Angola’s National Diamond Company Targets Value Addition as Production Tops Annual Goal
Angola’s National Diamond Company has reaffirmed its commitment to expanding geological exploration and strengthening value addition across the diamond production chain, as the country seeks to extract greater economic benefit from its mineral resources.
Speaking in Luanda on Monday, Chairman of the Board of Directors Ganga Júnior said the company is focused on moving beyond the export of rough diamonds by investing in downstream processing to increase value. He made the remarks on the sidelines of the inauguration of a new housing project in the municipality of Viana.
Ganga Júnior acknowledged that exporting rough diamonds alone is no longer sufficient in a changing global market, stressing the need to cut, polish, and process diamonds locally to maximise returns.
He added that the company is also working to improve the efficiency and resilience of its existing projects to better navigate ongoing challenges in the international diamond market.
Reviewing performance for the past year, the chairman said the company exceeded its production target of 15 million carats, achieving a historic milestone that generated revenues of about 1.8 billion dollars. The result, he noted, reflects both improved operational performance and stronger marketing of Angolan diamonds despite difficult market conditions.
The housing project inaugurated, known as Viana-B, forms part of the company’s social responsibility programme.
It consists of 81 three-bedroom houses and is aimed at employees earning salaries of up to 500,000 kwanzas. The project represents an investment of approximately six million dollars.
The inauguration comes as part of activities marking the National Diamond Company’s 45th anniversary, which will be officially celebrated later this week.
