This archive report was first published on 19 December 2019.
On December 19, 2019, Zambia announced that it would suspend its 15% export duty on gemstones, which was set to take effect from January 1, 2020.
The export duty was initially introduced alongside a 6% mineral tax to raise revenue, but it ended up harming the production of gemstones.
According to Gemfields, a precious-stones producer, the export duty caused a $5 million cash flow problem at its Kagem mine in the six months leading up to June.
With the export duty and mineral tax in place, Kagem was paying 21% of its revenues to tax authorities.
However, the export duty still applies to diamonds.
The Kagem emerald mine is the world's largest producer of emeralds, accounting for approximately 25% of global emerald production.
