The five-day Plenary Meeting of the Kimberley Process held in New Delhi under the Chairmanship of India concluded on November 22 after noting that “no consensus could be found on an updated conflict diamond definition”. However, the body made significant progress towards setting up a Permanent Secretariat (KPS) and establishment of a Multi-Donor Fund (MDF), two other key proposals.

The Plenary, however, recognised that though there was no consensus, extensive work had been undertaken in the context of the Ad Hoc Committee on Review and Reform (AHCRR) on how to strengthen the scope of KP in the core document. It welcomed the “in-depth discussions that took place on how best to capture the evolving nature of conflict and actors involved in conflict, on the importance of capacity building and mutual support, and on the positive contribution of rough diamonds to prosperity, social and economic development”.

KP also set up a tripartite Technical Expert Team (TET) under the Working Group on Diamond Expert (WGDE), to evaluate and recommend to the next Plenary, the final host for the Permanent Secretariat and work on other related practicalities. Expressions of interest for hosting the KPS were received from Austria, Botswana, the People’s Republic of China, the Russian Federation and the United States of America.

Meanwhile, the mandate of the Administrative Support Mechanism (ASM), hosted by the WDC, which expires in 2019 was extended for an additional two years or until the date of setting up of a Permanent Secretariat whichever is earlier.

Four priority areas were also identified for the MDF including capacity building, technical assistance, the participation of civil society and participation of least developed countries.

A decision was taken no changes in the Peer Review Mechanism to improve areas such as annual reporting, review visits and review missions.

The Plenary also noted that significant decisions were taken to improve the systems for Reconciliation of KP Statistical Data with Trading Partners as well as the Submission of Production data by type Large Scale Mining & Artisanal Small Scale Mining (LSM/ASM).

In this regard, the body said it will seek to enhance cooperation on KP matters, among Artisanal and Alluvial diamond producing countries facing similar challenges, as well as opportunities. It has been proven that the best way to enhance KPCS compliance is to continue regional co-operation sharing lessons learnt with partners in the region and outside.

India as Chair of Kimberley Process, 2019, facilitated a Cooperation in central Africa, an initiative of Chair of Working Group on Artisanal and Alluvial Production (WGAAP) initially targeting five countries Angola, DR Congo, Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, and Cameroon, the Plenary noted.

Provisional changes to the operational framework for resumption of exports of rough diamonds from the Central African Republic and the Terms of Reference for the Monitoring Team for the Central African Republic were also made, with the objective of increasing legal exports and maintaining safeguards to stop conflict diamonds from entering the legitimate supply chain.

Plenary welcomed the Working Group on Monitoring (WGM) and Working Group on Artisanal and Alluvial Production (WGAAP) joint session that discussed their close working relationship in the central African region on the implementation of similar modalities in the region as in the Mano River Union (MRU).

In a statement issued post the KP Plenary, World Diamond Council (WDC) said that despite progress made with capacity-building programmes for the artisanal mining sector and KP’s approach to Central African Republic exports, it will continue advocating for the strengthening of the scope of KP.

WDC President Stéphane Fischler said, “We have simultaneously strengthened the WDC’s System of Warranties (SoW), which is a powerful tool that is already applied by industry, to ensure consumer confidence both within the KP and independently.”

WDC noted that about 95 percent of the rough diamonds produced by value are mined by a handful of large industrialized mining companies, almost all of which have implemented compliance systems that go beyond the scope of the KPCS.

Fischler also said that WDC welcomes the restructured operational framework system created for the Central African Republic, while maintaining the current strict monitoring of exports as this would encourage exports. It also expressed its support for new KP-related community development projects reported on during the Plenary Meeting.

The WDC President concluded, “The KP should not only be judged by what it prevents, but also by what it is able to facilitate. Peace-making and nation-building are both part of its legacy, and it is vital that it uses all avenues at its disposal to achieve these goals.”

Pic caption: WDC President Stéphane Fischler addressing the Concluding Session of the KP Plenary Meeting 2019 with (seen on dais) Coordinator of Civil Society Coalition Shamiso Mtisi, Senthil Nathan S, Deputy Secretary, Govt of India, KP Chair 2019 (India) represented by Ms Rupa Dutta and KP Vice Chair and incoming KP Chair 2020 (Russia) Alexander Pshenichnikov