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Harare Bureau
ZIMBABWE is now firmly set to optimise the value of proceeds from the exploitation of its vast diamond resources through beneficiation after the country built the requisite expertise for local cutting and polishing of the precious stones.According to Zimbabwe Diamond Technology Centre chairman Lovemore Kurotwi, the country has since 2010 been training locals in three main gem beneficiation areas namely valuation grading, cutting and polishing of the gems.
“We can now do value addition here. We now have the knowhow. Zimbabwe is now boasting of all these skills.
“We are training and bringing in skills,” he said.
Despite accounting for 25 to 35 percent of the global diamonds supply the country receives a few hundred millions of dollars from the multi-billion dollar global trade, which for many years has largely benefitted non-diamond producers.
With the global diamond cutting and polishing trade valued at $47 billion while jewellery is at $71 billion, Zimbabwe could make up to 25 percent from each of the two if the country fully develops its cutting, polishing and marketing systems.
“This is not an experiment, it is what other (non-diamond producing countries) have done. Those that are benefitting are non- producers,” Kurotwi said.
As part of efforts to realise significantly more from the exploitation of diamonds through beneficiation or value addition, ZDTC will on the 10th of this month hold an event to launch initiatives for diamond beneficiation in Zimbabwe.
“With all these skills, we have now decided to launch beneficiation and value addition where ZDTC has invited all stakeholders in cutting, polishing and jewellery making to come together to showcase their workmanship,” he said.
An estimated 100 000 jobs down and upstream of the diamond industry are expected once Zimbabwe starts beneficiation and value addition of diamonds with up to 500 companies expected to establish and invest in the industry.
Mines and Mining Development Minister Walter Chidhakwa will grace the event along with other high profile local and foreign diamond industry stakeholders.
Following huge investment in horning local expertise, also using expatriates from countries with top of the range technical knowhow such as Armenia, the diamond beneficiation launch will be held at the Rainbow Towers in Harare.
“As a major producer there are certain fundamentals that we should do as a country so that we realise the full benefits of this. At the moment, we are just taking diamonds from the mine to the market. By so doing we are only recovering 20 percent of the value, the other 80 percent is in value addition,” he said.
“Since we can realise just 25 percent of the value of our diamonds, if we agree to realise the balance (through beneficiation and value addition) it means that this liquidity problem we are always complaining about will go away.
“Diamond is one resource which can easily assist in the economic turnaround of this economy, unlike agriculture, diamonds once you exhume them, you just add value, market and make money immediately,” Kurotwi said.
Having established the Zimbabwe Diamond Training Centre, to ensure the country becomes a self dependent gem mining and marketing centre, he said plans were afoot to establish a centre that offers the security, regulatory approvals and financial system that investors want in diamond trade.
Online Reporter