In China, the Esg turn of valuables

A historic Chinese stopover for the annual congress of Cibjo-The world jewellery confederation, which represents the jewellery sector at the UN, the OECD and in all the main international fora. The city of Jaipur, which hosted it in 2023, passed the baton to Shanghai, where (in the presence of top-level institutional summits) the challenges of sustainability, the workhorse of the confederation led by Gaetano Cavalieri for over twenty years, were also addressed.

Moreover, China is also a record-breaker in jewellery: the market is worth more than $140 billion a year, the country is the world's top buyer of gold and among the five hubs for diamonds. So much so that Liu Ping, deputy secretary-general of the municipal government, announced from the conference live on TV and online (followed by more than 600,000 people worldwide) the creation in Shanghai of a special Zone dedicated to jewellery.

Numbers count, but they are not everything. Chairman Gaetano Cavalieri recalled this, in the presence of Li Dong, chairman of the powerful Donghao Lansheng Group and, among others, representatives of China Gem and jade exchange and the Diamond and gems administration of China, reiterating the need to accelerate the ESG (environmental, social and governance) turnaround. "Buyers' trust must be protected, otherwise the market is at risk," Cavalieri explained. "Therefore, precise standards must be set to promote the comparability of products and the transparency and fairness of supply. But above all it is necessary to accelerate on the road to sustainability, following the North Star of the 17 UN Goals and leaving no one behind. At the General Assembly, I provided evidence that we source raw materials mainly from developing areas in Africa, South America, Asia and the South Pacific, and that we contribute significantly to their economic and social development. Moreover, China and India are changing: not just factory countries but also exporters of intellectual capital and creativity'.

In a geopolitical context that is complex but not new to extreme difficulties, Feriel Zerouki, president of the World Diamond Council and senior vice president of the De Beers Group explained that the Kimberley Process (the agreement set up to certify that profits from diamonds are not used to finance wars) 'is far from perfect but it is also functioning at full capacity: today 85 countries are adhering to it and reforms are advancing within it; we have even opened a secretariat in Botswana'. Regarding the ESG breakthrough to be completed in the jewellery sector, Zerouki explained that 'there are three key words: action, action, action: now is the time to act'.

Not an easy challenge at a time of multiple crises and falling demand for precious metals. "I am a diamond pioneer, I have seen these circumstances happen before in my life and I know that the sector has always come out stronger, so I am an optimist," said Edward Asscher, vice-president of the Responsible jewellery council, the organisation that promotes trust in the sector by associating 1,900 companies. Now we have to bring SMEs on board, helping them to move within the framework of responsible business'.