Botswana’s diamond-reliant economy is under severe strain, with the country’s main diamond company seeing an almost 50% drop in sales last year, which it blamed on dwindling global demand.

And in another blow to the industry in recent months, the US imposed a 37% tariff on all goods imported from Botswana.

Now, in an exclusive interview with the BBC’s Waihiga Mwaura in New York, President Duma Boko has said that Botswana is close to securing a 0% tariff deal with the US, giving Botswana a potential economic lifeline.