The Orapa diamond mine is the world's largest diamond mine by area. The mine is located in Orapa, a town in the Boteti Sub-District of Botswana about west of the city of Francistown. Orapa ("resting place for lions") is owned by Debswana, a partnership between the De Beers company and the government of Botswana. It is the oldest of four mines operated by the company, having begun operations in July 1971.