The Kimberley Process (KP), chaired by Ahmed Bin Sulayem, CEO of DMCC, launched a new Secretariat in Gaborone, Botswana, on October 9. The Secretariat, the first of its type for the KP, will be staffed by up to five persons during its first year. It will act as a focal point for institutional memory, continuity, and support for the KP‘s working groups and member countries. The office will be led by Bojun Tang.
The inauguration event was led by KP Chair Ahmed Bin Sulayem and Botswana’s Honourable Minister of Minerals and Energy, Mr Lefoko Moagi, following a courtesy visit to Botswana’s president, HE Dr. Mokgweeti E.K Masisi, during which the country’s strong commitment to the KP was reiterated. The ceremony was attended by Botswana government officials, important industry participants, as well as representatives from Angola, China, the EU, Russia, Ukraine, the UAE, the UK, and other countries.
Bin Sulayem stated, “The opening of the KP Secretariat is a historic day for the future of the diamond trade and the Kimberley Process—a true milestone in our commitment to making this a year of delivery for the diamond industry.” The new office will act as a backbone for the Kimberley Process, encouraging unity and ensuring diamonds continue to be a constructive force for African development, benefiting both communities and economies. As KP Chair, I’d want to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Government of Botswana for its hospitality, generosity, and unshakable commitment to making this vision a reality.”
The KP, with its 59 diamond control offices around the world, is the only mechanism that protects legal diamond trade. The new Secretariat will be critical in helping the KP achieve its goal of preventing conflict diamonds from entering the market.