GABORONE, Feb 20 (Reuters) – Botswana’s central bank kept its monetary policy rate unchanged for the third meeting in a row at 1.90% in a decision announced on Thursday.

Inflation in the Southern African country quickened to 2.5% year on year in January, from 1.7% a month earlier.

The Bank of Botswana prefers inflation between 3% and 6% in the medium term.

Botswana’s economy is largely dependent on the export of diamonds, with a sharp downturn in global demand for the precious stone triggering an economic contraction last year.

But the government hopes the economy will rebound this year because of an improvement in the global diamond market and a better performance in other sectors.

(Reporting by Brian Benza; Additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya; Writing by Sfundo Parakozov; Editing by Alexander Winning)