Diamond industry stakeholders gear up for 2017 Presidents Meeting

It’s all systems go for the 2017 Presidents Meeting as registration opens for participants of the biennial gathering of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) and the International Diamond Manufacturers Association (IDMA) scheduled for February 5 to 8.

The four-day gathering, organised by the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) and the Bharat Diamond Bourse, will take place at the Taj Lands End Hotel in Mumbai, starting with committee meetings of the WFDB and IDMA on February 5.

A finance seminar prior to the Presidents Meeting will also be held. The Presidents Meeting will serve as the starting point for the WFDB’s year of celebrations for its 70th anniversary.

Commenting on the finance seminar, WFDB President Ernie Blom said: “We have invited experts from the banking and finance community, as well as industry stakeholders to participate and provide crucial input.”

The aim, he continued, is to provide an in-depth look at the financing challenges that the industry faces and to propose solutions. “This is a particularly acute problem for the small and medium-size diamond companies, which constitute the vast majority of our membership. Diamantaires now have to deal with a wide range of financing obstacles as the banks incorrectly regard the diamond trade as high risk.”

Blom added that one of the aims of the event is to establish a regular dialogue between banks and other providers to develop solutions for the diamond industry, and create a financing task force to drive forward solutions. “We also seek to create online education courses for all members of WFDB affiliated diamond bourses, and roundtable discussions to be held in all the leading diamond centres. This summit will play a critical role so we ask members of all trade organisations to attend,” noted Blom.