Artisanal miners in Cameroon exported 654.6 carats of diamonds in 2019, according to the National Permanent Secretariat for the Kimberley Process. KP issued seven certificates to the miners, generating more than XAF45 million ($76,335).
The secretariat said these exports do not reflect the country's real potential, as large quantities of Cameroonian diamonds continue to escape formal export channels.
It was quoted by Business in Cameroon as saying that although the artisanal miners exported 654.6 carats, they observed that the sector produced over 1,595 carats of diamonds throughout the year.
Much of the production was said to have ended up in informal channels, usually maintained by traffickers who dig the mining fields in the eastern region of Cameroon, which is the country's main mineral production basin.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough & Polished
