The diamond paradox: wealth underground, poverty above

What the stone hides

Reports and first-person accounts paint a stark picture: men in tiny tunnels with makeshift lamps and no ventilation; rebel groups taxing minerals; long-standing political control that channels resource value to elites. The result is a recurring paradox: countries sitting on vast mineral wealth while many of their citizens remain poor.

Angola: concentrated control, concentrated gains

Angola’s diamond and oil wealth has not translated into broad prosperity. The country has been governed by the same party since independence in 1975. The article reports that family members of high-level officials amassed fortunes through stakes across sectors, using shell companies and holding a diamond-marketing concession. Prosecutors allege transactions involving state-owned firms cost the government more than $1.1 billion, and courts have frozen assets on that basis.

The DRC: mines, armed groups and displacement

The Democratic Republic of Congo sits on enormous mineral resources. The piece cites an estimate of $24 trillion in untapped minerals and links decades of conflict to struggles over those resources. It reports that the rebel group M23 seized key territory in 2025 and has taxed minerals: since taking the Rubaya coltan mines in April 2024, M23 has taxed roughly 120 tonnes of coltan a month, generating an estimated $800,000 a month. The conflict has fuelled displacement and complicated efforts to police supply chains.

South Africa: illegal shafts and human cost

South Africa’s story focuses on so-called zama zamas men who risk their lives in abandoned shafts after formal operations closed. The article reports illegal mining was costing the South African economy an estimated $1–3 billion a year by 2024. A rescue operation in mid-January 2025 recovered at least 78 bodies; survivors described extreme deprivation, including eating cockroaches and surviving on toothpaste. The piece highlights a contrast: institutions exist on paper, but do not always protect everyone in practice.

Botswana: negotiating a different outcome

Botswana’s post-independence trajectory is presented as an alternative. After diamonds were discovered, the government negotiated a 50/50 joint venture with De Beers (Debswana) and used taxes and royalties to build public infrastructure. The article notes Botswana’s long-term sales restrictions and a new agreement signed in February 2025 that increased the country’s share of rough-diamond sales to 30% immediately, rising to 50% by 2035. The piece also records that De Beers reported a $288 million net loss in 2024 as rough diamond sales plunged roughly 44%, and that lab-grown diamonds have captured around 40–50% of US engagement-ring sales.

Supply chains, markets and accountability

The article underscores three recurring themes: powerful actors capture much of the value from extraction, violent or illicit actors can directly tax or control mines, and market changes such as the rise of lab-grown diamonds are reshaping industry economics. It argues that Botswana’s experience shows how sustained negotiation and accountable institutions can change where value flows, while Angola, the DRC and South Africa illustrate how weak or captured systems can leave citizens with little of the benefit.

Voices from the ground

“A diamond is forever,”

the article quotes the famous advertising slogan, then contrasts the romance of the gemstone with the realities of extractive labour and governance it documents. It also explains the local name used in South Africa for illicit miners: zama zamas, described as those who take a chance or hustle.

What this means for consumers and policymakers

The piece finishes by asking a question it says most buyers neglect: where did a diamond come from and who benefited from it? It suggests that answers depend on the mine and that accountability, governance and market forces determine whether the people above the mine share in the value below it.