De Beers’ GemFair is expected to support fair access to finance for artisanal miners by 2025, according to the group’s 2023 sustainability report, which was released last week.
The report stated that GemFair increased the number of sites benefiting from its access to finance project called the Forward Purchase Agreement programme, with a total of 56 mine sites supported in 2023.
GemFair has a permanent buying office in Sierra Leone, and a national team in charge of the on-the-ground delivery of the programme, such as onboarding miners, carrying out background checks and visiting sites to monitor compliance.
It was established in 2018 to link artisanal miners with the international market by providing assurance of ethical mining standards and harnessing digital technology.
GemFair has since grown into a world-leading proven and inclusive model for the ethical sourcing of artisanal diamonds and continues to evolve.
At least 331 sites participated in GemFair last year, compared to 263 sites in 2022.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
