This paper considers the development of synthetic gem quality diamonds and the potential impact on Botswana, the worlds largest producer of mined diamonds by value. The paper considers the rapid growth of CVD diamonds in the past 20 years and argues that there is reason to believe that given the market conditions prevailing in the mined gem quality diamond industry, synthetics do constitute a serious threat to the industry. There is consideration of the price decay function in light of the experience of synthetic industrial diamonds as well as the impact on mining tax revenue. There is an analysis of the various actors in the diamond industry and their response to synthetics. Policy responses to the threat of synthetics are considered in this paper