Image credit: Gerd Altmann (Pixabay)
Zimbabwe’s plans to lift diamond output to 10 million carats by end of 2023 will likely fail due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a local environmental rights watchdog.
Centre for Natural Resources Governance (CNRG) said in a statement to Rough & Polished that there had been a sharp fall in diamond prices and demand across the globe as a result of Covid-19.
It said although diamond mining in Marange continued uninterrupted despite the lockdown,
Zimbabwe will most likely have surplus stock of rough diamonds with no market to sell to. “Manufacturers of polished diamonds are reducing prices to raise cash and minimize their inventory risk,” said CNRG.
“The Zimbabwean diamond industry is going to be affected heavily as the international diamond industry is already in a recession due to Covid19.”
It said ZCDC had planned 11 international gem auctions outside the country, including the Asian cities, to widen marketing options amid a market glut that has steadily made polished stones cheaper.
“ZCDC has about 300 000 carats of diamonds which were due to be auctioned at the beginning of April but were affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has forced many countries to close borders and embark on lockdowns to stop the spread of the deadly virus,” said CNRG.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
