EXECUTIVE COMMENTS

The challenges from the Covid- 19 pandemic are significantly over mainly due to the vaccination programmes that took place worldwide together with other measures that were implemented to curb the virus. All our facilities were able to trade at the normal hours and movement within the country took place without any restrictions.

The increased business activity enabled the company to significantly improve its performance when compared to the same period in 2021.

Real GDP growth was 13.1% for the first quarter and this was a significant improvement when compared to minus 4.4% for the same period in 2021. This increase was driven mainly by the growth in the mining sector with diamonds in particular. All sectors, with the exception of agriculture, experienced growth during the period. There was a marked increase in tourist activity during the period owing to the relaxation of international travel restrictions. The Russia/ Ukraine conflict has continued and will affect the global economic outlook.