The Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) said the Zimbabwean government’s initiative to start organizing local diamond auctions is a positive step towards the building of a strong and robust future of the country’s local diamond industry.
AWDC chief executive Ari Epstein told a diamond conference in Harare, Zimbabwe that this development would also benefit the international diamond industry.
He said the current global demand for Zimbabwean goods was very significant and the past rough diamond tenders in Antwerp and Harare had demonstrated this as the case.
"Prices fetched at the tender are truly indicative of the successes resulting in the highest revenues for Zimbabwean goods," said Epstein.
Zimbabwe and AWDC had previously clashed over the diamond prices recorded at the second Antwerp auction held last February.
Zimbabwe said the tender attracted an average price of $72 per carat compared to $76 per carat recorded in Dubai thereafter.
However, the AWDC boss told Rough & Polished at the time that the February auction attracted an average price of about $80 per carat.
He said despite the ‘superior’ Antwerp prices not all the goods sold were optimally cleaned and sorted.
Zimbabwe’s mines minister Walter Chidhakwa – reacting to the AWDC boss’ comments – insisted that the figures his ministry gave were accurate.
“I really do not know what he (Epstein) is talking about. We still stand by the report that we issued after the auction that the diamonds were sold at $72 per carat,” he told the weekly Sunday Mail.
“What we know is that they (Antwerp) want to prove that they are better than Dubai. They should do so in a better way.”
Meanwhile, Epstein praised Harare for adopting the Antwerp tender system as its main model to maximize revenues of its natural resources.
“Through the Antwerp tender system, which was copied all around the world, you (Zimbabwe) have achieved a lot for your people in one and half years than a lot of countries have after more than 40 years into the diamond industry,” he said.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau from Harare, Rough&Polished
Exclusive
Yoram Dvash: Industry unity, producer leadership and marketing investment key to natural diamond's future
The natural diamond industry is navigating a period of significant transition, but there are increasing signs that the foundations for a stronger and more positive future are being built, according to the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB)...
29 june 2026
AWDC: First fully traceable artisanal diamonds from DRC sold on the international market in Antwerp
In a historic milestone for the diamond industry, fully traceable, artisanal diamonds from the Democratic Republic of Congo have been sold on the international market for the very first time in Antwerp. Below, Ine Tassignon, AWDC spokesperson, provides...
22 june 2026
Natural diamonds most desired luxury jewellery, Gen Z spending double baby boomers, reveals De Beers report
Natural diamonds remain the most desired jewellery item among US consumers, with Millennials and Gen Z driving demand value and spending, according to De Beers Group’s The Diamond Report, which draws on the biannual Diamond Acquisition Study of 18,500...
15 june 2026
Edahn Golan: India’s lab-grown diamond exports surpass natural diamonds by volume, yet value gap widens
India’s diamond industry has reached a historic turning point. In March and April 2026, the volume of lab‑grown diamond exports overtook that of natural diamonds, with lab‑grown stones accounting for 51% and 50.4% of total export volume respectively...
01 june 2026
Dr M’zée Fula-Ngenge: Kimberley Process failing Africa
The Kimberley Process (KP) is failing Africa, and the world's definition of a “conflict diamond” is a moral and legal absurdity, according to the African Diamond Council (ADC) chairperson M’zée Fula-Ngenge. The following exclusive...
18 may 2026
