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Rumbidzayi Zinyuke Manicaland Bureau
The Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) has been urged to be proactive and come up with strategic ideas to unlock value from the country’s diamond resources.
This comes as the company has complained of reduced cash inflows following a moratorium to suspend the sale of the country’s diamonds due to low prices.
Speaking at an all-stakeholders diamond security indaba held in Mutare on Monday, Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs Dr Ellen Gwaradzimba said ZCDC was not immune to the challenging operating environment in the country, hence the need to think outside the box.
“We are a blessed country, we have numerous natural endowments, but the question most Zimbabweans have is why do we remain poor? she said. This is why we are having this security indaba, we want to share ideas on how we can plug the loopholes that create leakages of our diamonds in line with our vision to develop our country and uplifting our people’s lives.
“We want to fix the problems so that we can have a credible diamond system which satisfies all international standards. I, therefore, appeal to the ZCDC board and management to be proactive and to be strategic thinkers.
“Diamonds are one of the most valuable assets we have in Zimbabwe and everyone is looking at the sector, hoping that this is where the country’s development will come from. So you have to work hard to come up with sustainable solutions to whatever challenges you might be facing.”
Dr Gwaradzimba said there was need to fight the culture of corruption which was holding back the country’s vision for a middle income economy by 2030.
She said ZCDC should come up with more security measures to ensure that the resource is not abused.
Dr Gwaradzimba said small-scale miners who were operating in Chiadzwa were compromising the security of diamonds hence there was need to legitimise the miners and continue to engage the community to restore confidence in the miner.
ZCDC chairman Engineer Killian Ukama said ZCDC was committed to improving communication with all stakeholders to ensure that the sector grows despite the current economic challenges.
“ZCDC is operating in the same environment as other private mining companies and is not immune to the challenges caused by the operating environment,” he said.
“A decision was made in 2018 to suspend diamond sales to enable a review of the diamond marketing strategy after it was realised that our diamonds were going for a song.
“As a result, the company conducted only three auctions in 2018 and only one so far in 2019, resulting in a significantly reduced cash inflow. The company has embarked on cost containment measures to improve profitability and its ability to stand on its own in the long term.”
Mr Ukama said ZCDC had also commissioned an image study to address the concerns raised by the community about the company’s behaviour.
In a speech read on his behalf by Deputy Minister Polite Kambamure, Mines and Mining Development Minister Winston Chitando said Zimbabwe needed to collectively promote its diamonds on the international market to achieve fair value.
“In this regard, engagement and collective responsibilities towards sustainable development of the diamond resource, transparency and shared opportunities should be a symbol of our diversity as stakeholders,” he said.
Minister Chitando said Government was committed to an effective legal and regulatory framework in the diamond value chain to promote accountability from the point of mining to the point of export.
“All players in the diamond sector are obliged to implement credible internal controls in order to facilitate for optimum diamond security and accounting systems,” he said.
“These internal controls comprise of appropriate security tools for securing diamond mining and handling of facilities and the product in the form of physical perimeter barricades, security personnel, and electronic surveillance and Closed Circuit Television (CCTV).”
Online Reporter