Zambia Seeks To Recover Lost Emerald Mine Money

Zambia's Victoria Falls, "The Land of Falling Water" and Valuable Emeralds



Zambia’s government has issued a directive requiring that Zambian emeralds only be auctioned within their country.  According to Yamfwa Mukango, Minister of Mines, Energy and Water Development, this directive will control gemstone selling by small scale mining operations at cheaper prices.

But the directive also applies to Gemfields, the major international gemstone mining corporation which has a financial interest in Zambia’s government owned mines

Here's video of Angelina Jolie, Beyonce and Selma Hayek in Gemfield's Zambian emerald jewelry designs:

Richard Musukwa, Zambia’s Deputy Minister of Mines,
Energy and Water Development said that his country was losing revenue from  illegal transactions in Zambian emeralds.

Watch this video for an overview of Zambian emerald mining operations, lush Zambian landscape and beautiful African music:

Gemfields states on their website that they audit the production and processing of emerald gemstones from the mine to the auction market to ensure the ethical production of the beautiful green stones.

In an interview with Jerry Munthali of the Zambia Daily Mail, online April 8, 2013, Mr. Musukwa said that his country’s primary concerns were to control illegal trading in Zambian emeralds and to establish gemstone cutting and polishing jobs within Zambia.

Currently, much of Zambia’s output is auctioned in Singapore and India.  Most cutting is done in India.

Zambia is the world’s 3^rd largest emerald producer behind Columbia and Brazil. Emeralds from all three countries have distinct and unique qualities. Zambian emeralds, however, appear to glow like twinkling stars.

Gemfields operates Zambia’s Kagem open pit mine with a government license.

A small amount of Zambia’s emeralds are mined by women on a micro-scale, from alluvial deposits. The country is testing the potential for underground emerald mining, according to numerous news reports.

Let's hope that an emerald war doesn't break out and that everybody including average jewelry consumers "get a piece of the action".

Zambian emeralds are so beautiful that Angeline Jolie has a jewelry design brand featuring the stones.