in the average USD/ Pula exchange rate during the year under review.
Cost containment continues to be a challenge given the global environment of increases in commodities and major inputs, which include amongst others, Electricity, Fuel, Tyres, Labour, and Ferrosilicon. Management is doing what they can to mitigate the consequence on the bottom line.
BDVC transition into DTCB
During the year under review, preparations were underway to create a new stand-alone entity, the Diamond Trading Company Botswana (DTCB) and migrate one of Debswana’s most important subsidiaries, BDVC, into this new entity. Debswana is now more focused on its mission of “mining and recovering diamonds optimally and responsibly”.
Organisational Effectiveness:
During the 2005 strategy review, Debswana decided to restructure its Head Office. The restructuring, whose aim was to move Head Office towards greater Strategic Guidance functioning, took place during 2007. Revised structures were introduced and in some cases unfortunately resulted in staff reductions and separations.
Corporate Governance:
Fundamental to the fulfillment of Debswana’s corporate responsibilities and achievement of its financial objectives is an effective system of Corporate Governance. Debswana supports the principles of good Corporate Governance and will continue to strive for and demonstrate that its working environment supports good governance.
A notable achievement in this regard was the launch of an Ethics Hotline in 2007. The purpose of the Ethics Hotline is to promote the Company’s commitment to transparency, integrity, and accountability as embraced in the Code of Business Conduct. The Ethics Hotline is used for confidential and anonymous reporting of unethical or fraudulent activities by the Company’s employees or its key stakeholders.
Corporate Social Investment:
Debswana’s Corporate Social Investment (CSI) budget was substantially increased from P6.7 million in 2006 to P9 million in 2007. A total of P8.0 million was committed to community projects in the areas of environment, sports, education and community development. Of this Debswana contributed towards construction of community halls in Lentsweletau and Maunatlala, refurbishment of the Mpule Kwelagobe Children’s Centre in Jwaneng and funded the Boteti Sub-District Council for a psychosocial support programme for orphans and vulnerable children in the district to mention a few. The aim of the CSI policy is to create a legacy of prosperity and sustainability by partnering with both the communities in which Debswana operates and the country in general.
Challenges Faced in 2007:
Marole pointed out that notwithstanding the good operational and financial performance, the company continues to face a number of risks which could adversely impact attainment of the North Star objectives. Primary amongst them are; loss of power/electricity, shortage of tyres and project skill competency and capacity constraints. He explained that these risks were experienced in 2007 and will remain risks during 2008 and possibly for the next few years, but that Debswana has put in place a risk mitigation programme, which will ensure that they have minimal impact on operations.
Contact:
Rachel or Fingile
Tel: (+267) 3614226
Fax: (+267) 3180778
Email: fmakgalemele@debswana.bw
rmothibatsela@debswana.bw
