25/09/2026
In 2019, DMCC partnered with the Diamond Development Initiative (DDI) to support artisanal diamond-mining communities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo – an important chapter in our longstanding engagement with the global diamond industry.
DMCC’s support helped children who had completed DDI’s mobile schooling programme progress into high school, while also supporting literacy and training programmes for artisanal miners. This formed part of DDI’s wider work to strengthen communities, advance responsible practices and support the formalisation of artisanal mining.
During a visit to Kinshasa and Mbuji-Mayi, a DMCC delegation led by Executive Chairman and CEO, Ahmed Bin Sulayem, met artisanal miners, local communities and government representatives to see the impact of this work firsthand. The delegation was hosted by the late Dorothée Gizenga, DDI’s founding Executive Director and a leading advocate for artisanal miners and their communities. Later that year, DMCC presented her with the inaugural Dubai Diamond Award in recognition of her contribution to the global diamond industry.
Dorothée Gizenga's work left an enduring legacy, advancing the interests of artisanal miners and ensuring that their communities remained part of the global conversation around the future of diamonds for many years to come.
