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Bianca Mlilo, Business Reporter
ABOUT 300 students will undergo training in diamond cutting and polishing in China in the next three years as government moves to facilitate increased mining earnings through value addition and beneficiation.
Mines and Mining Development Minister Walter Chidhakwa said this in Parliament on Wednesday where he revealed that a Chinese firm has already recruited the first batch of students.
“A Chinese company has since come and it has recruited some 25 students who’ll be in China for one year. Over the next three years they’ll train 300 Zimbabwean students in cutting, polishing, and valuation of diamonds,” said Minister Chidhakwa.
“This programme is being done jointly with our School of Mines and so aspects of the programme will also come from our the School of Mines and a department for diamond cutting valuation will be established at the School of Mines in Bulawayo.”
Asked about the credibility of the partnering company on the backdrop of reports poor performance by some Chinese firms in the Chiadzwa diamond fields as well as reports on externalisation of funds, the minister said the company carrying out the training was one of the largest value adding companies in diamonds, platinum and gold jewellery.
He said the company had more than 2,000 retail jewellery outlets and was in the process of building another 2,000 stores.
“This, however, does not mean that this is the only company. We’re actually in negotiation with other companies that are willing to assist us with cutting and polishing to benefit from the package of incentives,” said Minister Chidhakwa.
“Besides the training, the other thing that we wanted was access to markets, so we’ll approach those that we think will give us not just the training but access to markets for jewellery products once we start manufacturing.”
In February this year, the Zimbabwe School of Mines signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Foshan City Shunde District Zheng Jingyi Vocational Technology School and Harvest Way Diamond and Jewellery Private Limited (Ltd), all from China.
It is at these institutions that the selected students will be trained in cutting and diamond polishing.
The signing of the tripartite agreement followed President Mugabe’s state visit to China last year where he managed to tour Foshan City Shunde District Zheng Jingyi Vocational Technology School and held talks with the institution’s officials to consider training Zimbabwean students in diamond cutting and polishing.
Online Reporter