DMCC and World Diamond Mark Sign Agreement
March 24, 14
(IDEX Online) – The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) and the World Diamond Mark (WDM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to increase sustainable consumer appeal and confidence in diamonds and the jewelry industry.
WDM, a non-profit organization operating out of Hong Kong, is a subsidiary of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB), the largest diamond organization in the world representing 28 affiliated diamond bourses worldwide.
The MoU calls for the DMCC to support WDM’s objectives to ensure the health and future growth of the diamond and jewelry industry in core consumer markets. This will include the facilitation of WDM’s outreach to key stakeholders such as government organizations. In turn, WDM will recognize DMCC as a member of World Diamond Mark and as the partner for WDM project implementation in the Gulf region.
DMCC's CEO Gautam Sashittal said, “A number of factors have led DMCC and Dubai to grow into one of the world’s top three diamond centers over the past decade. A key factor is our continuous cooperation with the producing and consuming nations to enable industry participants to trade with confidence and to increase the flow of trade through Dubai.
"It is therefore important to acknowledge the impact our strategic partnerships with organizations such as World Diamond Mark make on a regional and international scale for our members. We see great potential in our new association with the World Diamond Mark who are undertaking this important initiative to further connect trading partners across the globe.”
WDM Chairman Alex Popov commented: “We look forward to further expanding our reach in the Middle East and to access new markets through our collaboration with the DMCC. DMCC has enabled Dubai to become a leading diamond and jewelry hub with over 1,000 key member companies from the industry based in their free zone. Their support will be pivotal as we look to roll out our initiative to other regions in 2014.”
The agreement was signed at the Atlantis The Palm Hotel where the first Global Gems and Jewellery Fair (GGJF) is being held. GGJF is an exclusive B2B exhibition co-organized by the DMCC and the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council of India (GJEPC).
DMCC Executive Chairman Ahmed Bin Sulayem said: “We are very encouraged to see how World Diamond Mark is moving forward and bringing its participation to Dubai which is already a regional leader in diamond jewelry trade. We congratulate Alex Popov for leading this initiative and look forward to working closely with him in making it a success.”
Popov together with representatives of WDM hosted a special roll-out session during GGJF where industry participants were given an introduction to WDM’s objectives and opportunities to participate in this new initiative.