World gem buyers to flood Zim

Published: 13 November 2013

MOST world diamond buyers will soon be flocking to Zimbabwe to trade in the gems, with the country planning to establish the biggest diamond trading hub on the back of the huge demand for the Marange gems.

The trading hub would have enough back-up, considering that the country's diamonds constitute nearly 30 percent of those found in the whole world.

Mines and Mineral Development Permanent Secretary Professor Francis Gudyanga said yesterday that concerned Government ministries were already looking into the modalities of setting up the diamond trading market.

Prof Gudyanga was speaking to Zimbabwean journalists here where he is leading a high-powered delegation in discussions with Antwerp World Diamond Council officials on the marketing of the gems.

"We want to engage AWDC to be mentored so that we have our own diamond trade centre in Zimbabwe that will attract buyers from all over the world," he said.

"It is a matter that is on the planning stage and its being discussed at the ministerial levels.

"We want them (AWDC) to impart skills in us on the cleaning, polishing and marketing of the diamonds. We believe that with the partnership, we will have a vibrant diamond centre in Zimbabwe with many jobs being created out of that."

Prof Gudyanga said with between 25 percent and 30 percent of world diamond reserves being found in Zimbabwe, there are no prospects of the new trading centre failing.

"It is something that we will introduce," he said.

"It will take the establishing of security and the structure, but it will have all things concerned with diamond auction and marketing."

If the diamond trade centre is eventually established, it would compete with major centres like Antwerp, New York, Mumbai in India and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Other diamond trading centres, although bringing low business, are found in Israel, Japan, China and Russia.

Zimbabwe's diamonds are already being sought after on the world market and this means that the diamond trading centre in the country would not be short of traders.

Prof Gudyanga said the Zimbabwean delegation made up officials from Government, the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation, was in Antwerp to study the trends in the world market of diamonds.

He said in the meantime, the country would want to sell its gems through Antwerp and a trial sale would be held soon.

The selling of the local gems through Antwerp would ensure that their value would rise since they would be exposed to more than 2 000 buyers.

"We want to go back home after identifying agencies that can assist in the marketing of our diamonds with the help of the Antwerp World Diamond Council. We will arrange an appropriate trial sale at Antwerp on a date to be determined. The main thing is that we have started a dialogue with the AWDC. The dialogue started in Zimbabwe (when AWDC officials visited two weeks ago) and this is going to continue," said Prof Gudyanga.

Prof Gudyanga said AWDC officials were of the opinion that Zimbabwe's gems were fetching far less than they deserve when considering their quality.

The delegation, which would be here for a week, is expected to tour the Antwerp Trading Centre and be appraised on all the processes that take place with the auctioning of the diamonds.

A number of meetings are also lined up with the AWDC officials to pave the way for the selling of Zimbabwean diamonds at Antwerp.

Trading of diamonds from Zimbabwe on the world market had been stalled by illegal sanctions regime imposed on ZMDC and its subsidiaries by the European Union at the instigation of Britain.

- chronicle