A rare characteristic of the stone is its perfect
chemical purity: it is ranked as a type IIa diamond, a category which includes
less than 1% of all diamonds. It ranks
as the third-largest gem-quality diamond and the largest alluvial diamond ever
discovered. The Star of Sierra Leone is considered as the most famous diamond
unearthed from this place. The largest gem-quality diamond discovered
previously in Sierra Leone was the 620-carat "Sefadu" diamond, found
in 1970.
Diamonds of Sierra Leone have an international reputation
as one of the highest gem quality diamonds in the world. The diamonds are so
pure and free of inclusions that some of them are known as "glasses",
clear, transparent and absolutely colorless. Being D-color diamonds, the
Star of Sierra Leone diamonds are Type IIa diamonds, that are
characterized as chemically pure (due the absence of impurities such as
nitrogen, boron, hydrogen etc. which can cause color in diamonds) and
structurally perfect (due to the absence of plastic distortions in the crystal,
which can also impart rare fancy colors to the diamond) .
Sierra Leone's traffic in diamonds has left a trail of
carnage. While they may seem a symbol of happiness, the reality of the gems is
far from that. What are conflict diamonds?
Conflict, or blood diamonds are mined in a war zone and sold,
usually clandestinely, in order to finance an insurgent or invading army's war
efforts. The Kimberley Process is a joint government, international
diamond industry and civil society initiative established in 2002 to stem the
flow of conflict diamonds - rough diamonds that are used by rebel movements to
finance wars against legitimate governments. The trade in these illicit stones
has contributed to devastating conflicts in countries such as Angola, Cote
d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone. The diamond industry estimates that conflict
diamonds represent 4 percent of the total trade in rough diamonds. Others have
estimated that conflict diamonds could amount to as high as 15 percent of the
total trade. In 2001, the diamond
industry produced rough diamonds with a market value of $7.9 billion. At the
end of the diamond chain, this was converted into jewelry worth $54.1 billion.
The mining industry of Sierra Leone accounted
for 4.5 percent of the country's GDP in 2007 and minerals made up 79 percent of
total export revenue with diamonds accounting for 46 percent of export revenue
in 2008. The main minerals mined
in Sierra Leone are
diamonds, rutile, bauxite, gold, iron and limonite. Mining in Sierra Leone, especially diamond mining, has
been seen as one of the key factors for instability in the country and one of
the reasons for the country's recent civil war. Traditionally,
benefits from diamond mining have ended up with private companies and corrupt
officials rather than the country's government and people. The Ministry of Mineral Resources is
responsible for the management of the country's minerals sector and the Mines
and Minerals Act 2009. Sierra Leone is a candidate for the Extraction
Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). GoSL publishes data on licenses and payments by mining
companies in their Online Repository established by Revenue
Development Foundation, the repository was launched in January 2012.
Organized mining began in the 1920s with bauxite first
being recorded in 1920 along the Falaba to Waia road. Diamonds were found in the early 1930s, from
1934 to 1956 the Sierra Leone Selection Trust (SLST)
held the monopoly for
mining, prospecting for and marketing diamonds throughout Sierra Leone.
The Consolidated
African Selection Trust Ltd (CAST), which owned mining
operation around West Africa, provided the initial capital for
the SLST. The monopoly was originally given
for 99 years but in 1955 the SLST gave up rights to alluvial
deposits outside its lease area. This allowed artisan and
small scale mining of alluvial deposits, and by 1965 there had been a large
movement from agricultural work to working these deposits. In 1970 a joint SLST and government organization
was formed call the National Diamond Mining Corporation (NDMC). Before the start of the Civil War in 1991 250,000 people made
a living in the mining and quarrying sector with direct and indirect employment
accounting for 14% of the country's total labor force. The mineral wealth of
Sierra Leone, especially in diamonds, became a key factor in its instability
and the outbreak of Civil War. Despite
being among the top-ten diamond-producing nations, the mining sector faces
many challenges, including weak laws and smuggling issues. Sierra Leone is losing large revenue that
could have been earned from taxes and licensing agreements. Those revenues could be reinvested for
example in the healthcare sector to help those people whose health is affected
by mining operations. Research suggests
50% of Sierra Leone’s diamonds were smuggled annually. NACE argues that with good institutional
reforms, Sierra Leone can increase mineral exports seven-fold by 2020. Sierra Leone’s mining performance is
extremely poor as compared to Botswana,
where mining contributes approximately 38% to their GDP.
