Lovemore Chikova in ANTWERP, Belgium
THE Zimbabwean diamond industry has numerous advantages over many countries and needs to adapt appropriate technology to ensure the country is able to market and auction its diamonds effectively so that the gems can bring good returns, an Antwerp World Diamond Council official has said.

Speaking to the Zimbabwean delegation here on a familiarisation tour of the auction of diamonds at Antwerp, AWDC chief executive Mr Ari Epstein said Zimbabwe already had many advantages in the diamond industry compared to other countries.

“Zimbabwe will definitely change in the future as it shifts through the technology,” he said. “The pipeline includes the production of the diamonds, rough diamond sales, cutting and polishing, polished diamond sales and then retail.”

Mr Epstein said there was need for training to ensure that the production process is handled by experts.
He said the production of diamonds in Zimbabwe would be cheaper as the mining process was relatively easier because the country had alluvial diamonds.

“In Zimbabwe, the situation is different because you are able to find the diamonds on the ground, just a few metres down,” he said. “You do not need a lot of caterpillars and heavy machines and this means the operation costs in Zimbabwe are much lower.”

“Just a few years ago the new kids on the block in diamond mining were Canada and Australia, but the newest kid is Zimbabwe. They say Zimbabwe has the biggest natural resource base in the world, but we think the potential for diamonds for Zimbabwe is much brighter.”

Mr Epstein said the most important thing for Zimbabwe was to maximise profits from its diamonds. He said the marketing and auctioning of diamonds could change Zimbabwe overnight.

“You are part of the (Antwerp) family,” said Mr Epstein. “You are our family today.”
Mr Epstein said the envisaged selling of Zimbabwean gems at Antwerp would push the bourse’s dominance on world diamond sells from 84 percent to nearly 90 percent.

Speaking at the same occasion, Secretary for Mines and Mining Development Professor Francis Gudyanga said the Zimbabwean delegation was delighted to learn from Antwerp diamond trading.

“We are obviously very delighted to be here,” he said. “Government puts a lot of importance in this visit so that we achieve a higher value for our diamonds and eventually have a robust and vibrant diamond industry.”

Ambassador Belgium Mrs Margaret Muchada said the discussions between Zimbabwe and the Antwerp officials should yield positive results.

“This is a great day to discuss the possibility of such a relationship to emerge,” she said. “We have been so close that we now witnessing everything falling into place. I wish the best for both sides.”

The visit by the Zimbabwean delegation to Antwerp follows one by the AWDC bosses to Harare two weeks ago where possibilities of Zimbabwean gems being sold through the biggest trading hub were discussed.

What is emerging is that the selling of Zimbabwean diamonds at Antwerp would take place soon as the officials are preparing the ground for that through the studying of the marketing and auctioning system.

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