Indian Amabassador to Zimbabwe Rungsung Masakui said that country should partner with other countries to establish a diamond cutting and polishing centre if the country is to benefit from value-addition of its gemstones.

Masakui made the remarks at a public lecture titled Unlocking Zimbabwe’s Gemstone Wealth: Lessons from India, which he presented at Midlands State University last Friday.

There have been claims that Zimbabwe's lack of a beneficiation policy is costing the country millions of dollars in losses. Masakui noted, “Structural deficiencies affecting gemstone mining and processing in Zimbabwe are due to the fact that the country has not yet established a gemstone cutting and processing centre. In this light, it is imperative for Zimbabwe to partner with friendly countries in order to establish a gemstone cutting and processing centre, while also embarking on innovative marketing of lesser-known gemstones.”

The Indian Ambassador said the establishment of diamond processing facilities in India, turned the country into a world leader in the diamond business.

Zimbabwe’s mineral sector is currently in something of a shambles, with allegations of widespread looting of resources and siphoning off of much-needed hard currency foreign exchange. Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe claimed $15 billion in diamond revenues had gone missing. Walter Chidakwa, the country’s Minister for Mines and Mining Development said a hunt was now on to trace the missing $15 billion.

The country’s major diamond producing area, the Chiadzwa diamond fields in the Marange district, have now been placed under full government control, with all private players having been ousted and their operations now taken over by the state-owned Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC).

Local communities in Marange have, however, called for the disbanding of the ZCDC, citing a lack of transparency and allegations of human rights abuses.

https://www.gemkonnect.com/news/seek-help-develop-diamond-processing-indian-envoy-tells-zimbabwe