Diamond Producers Association launches India operations, reaches out to 3,000 retailers for training, education

Mumbai: The Diamond Producers Association (DPA) on Thursday announced the launch of their operations in India to strengthen the diamond sector, by promoting the integrity and reputation of diamonds and ensuring the sustainability of the diamond industry. The DPA is an alliance of seven of the largest diamond mining companies in the world, which together represent over 75% of the world’s diamond production. Its members– ALROSA, De Beers, Dominion Diamond, Gem Diamonds, Lucara Diamond, Petra Diamonds and Rio Tinto, are the leading miners globally. “India, which polishes 85-90 per cent of the diamonds in the world, accounts for a mere 7 percent of the global consumption. We believe this presents a huge opportunity for us to build the India market by promoting the integrity and reputation of diamonds and ensuring the sustainability of the industry,” DPA CEO Jean-Marc Lieberherr said. [caption id=“attachment_3129252” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Reuters[/caption] DPA has initially reached out to 3,000 retailers in order to train and educate them about diamonds, he said. “We will gradually expand our training across the country. Initially we have reached out to 3,000 retailers with the existing materials,” he added. Richa Singh, Managing Director India, Diamond Producers Association, said, the focus is “to work towards the goals of the Diamond Producers Association in India. The objective would be to strengthen DPA’s engagement with industry, non-industry organisations and create a strong connect with consumers to build the diamond category”. Lieberherr said, DPA is working with the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) to build trade relationships, best practices and a strong consumer connect through various market development initiatives.