At the first working session of the 36th World Diamond Congress, important election and associations were formed. WFDB formally accepted the Diamond Bourse of Canada, represented by Mr. David Gavin, President of the Bourse in Canada; in addition to the Korea Diamond Bourse, represented by its President Mr. Chang Soo Nam, as its 30th member bourse. “This is a milestone in the history of the WFDB as we now represent 30 Bourses from around the world and more than 95 percent of the world’s diamonds are now traded through a member bourse,” commented Blom. The Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) represented by Mr. Suresh Shah was also confirmed as an Associate member. A MoU was also signed between WFDB and the Borsa Istanbul.

Also, Ernie Blom, current WFDB President, was elected for another two-year period. Additional members elected included Julien Drybooms, Vice President; Rony Unterman as Secretary-General; Michel Schonfeld (Deputy Secretary General); Dieter Hahn, Treasurer-General; Harry Levy (Deputy Treasurer-General). Members elected to the Executive Members Committee were Rami Baron, Reuven Kaufman, Harry Levy, Nikhil Jhaveri, Anoop Metha, Peter Meeus, Sergery, Oulin, Alex Popov, Lin Qiang and Shmuel Schnitzer.

At the session, Blom further announced that the WFDB has initiated a drive to secure both producing countries and mining houses as part of the WFDB, as it would ensure that the supply chain representation is expanded and in doing so create a more efficient and co-coordinated industry.