In a significant step for responsible sourcing and greater market access for artisanal miners, fully traceable diamonds from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have been sold internationally for the first time, according to the Antwerp World Diamond Centre.
The 103.77-carat parcel of rough diamonds, sourced from the Kasai region, was offered in Antwerp through a public tender conducted by Bonas-Couzyn under the OrigemA initiative. Launched in 2022, OrigemA is a Belgian-Congolese collaboration led by AWDC in partnership with the DRC Ministry of Mines, NGO Resolve, and technology provider Everledger, with support from the Belgian Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs.
The programme includes six mining cooperatives across Kasai and Kasai-Central provinces and supports the livelihoods of nearly three million people. The inaugural parcel, valued at approximately US$6,000, originated from the Kamana Ndeke mine and was produced by the COMIDIANZ cooperative.
Karen Rentmeesters, CEO of AWDC, said the project was created to tackle the longstanding challenges faced by artisanal miners in the DRC, many of whom have historically struggled to access international markets and secure fair value for their production.
Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot noted that Belgium’s Peacebuilding Fund had contributed €200,000 to the initiative, describing the first Antwerp sale as a major milestone for both the project and the COMIDIANZ cooperative.
To date, OrigemA has trained 450 miners in safer and more sustainable mining practices while introducing measures to improve productivity at participating sites. With the DRC accounting for an estimated 70% of global artisanal diamond production, initiatives such as OrigemA are expected to play a vital role in improving transparency, sustainability, and economic opportunities for mining communities.