Conflict Diamonds, 2008 report

[denverappraiser]

Conflict diamonds haven’t been in the news much lately as people have been distracted by other problems that seem to be closer to home. Here’s a report from Partnership Africa Canada (PAC) on how things are going in 8 countries in South American and Africa, specifically Angola, Brazil, Central African Republic, Cote D’Ivorie, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Guinea, Guyana, Liberia, Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, Venezuela and Zimbabwe.

“The trustworthiness and reputation of the world’s entire diamond industry should not depend on the willingness of NGOs to act as its watchdog.”

Here's the entire article

Previous years reports can be found here.

Even though it's not in the news any more, people ARE still working on this problem.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver

 

[Regular Guy]

Neil,

Thanks for bringing this info and article forward, which I've only scanned. Page 22, where you've quoted from, seems to provide a helpful overview.

A couple of things I've found curious.

1) Brilliant Earth...who recently popped in and out of dialogue here...also within the last day or two...unless I'm mistaken, showed an ad on MSN (but it floated by, like the ads here, and I couldn't retrieve it to look more closely at it). But...for all of what they are, having been around awhile, they too only mention that diamond mining in Africa is in a nascent state, coming along. Meantime...see them for Canadian, please...

2) Likewise, although Martin Rapaport has been a voice for proactive strategies in mining in Africa, etc...no new news is coming forward I'm aware of on that front...though I could be easily oblivious.

So, much as suggested in a general way in this article, I think...these things take time...and diligence.

Neil, think there's actually anything positive readers here might do, if they'd like to do it...to show their mind set of concern?

Thanks again,

 

[denverappraiser]

For consumers, the most important detail is to make sure you dealer and your congressman know that you care how your goods are produced. Diamonds aren’t the flashpoint anymore but their nature makes them attractive to criminals and a certain amount of trouble comes with that. They are among the most concentrated forms of wealth available and I don’t see this changing any time soon. Buy your diamonds from sources you know to be legitimate and let your dealers know that it’s important to you so that they are pressured to do the same.

In one sense, the value of KP certification has gone down in the last few years because the bad guys have become more skilled at circumventing it if they want but, at the same time, it’s become part of what is expected both in the consuming and producing countries. The bad guys have become far more sophisticated in how to cheat the system but some subtle and mostly beneficial changes are occurring. Most of the wars in these countries have ended, at least for now, and although they are hardly safe places the climate is decidedly different from what it was a decade ago. The interests of the taxman have now become aligned with those of the diggers rather than with the hoodlums. This moves the pressure point from foreign consumers and NGO’s to a local tax compliance matter. For the most part this is progress but it can be easily undermined through corruption and most African governments are rather fragile systems that could be easily damaged.

The Angolan strategy strikes me as a particularly interesting one to watch. They want to eliminate the artisanal sector entirely and replace it with more formal and industrialized mining, rather like what happened with the mining booms in the US during the 19th century. To be sure this is likely to boost output in the long run and will allow an opportunity for better controls of both mining conditions and environmental stewardship but it’s also going to supplant a huge number of workers. If the money remains in country and these workers can find other things to do than this is a big step forward but if foreign interests drain off the money from the mines and the workforce remains idle than there’s a setup for some serious trouble. It’s not the same problem we saw a decade ago but it’s a problem nonetheless.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver

 

[2Artists]

Thank you for the very interesting read. I really appreciate hearing and learning more about this important subject.


Mrs.2Artists