More opportunities in Sierra Leone
Gemfair to create for Artisanal and small-scale miners Pilot scales up Operations on the ground GemFair, a pilot project developed by De Beers Group, that aims to create a secure and transparent route to market for ethically sourced artisanal and small-scale mined (ASM) diamonds, is scaling up its operations in Sierra Leone to give more miners the opportunity to benefit from the opportunities the programme offers. The GemFair pilot provides ASM diamond miners with access to De Beers Group’s industry leading distribution channel, while seeking to improve ethical standards, working conditions and value for miners within the sector. GemFair has partnered with the Diamond Development Initiative (DDI), an NGO that has been instrumental in helping to formalise the diamond ASM sector in Africa. Following the launch of the pilot, where GemFair worked with 16 mine sites in Sierra Leone, the pilot has been extended in the past six months to work with a further 38 sites