- Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company has retrenched 400 employees, nearly 22% of its workforce
- ZCDC chose to scale down operations rather than shut down entirely, in a bid to remain viable
- Zimbabwe’s economy remains heavily reliant on mining, which contributes around 60% of foreign currency earnings
Harare-Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC), the country’s largest state-owned diamond miner, has confirmed the retrenchment of 400 employees, a move that reflects the worsening crisis in the global diamond industry.
The decision was taken to preserve the viability of operations in the face of collapsing demand and falling prices for natural diamonds.
Formed in 2016 to consolidate diamond operations in the Marange fields, ZCDC was envisioned as a key player in restoring transparency and boosting national diamond revenues. With average annual production between 3 and 4 million carats, ZCDC was expected to help lift Zimbabwe’s diamond exports to over US$1 billion per year.
With a workforce of over 1,800, the job cuts represent nearly 22% of the company’s employees, a stark indication of the severity of the pressures facing the sector.
The retrenchments, while necessary for short term survival, carry deep social and economic implications, especially in Zimbabwe’s labor market which is already dominated by informality , over 70% of the workforce operates outside the formal sector, according to ZIMSTAT.
The loss of stable mining jobs will likely exacerbate unemployment, strain household incomes, and increase reliance on overstretched public services.
Diamond miners across the world are also under immense pressure as the industry grapples with one of its worst downturns in decades.
De Beers, one of the world’s leading diamond companies based in Bostwana , announced in late 2024 that it would slash production targets and suspend auctions as inventories piled up due to weakening demand. The company has also begun to cut jobs and restructure operations to stay afloat.
Similarly, Alrosa, Russia’s state controlled diamond giant and the world’s largest producer by volume, has seen its revenues plummet amid sanctions, oversupply, and a global market in retreat. Alrosa has reduced output, deferred large projects, and taken significant write downs on unsold stock.
These developments illustrate the broader crisis gripping the US$80 billion natural diamond industry, which is undergoing both a cyclical downturn and a structural transformation. The traditional dominance of natural stones is being steadily eroded by the rapid rise of lab-grown diamonds gems that are chemically identical to mined stones but produced in factories at a fraction of the cost.
Once seen as a low end or synthetic alternative, lab grown diamonds have gained widespread acceptance, especially among younger, price conscious, and sustainability oriented consumers. Today, these stones can retail for up to 80% less than natural diamonds, undermining the price floor for mined products.
Macroeconomic headwinds have compounded the crisis, luxury demand has plummeted in China and the United States, the two largest diamond markets globally and are turning to the safe haven , gold.
According to data from Rapaport and De Beers, rough diamond prices dropped by more than 15% in 2024, and the downward trend has persisted into 2025.
This has left producers with oversupply, thinner margins, and increasing uncertainty about the industry's long-term trajectory.
Zimbabwe is deeply exposed to these global headwinds as mining remains a critical pillar of the economy, contributing around 60% of the country’s foreign currency earnings, and the government has pinned its Vision 2030 economic transformation plan heavily on the sector.
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