CIBJO, the World Jewellery Confederation, will hold its 2017 annual congress in Bangkok, Thailand, November 5-7, 2016, with pre-congress meetings beginning on November 2. The World Ruby Forum, which is being organised in conjunction with the congress, will take place November 4.

The congress will be hosted by the Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) and the Gem and Jewellery Institute of Thailand (GIT), both of which fall under the jurisdiction of the Thai Ministry of Commerce. The official invitation to conduct the event in Bangkok was issued by Mrs. Apiradi Tantraporn, Thailand’s Minister of Commerce.

The main venue for the CIBJO Congress will be the renowned Shangri-La Bangkok, located on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, the major waterway that flows through Thailand’s capital city.

CIBJO Congresses serve as the official gathering place for the World Jewellery Confederation’s Assembly of Delegates, and also are the venue for the annual meetings of CIBJO’s sectoral commissions, where amendments can be introduced to the organisation’s definitive directories of international industry standards for diamonds, coloured stones, pearls, gem labs, precious metals and coral, known as the Blue Books.

The CIBJO Congress is also where the programme of World Jewellery Confederation Education Foundation (WJCEF), relating to responsible and sustainable activities in the industry, and CIBJO’s ongoing cooperation with the United Nations and its development programme is reported upon.

It is the second time that a CIBJO Congress will take place in Bangkok, with the first having been held in the city in 2004. Thailand is a leading world centre in the coloured gemstone and jewellery industries, reporting about $10 billion worth of exports per annum, with close to 16,000 companies employing some 1.3 million individuals. Jewellery and gemstones make up the country’s third largest export category.

“The fact that the CIBJO Congress is returning to Bangkok is a testament to Thailand’s central role in almost every category of our business, from mining all the way through to jewellery retail, not only in South East Asia, but globally as well,” said Gaetano Cavalieri, CIBJO President.  “We thank the Thai government for its generous invitation, as well as DITP and GIT, and invite members of the gem and jewellery sectors from around the world to join us, and to participate in our deliberations, which will impact on stakeholders along the entire chain of distribution. We also are honoured to be able to work in tandem with the World Ruby Forum, which in itself will be a milestone event.”

A dedicated CIBJO Congress 2017 website will be launched shortly.