The Diamond Development Initiative (DDI) has received a three-year contribution from the Anglo American Group Foundation to support its activities in Africa, the organisation announced in a statement. The DDI strives to promote responsible sourcing and improve the lives of thousands of artisanal diamond miners and their families in Africa so as to transform artisanal mining into a source of sustainable community development.

The funding will enable furthering of DDI’s principal functions, including the registration of artisanal miners, the implementation of the Development Diamond StandardsTM at mining sites and development support to communities in need, such as clean water and education, etc.

Ian Smillie, Chair of the DDI Board, said, “We salute Anglo American for their vision and generosity. They have proven themselves to be a leader in our effort to make diamonds a driver of development.”

Jonathan Samuel, Group Head of Social Performance for Anglo American, says, “Our relationship with DDI is important to us because it gives us the opportunity to recognize the important role of artisanal diamond diggers and their communities, and to contribute to their social and economic development.”