During the 1990s, rebel groups in Africa waged war, funding themselves with diamonds which were often mined by workers held at gunpoint. Such diamonds, known as Conflict Diamonds, or “Blood Diamonds,” once flooded markets around the world. However, changes are happening in the market as honest diamond dealers seek to provide mine-to-market stones for customers seeking higher ethics in diamond trade.
Alex Twersky is the president of Finesse Diamonds, which works on a business model that hires locals in Namibia, Africa and ensures that they are treated fairly. “So the diamonds, instead of being exported to foreign cutting centers as has been the practice for years, are bought and processed locally in Namibia. This has created over 100 jobs, most of them well-paying jobs,” Twersky said.
Another bit of good news regarding ethical diamonds regards the stones they found in the Canadian Sheild. There are enough diamonds there to make Canada the world’s largest producer, and all of it a world away from the strife in africa. They also bring a lot of buisness to the northern territories, which sometimes have problems with their economy.