The guarantee of the Kimberley Process

Rough stones travel to Antwerp under the protection of the Kimberley Process (KP). This process was developed under the authority of the United Nations, with the aim of finding a solution to conflict diamonds, and has been implemented since 2001. The function of the KP is to guarantee the non-conflict origin of the goods. Therefore, diamonds are identified by experts in the country of production, and are then packaged in bags that are securely sealed.

The parcels that leave the producing countries travel together with certificates of origin (summarizing vital information such as total weight and total value) that are issued by the governments of the producing countries. Those certificates feature the most advanced fraud-proof systems and are to some extent similar to bank notes. The information they convey usually reaches destination before the stones themselves, which reinforces control accuracy.

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