The UAE KP Chair Ahmed bin Sulayem has announced a contribution of US$ 25,000 towards the establishment of a total proposed $105,000 Independent Fund for NGOs, while addressing the over 300 delegates from 81 different member countries who have gathered in Dubai for the annal KP Plenary meet which is being held from Nov 13-17, 2016.

The Fund is one of the three major proposals put forward by Bin Sulayem for discussion at the Plenary. The other two are the setting up of a UN Permanent Secretariat and standardising systems for rough valuation to boost beneficiation of Africa as to ensure producing countries on the continent receive their fair share from the diamond trade.

A release issued by the KP Chair said that the NGO fund aimed to effectively harness the Civil Society’s potential. He added that with Australia - the KP Vice Chair - looking to potentially match this amount, he hoped that the rest of the industry would contribute another US$ 55,000 to create a total Fund of US$ 105,000.

Bin Sulayem has proposed that the Permanent Secretariat for the KP under the United Nations should be funded by diamond consuming nations and led by an African national with in-depth knowledge of the process.

During his opening remarks, Ahmed Bin Sulayem, KP Chair, said:“Taking on the Chairmanship of the KP this year has been a historic event, but also, I hope, a natural one. We have extended a welcome to every part of the Kimberley Process family and I hope you will agree that no agenda has been bolder, no issues more fundamentally critical to the success of the organisation, than what we are here to discuss today. The world demands more and more of us, and we need to understand what we can do, should do, and what is – and will remain - frankly beyond our remit.”

Earlier, in his welcome address, H.E. Abdullah Al Saleh, Undersecretary for Foreign Trade & Industry, UAE Ministry of Economy said: “During our tenure as Chair of the Kimberley Process we have been focusing our efforts on creating a fairer distribution of wealth for rough diamond producing nations; encouraging a more open and transparent method of valuation; and visiting and establishing dialogue with countries who are looking to either enter or re-enter the Kimberley Process. To that point the KP Chair has visited 14 African countries so far, meeting not just with leaders across the continent, but also with farmers, labourers and miners whose voices in many cases were being heard for the first time.”

Pic caption: H.E. Abdullah Al Saleh, Undersecretary for Foreign Trade & Industry, UAE Ministry of Economy speaking at the Inauguration