State to start certifying emeralds

GOVERNMENT will soon start certifying emeralds and precious stones before they are traded on the open market, Ministry of Mines and Mineral Development permanent secretary Paul Chanda has said.

Mr Chanda said in an interview yesterday that measures were already being put in place.

He said that once the certification process was in effect, the rampant smuggling of the minerals would be curtailed.

Mr Chanda was reacting to calls by Emeralds and Semi-Precious Stones Association president Victor Kalesha that government should come up with the law to allow certification of Emeralds and precious stones to stop rampant smuggling.

Mr Chanda said the government was concerned with rampant smuggling of minerals and it would not sit idle while the country continued losing revenue to unscrupulous individuals.

He said government would ensure that the minerals were safeguarded for the betterment of the country.

Mr Chanda said there was need for the country to start getting the much- needed revenue from the minerals it was endowed with.

“The call by the association is welcome, government has been working on this matter for a long time now. We will be launching a template which we have developed to capture all information necessary for any exporter or trader in gemstones not only emeralds.

“This means that for anyone to have or be issued with an export permit or trade permit, one is supposed to complete the template before permits are issued electronically,” Mr Chanda said.

And the permanent secretary said government was also putting up mechanisms to enhance monitoring at all the border points in the country to arrest people smuggling emeralds and other special stones.

Mr Chanda said tightening security at all border points was another way to stop the scourge.