Rutile
Sierra Leone is ranked as one of the top five producers of rutile, a titanium ore, used in paint pigment
and welding rod coatings. The government issued leases for mining rutile are
held by Sierra Rutile Limited which
is owned by Titanium Resources Group which is
owned by European and U.S investors. These leases cover 580 km2 of land where
there are 19 identified deposits of rutile. In 2009 the Government of Sierra
Leone received Le 1,854 million in royalties from
rutile mining. In 2009 production decreased by
19.07 percent to 63,860 tons, and exports were worth US$ 35,920,300.
Gold
Gold mining in Sierra Leone consisted of small scale
operation exploiting alluvial
deposits. After the end of
the Sierra Leone Civil War exploration of gold
grew and by 2013 to 2015 new modern mines are expected to be in production. In
2010 Cluff Gold, a British
company, found gold deposits in the rocks of the southern Kangari hills and is
planning to build a mechanized mine to extract it. In 2009 production levels of gold fell by
17.71 percent to 5060 Troy Ounces (157 kg) from 6150 Troy Ounces
(191 kg) in 2008. This was due to a drop in mining activity in the second
half of the year and was despite a rise in the price of gold on the global
market. The increase in the value of gold meant gold exports were worth 15.73
percent more at US$4,764,000
in 2009 compared to US$4,116,400 in 2008.
Diamonds
Diamonds are found in about a quarter of Sierra Leone in
the south-east and east of the country, with the diamond fields cover 7,700
square miles. The main production areas are concentrated around the drainage
areas of rivers in the Kono, Kenema and Bo Districts.
In the Kono, Kenema, Bo and Pujehun Districts
there are 1,700 artisanal mining licenses in operation. In 2009 the government recorded exports of
400,480 carats (80,096 g) of diamonds, this
included 143,620 carats (28,724 g) of industrial diamonds and 256,860 (51,372 g)
of gem diamonds.
This was an increase of 7.86 percent on the previous year which was a result of
legislative changes, in the form of a new mining law, to enable fees and
royalties to be collected more effectively and an increase in the amount of
diamond mining. Diamond exports were worth US$ 78,373,900 in
2009 accounting for 59 percent of the country's exports. The drop in the value
of diamonds on the world market meant that the value of diamond exports
decreased by 20.68 percent in 2009 compared to 2008. The largest diamond found in Sierra Leone,
and the third largest diamond in the world, was a 969.8 carat (194 g) rough
diamond. It was found in the 1972 and named the Star of Sierra Leone.
Sierra Leone should have been one of the
world’s richest countries, being blessed with resources, including gold and diamonds.
However, it remains one of the world’s poorest countries, ranking 203 out of
206 countries by World Development Report.
Wealth that diamonds should have brought is not evident, and Sierra
Leone is still emerging from scars from the recent brutal Sierra Leone Civil War, which was fuelled
by illicit diamond trading. Revenue from mining in Sierra Leone has not been
redistributed to benefit the larger population.
The mining industry contributed 4.5% towards its Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) in 2007. Economic development is low due to poor management of
resources and unrealized potential revenue.
Bauxite
Sierra Leone's production of bauxite,
an aluminum ore,
is around one percent of the total global production. Deposits occur between Moyamba and Mano, on the Freetown Peninsular,
at Krim-Kpaka in the
Pujehun District, southern Sierra Leone; in north on the road from Falaba to Waia, at Kamakwie and Makumre.
Sierra Minerals Holdings is
the only company mining bauxite in the country, and the second largest employer
in the mining industry. It runs the
Sieromco Bauxite Mine as well as holding the mining lease to 321.7 km2. In 2009 production of bauxite fell by 22.17
percent to 742,820 tons. This was due to Sierra Minerals ceasing production
from June to September 2009 as a response to falling global demand for
aluminum, which is produced from bauxite.
Iron
Mining for hematite iron
ore recommenced at Marampa mine on 11 February 2010 after 35
years. The mine is owned by London Mining which
also owns an exploration license covering 319 km². The Tonkolili region
hosts the biggest iron ore deposit in Africa and the third largest in the
world, exploited by African Minerals, in the hills around Bumbuna,
Mabonto and Bendugu.
I’m not much of a miner, but all of the above seems to be
a plus for a country. A way of means to
get the country out of poverty and to look towards a brighter future. With all its assests, why is the country
still floundering and ranked in the bottom 10 in the world ranked on its GDP?
Hmmmmm food for thought.
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