Tatenda Dumba

Partner  |  Corporate & Commercial

MAIN AREAS OF LAW

Tatenda is the Partner in the Corporate & Commercial Division for Minchin & Kelly. She advises on all commercial corporate areas of law but her main speciality is project finance, debt and equity market transactions and energy projects. She also has an interest in public private partnerships and has recently been working on a number of transactions dealing with PPPs. She is recently working on the first Coal to Liquids Project in Botswana.. Her specialty exposes her to vast areas of law and as a result she also has experience in the mineral, property and mergers & acquisitions sector. A majority of her work involves cross border transactions and she is a regular advisor to multinational banks and organisations particularly with providing them with ISDA and custodian & insolvency opinions.

WORK HIGHLIGHTS

Her notable work was advising a listed property company on the first ever establishment of a special security purpose vehicle that would hold mortgage bonds for and on behalf of credit beneficiaries in Botswana. She engaged the Registrar of Deeds and was successful in arguing that a security purpose vehicle would not contravene section 52 of the Deeds Registry Act which provides that an agent cannot hold a mortgage bond for and on behalf of a principal.

SIGNIFICANT CLIENTS

Tatenda’s clients vary across all industries including; Botswana Oil Limited, IFSC, African Import Export Bank, Letlole la Rona Limited, Vivo Energy (Proprietary) Limited, First National Bank Botswana Limited, Stanbic Bank Botswana Limited, Botswana Development Corporation, Bank of Scotland, Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund, Hollard Insurance Limited, Aon Botswana, Old Mutual, Government Entities and regularly works with law firms outside the jurisdiction including DLA Piper UK LLP, Simmons & Simmons LLP, Norton Rose, Bowmans and Baker McKenzie.

CAREER

Tatenda began her career at Armstrongs Attorneys in 2009 and was made a senior associate in 2012. In 2017 she joined Minchin & Kelly as a senior associate and became a Partner in July 2019.

  • LLM, University of Cape town (2010)
  • LLB, Rhodes University (2006)
  • Year of admission as an attorney: 2009
  • Year of admission as a conveyancer: 2010
  • Year of admission as a notary public: 2010

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

  • Member of the Law Society

JURISDICTIONS

Admitted in Botswana (2009)

LANGUAGES

English, Shona

PUBLICATIONS

Contribution to the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2014; Women, Business and the Law 2014: Removing Restrictions to Enhance Gender Equality for the World Bank

Contribution to the Doing Business in 2014: Understanding Regulations for Small and Medium-Size Enterprises and Doing Business in a More Transparent World for the World Bank.

 

 

INDUSTRY SECTOR EXPERIENCE

Armstrongs Attorneys:  July 2009 - November 2017,  Senior Associate

Her notable mandates at the firm include:

  • Local counsel to BNP Paribus in connection with the financing transaction in respect of the purchase by PUMA Energy Southern Africa Holding LLC of controlling stakes in 5 BP subsidiaries incorporated in 5 different African countries.
  • Counsel to International Finance Corporation – to advise on regulatory regime for the establishment of the Domestic Medium-Term Note Programme and banking and securities laws in Botswana.
  • Advising the Government of Botswana regarding the NSC2 pipeline water project that transport water from the North to the South carrier. Counsel for the Consultants of the North South Carrier Project for the Construction of a Water Pipeline across Botswana.
  • Local Counsel to African Export-Import Bank in relation to the sixth amendment and restatement of the Pre-Export Financing Facility Agreement- the Cottco Bridge Project.
  • Botswana Post merger company between Botswana Post and Botswana Savings Bank (two statutory companies) in preparation for commercialisation / application for banking licence by Botswana Savings Bank.
  • Development of Rail Park Mall, a retail mall in Gaborone. The mandate included drafting the Facility Agreements for a consortium of lenders, the security documents, direct agreements with the contractors and advising on performance bonds. Legal Counsel to Stanbic Bank Botswana as one of the consortia of lenders and the arranger.
  • Establishment of sectional title residential units for a listed property development company including the establishment of sectional title schemes, association of the body corporate and vendor agreements. Legal counsel to Letlole La Rona Limited, the listed property development company.
  • Advice on Water Servitudes for proposed mine developments, conduct due diligence, advice on setting up of mine and registration of servitudes.

CONTI.

Minchin & Kelly (Botswana): November 2017 to date, Partner

Her notable mandates at the firm include:

  • Establishment of the first Coal to Liquid Industry Project in Botswana which is estimated to be USD4 billion. Legal Advisor to Botswana Oil Limited, the national oil company. The mandate includes advising on mandate issues, legal feasibility, carrying out due diligence on the potential developmental bidders and advising on the appropriate Design Build Finance Operate and Maintain PPP model for the Project with the aim of transferring the asset after the concession period.
  • Extension and expansion of Airport Junction Mall, the biggest retail mall in Gaborone and in Botswana.The mandate includes drafting the development & loan agreements, share pledge and registration of a mortgage bond. Legal counsel to Rand Merchant Bank.
  • Disposal of four commercial retail hotel properties from a listed property development company to another listed hospitality company including the drafting of the Vendor Agreement, Circulars for approval by the shareholders. Legal counsel to Letlole La Rona Limited, the listed property development company.
  • Advising Botswana Development Corporation on the establishment of Sidilega Private Hospital as one of the investors to the Project.
  • Advising on the development and establishment of the first medic-tourism hospital based in Kasane Botswana in collaboration with Dr Tambula.