(IDEX Online) - The World Diamond Council (WDC) is encouraging stakeholders to review the System of Warranties (SoW) during its public review period which ends on October 1.
This review period, which began on June 5, is intended to help industry participants better implement and demonstrate commitment to responsible sourcing when buying or selling rough and polished diamonds.
"Public review of the SoW is crucial to ensuring a transparent process as we continue to uphold our promise to customers that they can trust that the diamonds they purchase have been sourced responsibly," said Stephane Fischler, President of the WDC. "We look forward to receiving comments from our stakeholders that reflect our commitment to upholding the integrity in the global diamond supply chain."
The SoW reforms establish a new level of adherence for members and call on users of SoW statements to ensure their trading activities maintain strict adherence of universally accepted principles on human and labor rights, anticorruption, and anti‐money laundering in support of the mandatory Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) implementation.
The SoW review and reform process is part of the WDC Strategic Plan. The draft of the SoW Guidelines and a paper explaining the Reform of the SoW is also available.
The new SoW reforms are planned to be implemented beginning in 2019.