Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chair of the Kimberley Process (KP) and Executive Chairman and CEO of DMCC, announced that over 1.06 billion carats of rough and polished diamonds have been traded through Dubai over the past five years. In 2024 alone, nearly 179 million carats were traded.<\/p>\n
The figures were shared during the Kimberley Process Intersessional Meeting, hosted in Dubai. The event convened hundreds of key stakeholders from government, industry, and civil society to discuss reforms in the diamond supply chain. This marks the UAE\u2019s third tenure as KP Chair and its second consecutive year leading the initiative.<\/p>\n
A key highlight of the gathering was the launch of Verifico, a digital platform developed to enhance the traceability and security of KP certificates. The system, which is being offered to all KP participants, is central to the UAE\u2019s drive for digital modernisation of the diamond trade.<\/p>\n
Bin Sulayem called for the first-ever ministerial meeting of KP member countries to address critical challenges facing the global diamond industry. He noted that there are three key markets keeping the diamond industry alive: the US, India, and the UAE. \u201cWe need the Kimberley Process to remain focused, so that all of us can continue to support trade growth, resilience and development,\u201d said Bin Sulayem.<\/p>\n
Opening the event, H.E. Safeya Hashem Al Safi, Acting Assistant Undersecretary for the Commercial Control and Governance Sector at the UAE Ministry of Economy, noted: \u201cDiamonds have been central to this nation\u2019s growth narrative. From humble beginnings, Dubai has grown to become the world\u2019s leading rough diamond trading hub. This achievement aligns fully with our economic diversification objectives and highlights the strategic importance of diamonds for the UAE, and our commitment to invest in its ecosystem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Feriel Zerouki, President of the World Diamond Council, said: \u201cI want to take a moment to recognise the leadership of our KP Chair, Mr Ahmed Bin Sulayem. His decision to define the last two years as the Year of Delivery and the Year of Best Practice has been a brilliant strategy. It provided us with the focus and environment needed to push through challenges that have persisted for years. His inclusive approach brought the KP family, Participants, and Observers closer together at a critical time and helped us get to where we are today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jaff Bamenjo, representing the Civil Society Coalition, said: \u201cLast year, the Civil Society Coalition was drawn in by the KP Chair\u2019s 2024 slogan \u2018Year of Delivery\u2019. The Coalition expects the KP to deliver on KP reforms. This requires a renewed and collective effort to give the needed reform a fair chance during this last year of the ongoing KP reform cycle.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chair of the Kimberley Process (KP) and Executive Chairman and CEO of DMCC, announced that over 1.06 billion carats of rough and polished diamonds have been traded through Dubai over the past five years. In 2024 alone, nearly 179 million carats were traded. The figures were shared during the Kimberley Process Intersessional…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31649,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[],"thb-sponsors":[],"class_list":["post-31648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bulletin"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n