US Sanctions Zimbabwe President for Diamond Smuggling

The US has sanctioned Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa for corruption in connection with gold and diamond smuggling, as well as human-rights abuses.

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) accused Mnangagwa of “providing a protective shield” to gold- and diamond-smuggling networks that operate in Zimbabwe, it said last week. He is also accused of directing Zimbabwean officials to “facilitate the sale of gold and diamonds in illicit markets” and taking “bribes in exchange for his services.”

The US has also restricted Mnangagwa for being a leader or official of entity, including any government entity, that has “engaged in, or whose members have engaged in, serious human-rights abuses,” OFAC explained.

“The Zimbabwe president is a foreign person who is a current or former government official, or a person acting for or on behalf of such an official, who is responsible for or complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged in, corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery,” OFAC stated.

OFAC issued the new sanctions after US President Joe Biden signed an executive order that terminated Zimbabwe’s national emergency and revoked sanctions on the entire country, so as not to target its citizens.

“The US remains deeply concerned about democratic backsliding, human-rights abuses, and government corruption in Zimbabwe,” said Wally Adeyemo, deputy secretary of the treasury. “The changes we are making today are intended to make clear what has always been true: Our sanctions are not intended to target the people of Zimbabwe. Today we are refocusing our sanctions on clear and specific targets.”

Source: DCLA

Six Die in Diamond Mine Plane Crash

Indian mining billionaire Harpal Randhawa, his son, and four others died when their plane crashed en route to the Murowa diamond mine, in Zimbabwe.

The Cessna 206 aircraft belonged to Randhawa’s RZM Murowa, a company that part-owns and operates the mine. It also produces gold and coal and refines nickel and copper.

Randhawa and his 22-year-old son Amer set off from Harare on Friday morning (29 September). Their plane came down in the southwestern part of the country, reportedly due a technical fault.

Zimbabwe police said the crash happened between 7.30 am and 8am, and confirmed the deaths of all six people on board.

“The Murowa Diamond Company (RioZim)-owned white and red Zcam aircraft had left Harare for the mine at 6 am and crashed about 6 km from Mashava,” it said.

Planes are often used as a secure method of transporting diamonds. In February a light aircraft transporting diamonds from Murowa came down in a field, also after experiencing technical problems.

The pilot suffered head injuries and was said to be in a critical condition. Four passengers were in a stable condition.

Source: DCLA

Zimbabwe stockpiles 300,000 carats of diamonds

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has stockpiled 300,000 carats of diamonds under new regulations which compel miners to pay half of their royalties using commodities, the state-run Sunday Mail reported.

Central bank governor John Mangudya also told the Harare-based newspaper that gold reserves stood at around 350 kilograms, or around $20 million in US dollars. The value of the diamond stockpile is hard to quantify, he added.

Zimbabwe introduced regulations last year that require miners to pay half of their royalties to the government in the commodities themselves and the rest in cash, as the southern African country seeks to build its mineral reserves.

Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond, and Murowa Diamond, which is owned by Rio Zim, are the only diamond firms operating in the country.

Mining companies that operate in Zimbabwe include units of Impala Platinum, Anglo American Platinum and Sibanye Gold.

Platinum and lithium producers are allowed to pay their royalties in cash.

Source: DCLA

Zimbabwe: Diamond Sector to Grow to $1 Billion by 2024

                     Zimbabwe Diamond mine

Winston Chitando, Zimbabwe’s mines and mining development minister, said in an interview with the Sunday Mail newspaper quoted by IDEX Online that the country’s diamond sector will grow to $1 billion by the end of 2023.

Chitando said that Murowa Diamonds and the ZCDC (Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company) “were expanding their operations and would help bring total output to 7 million carats, up from 2 million in 2018.”

Chitando said: “Other countries produce quite a lot, but their production is mature . . . whereas Zimbabwe has a fairly rapidly growing industry. It is probably experiencing the biggest growth in the diamond industry in the world.”

In another report in Rough & Polished, Zimbabwe’s Finance minister Mthuli Ncube is quoted as saying that the mining sector is expected to grow by 10% this year, and that the government had issued 20 exploration prospecting orders (EPOs) to several companies this year. He also said that the mining sector “is expected to grow by 10.4% in 2023.”

Source: DCLA