By Senior Editor, China Africa News
BEIJING, Sept. 17, 2026 — China and three major African diamond-producing countries have agreed to strengthen cooperation across the natural-diamond industry, with a new declaration seeking to deepen links between African producers and Chinese consumers.
Representatives of Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, together with the Shanghai Diamond Exchange and members of the Chinese and international diamond industry, signed the Beijing Declaration on Natural Diamonds and Sustainable Development in Beijing on Sept. 15. The declaration was announced publicly this week.
The agreement focuses on strengthening cooperation across the natural-diamond value chain, including local value creation in producing countries, skills development, economic diversification and stronger links between African diamond producers and China’s consumer market.
The declaration also calls for clearer communication about the origin of natural diamonds and their economic and social contribution to producing countries.
For Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, the diamond industry is an important source of economic activity, employment and government revenue. The new initiative seeks to strengthen the connection between those benefits and China’s large consumer market.
The Shanghai Diamond Exchange, which hosted the meeting, said the initiative is intended to support greater cooperation between African producers and Chinese industry participants while promoting sustainable development in diamond-producing countries.
China is an important market for the global jewellery industry, and Chinese consumers are increasingly being targeted by international diamond companies and retailers. Major Chinese jewellery brands, including Chow Tai Fook, Lao Feng Xiang, Chow Sang Sang and Lukfook Jewellery, were represented at the signing ceremony.
The declaration links the diamond industry to broader development objectives, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
Participants also highlighted the potential for greater cooperation in skills training, economic diversification and local value creation, areas that have long been priorities for African mineral-producing countries seeking to capture more economic benefits from their natural resources.
The initiative comes as China-Africa economic relations continue to expand beyond traditional infrastructure and commodity trade into areas involving manufacturing, consumer markets, skills and industrial value chains.
While the Beijing Declaration is an industry cooperation framework rather than a binding intergovernmental trade agreement, its signatories say it provides a platform for further engagement between African diamond producers and China’s diamond and jewellery sectors.
The next phase will depend on how the commitments are translated into practical cooperation, particularly in areas such as market access, skills development, local processing and communication with Chinese consumers.
