Ahmed Bin Sulayem Appointed UAE Chair of KP

(IDEX Online News) – The UAE Ministry of Economy has officially appointed Ahmed Bin Sulayem, chairman of the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre, as chair of the Kimberley Process (KP) for 2016. Bernardo Campos, the former chair of the KP for Angola was present at the official handover, which took place in Dubai.

“It is a great honour to have been appointed Kimberley Process Chair by both the KP and the UAE, with the great responsibility to implement the KP’s vision and plans for the diamond industry in 2016,” said Bin Sulayem.

“The UAE will use this opportunity to focus on areas that will have the greatest impact on growth and development, in addition to sustaining the core values of the organization.”

Bin Sulayem said his aims for the coming year include strengthening the ties between government, industry decision makers and with the KP’s civil society, which has vowed to boycott the process over the decision to appoint the UAE to chair the KP.

He also expressed his goal to assist newly admitted countries, along with those that seek to join the KP, with technical assistance, training and consensus building through seminars and conferences.

“It was a practical and straightforward decision to appoint Ahmed Bin Sulayem as chair,” said His Excellency Abdullah Al Saleh, Under-Secretary of the UAE Ministry of Economy. “He has led Dubai’s drive to become a global commodities hub for over a decade and has a deep understanding of the diamond industry. 2016 will be a unique opportunity for all KP participants to get first-hand experience of UAE’s and Dubai’s infrastructure and trading community and we look forward to building upon the KP’s success to date as well as implementing new initiatives.”

The UAE has been a member of the KP since 2003, the same year the organization was established.