Mr. Deputy Secretary General, the Honorable Liu Ping; Mr. Li Dong, President of Donghao Lansheng Group, Mr. Simon Chan, CEO of the China Gem & Jade Exchange; Mr. Xu Deming, Honorary President of Gems and Jewellery Trade Association of China, Mr. Baomin Wang; President of the National Gems & Jewellery Testing Group; Mr. Ye Zhibing, President of Gems and Jewellery Trade Association of China; Ms. Feriel Zerouki, President of the World Diamond Council; Mr. Damien Cody, President of the International Coloured Gemstone Association; Ms. Iris Van der Veken, Executive Direcotr of the Watch and Jewellery Initiative 2030; Fellow CIBJO Members, colleagues and friends:
Before you stands a veteran diamantaire. With more than 50 years of experience I have seen many ups and downs in our industry. They come and go. We are now in a cycle that is not so easy for many participants.
Who is still remembering the boom in business after the Corona period? We were all enjoying that as if it was a natural, as if it was our right after a difficult period. It seems to me that many forgot how good it was recently.
And various factors have influenced this situation. The economic situation in the People’s Republic of China is clearly having an influence, The abundance of lab grown diamonds is another one. There is uncertainty where we are going.
One factor is the American elections and about those we shall probably know more this month, maybe even next week. Uncertainty does not help consumer confidence.
And all we do, selling jewelry, diamonds, colored stones or watches is about consumer confidence. When we are talking about consumer confidence we are talking about all aspects. The general economic situation in China, the USA and Europe as the most important consumer markets. But we also must look at other factors influencing the consumer.
A responsible supply chain and the change in environmental demands. Talking about responsible supply chain there has been a lot of work done with great success, such as the Kimberley Process eradicating conflict diamonds.
My dear friend Feriel Zerouki of De Beers has been one of the leaders and has greatly contributed to its success for a long time. Environmental demands are an important element both from governments and in many countries from NGOs and consumers. And on the supply side there are also various factors.
Two important factors in the diamond supply chain are the sanctions on Russian diamonds and the situation around De Beers. The sanctions by the G7 have brought uncertainty for many players as it is not very clear how they will be expanded into polished diamonds and how these sanctions will influence the smooth working of the diamond market.
And let’s not forget that not all countries endorse those sanction. In addition to this development, we have seen the hostile offer on Anglo American which has influenced the decision to sell its daughter company De Beers.
Of course, since many years De Beers is only one of the players in the rough diamond mining. But a very important one. It is also the strongest defender of natural diamonds, it knows best the structure and working of the diamond market and sometimes it is visionary such as with Tracer and Gemfair in Sierra Leone, which aims to connect artisanal and small miners to the world market.
The push of De Beers has done great things for the Natural Diamond Council and the marketing of the category “natural diamonds”. Some might be surprised hearing me praising De Beers for its work. But let me assure you that it is my sincere wish that De Beers comes out of this new situation with full strength. That is in the interest of all in the diamond and jewelry market.
Now let’s have a look at the sustainability and ESG-Environmental and social governance goals. This is within the core objectives of the Responsible Jewelry Council since its beginning 20 years ago, which I have the privilege to represent as its Vice Chairman. We have received this month several reports from CIBJO which has done so much to show and improve responsibility in the sourcing of jewelry in its widest sense and the environmental roles it plays in various industries. My compliments to all who have worked so tirelessly on these issues.
Coming back to the RJC: it is the corner stone to build confidence both for governments and for consumers. As well-known not all governments think equally about what must be done.
Let me look at the European Union where I come from. The EU has developed a strong set of rules for accountability about environmental issues. New regulations are coming into effect by the end of this year. Here we come to political issues; some governments have different ideas than others.
But companies in these countries often work internationally and have to do with regulations and laws in all countries where they work. That brings me to the importance of SME’s, the Small and Medium size Enterprises which form the backbone of our industry. It is not only the big companies, but also the thousands of smaller enterprises which try to follow what they should do in ESG and the Sustainable Development Goals. None of them would be able to name all 17 SDGs. But all must face them and use them. Here the RJC plays a fundamental role.
As the only recognized body in our industry by the standard organization Iseal, a membership of RJC is proof of good behavior, of respect for the ESG and SDG goals. The RJC is growing now into a body with 2000 members and there is a waiting list.
We realize that under a new Chairman and fresh team RJC is set to widen its influence and assist many members, large and small to fulfill our goals. But we are not looking inwards we are open to our colleagues in all organization to work together for a future in our industry.
Our motto is not selfish, our goals are universal and the aim of what we do is to preserve the consumer confidence for our products and to work for a safer, better world with respects to all values which are so dear to us: our families, our environment, our future, human rights and a better world.
Many developments will be discussed during this week for the betterment of our industry and the people working in it.
With this in mind, I look-as a veteran who has seen it all- with great confidence into the future.
Articles about Responsible Jewelry Council (RJC):
https://gem-spectrum.com/tag/rjc
Articles about Edward Asscher:
https://gem-spectrum.com/tag/edward-asscher
