TENDAI BHEBE IN BULAWAYO
Government-owned diamond miner, the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) is set to produce 3 million carats after surpassing its target for this year due to improved efficiency despite the threat of the Covid-19 pandemic, Business Times can report.
The miner’s target for this year was to produce 2.3m carats of diamonds.
But, Mines and Mining Development minister, Winston Chitando, told Business Times that the miner has since surpassed the target.
“It’s an organisation which is growing from strength to strength, day by day. When His Excellency set out the 2030 vision, in the mining industry, we came up with a U$12bn milestone by 2023 to support and to move by the President.
“The fact of the matter is that the US$12bn milestone will be achieved and it is in the process of being achieved.
“ZCDC is playing a very key, pivotal role in the achievement of this milestone. Two, three months ago ZCDC achieved record production at its operations,” he said.
He added: “We are in September right, and ZCDC has already exceeded its targets for 2021. The target was to produce 2.3m carats.
But, ZCDC has exceeded that and is set to produce over 3m carats.
“ZCDC is set to achieve a net profit for 2021 of over US$60m I say well done to ZCDC.
And what makes it very exciting is that the fact that their improved performance is coming from improved efficiency.”
Chitando said there were a number of initiatives that the company was working on in a bid to ensure that it grows with a “few other projects which will be coming on stream beyond the operations in Chiadzwa”.
ZCDC chief executive officer Mark Mabhudhu said the company is set to improve the quality of lives of people.
“We want to demonstrate to the world that we are actually producing our diamonds ethically and we are doing it professionally and we are benefiting the people of this country and of course the community in which we do business,” Mabhudhu said
He added: “So we are in a business that really is set to improve the quality of lives of people and we feed into national visions, the ministry of mines’ vision as well as of course the President (Emmerson Mnangagwa)’s vision. So we are a significant player in the way that the economy of this country is going to be transformed.”
He, however, said the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions have affected their operations and the miner had to put in place robust systems to make sure “we are not detoured from continuing with business”.
“… We are here today because we have sailed through and we always believe that the best sailors are made in the rough,” Mabhudhu said.
“We had to shut the business because of the Covid-19 at times. It’s actually a sign of succumbing to the impact of the pandemic. But we didn’t and we have exceedingly done very well under the circumstances. We have taken care of our people, employees, and even the communities in which we do business.
“So we recognise the challenges we have faced as a result of the Covid-19. We are here to celebrate victory out of that kind of situation.”
Mabhudhu said the organisation has set goals to become a world-class diamond organisation.
“We now know how to sail in the rough. We are set to make sure we achieve and not only achieve as a world-class diamond organization but exceed what we have set ourselves to achieve.
“We have people who have understood the vision that we have set to achieve such a vision of being a world-class organisation requiring world-class people, processes, and technologies.”
