May 10, 2018

CIBJO, the World Jewellery Confederation, will hold its 2018 annual congress in Bogotá, Colombia, October 15-17, with pre-congress meetings beginning on October 13.

The congress will be hosted by Fedesmeraldas, the National Federation of Emeralds of Colombia, which this year will be a celebrating the 20^th anniversary of its founding. Immediately prior to the event, from October 12 to 14, Fedesmeraldas will also host the second edition of the World Emerald Symposium, which CIBJO Congress participants are encouraged to attend.

The main venue for the CIBJO Congress will be the Grand Hyatt Bogotá, which is located in the heart of Ciudad Empresarial Sarmiento Angulo, the city’s commercial district.

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.

This is the second time that a CIBJO Congress will have been held in South America, with the first having taken place in Salvador, Brazil, in 2015. As Latin America’s fourth largest economy, Colombia is synonymous with the fine emerald sector, which is anchored by a mining industry that has functioned uninterrupted since the rule of the Incas, and archaeological evidence indicates that gemstones were already being mined in the area more 3,000 years ago. The country also has substantial gold reserves, and is a producer of silver and platinum. Bogotá, its capital and primary business hub, is home to an emerald sorting, cutting and trade centre, as well as a growing jewellery industry and trade.

“In so many respects, Colombia represents both the past and the future of our industry,” said Gaetano Cavalieri, CIBJO President. “It has been associated with the very finest of gemstones for centuries, but from a business perspective has still only scratched the surface of its potential, with studies indicating that about 80 percent of its vast emerald reserves still remain under the ground. The country’s government and gemstone industry are committed to a  programme that involves formalising the status of its artisanal and smaller-scale miners, enabling them to access the international markets, and so realize our business community’s potential of being a force for sustainable economic and social development. With the focus of the world jewellery industry on Colombia leading up to and during the CIBJO Congress, we are delighted to be able to partner with Fedesmeraldas in highlighting this process.”

A dedicated CIBJO Congress 2018 website will be launched shortly.

May 8, 2018

CIBJO, the World Jewellery Confederation, has announced the establishment of an industry-wide working committee, which will be charged with formulating Responsible Sourcing Guidelines specifically for the jewellery, gem and precious metals sectors. The new body was created by a decision of the CIBJO Board of Directors in March 2018, following Board approval of a draft Responsible Sourcing Guidelines document.

The guidelines, which when ratified will have the status of a CIBJO Blue Book, are intended to provide a general framework for responsible sourcing practices, serving as a roadmap for all industry participants. The guidelines will be voluntary recommendations for members of the sector, and will not constitute a standard or compliance mechanism by CIBJO. This means that members of the industry who would like certification or any other formal recognition of their implementation of responsible sourcing policies will need to do so through an internationally recognised standards organisation, such as the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC).

The proposed CIBJO Responsible Sourcing Guidance will follow the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas, and also supports the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

The Responsible Sourcing Committee, which is chaired by CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri, includes senior CIBJO officials from various industry sectors, as well as representatives of other industry organisations, including the RJC, with which CIBJO has a Memorandum of Understanding. The core Guidance document, which was approved by the CIBJO board in March 2018, was prepared by Philip Olden, a former managing director at the World Gold Council, who is an expert on responsible sourcing strategies in the precious metals and jewellery sector, and consults with major industry bodies in formulating their own responsible sourcing policies.

“Our objective is to formulate harmonised industry guidance as to what constitutes responsible sourcing and how it should be approached,” said Dr. Cavalieri. “Because we work in a business in which the supply chain almost always comprises multiple players, it is essential that we operate according to the same principles. Moreover, we strongly believe that all participants in the industry, small and large, should be able to demonstrate  the integrity in their supply chain to the best of their ability, and the element of inclusiveness will lie at the heart of this document.”

“We are pleased to support this important project,” said Andrew Bone, Executive Director of the RJC. “Responsible sourcing is something that is already undertaken by many jewellery companies and the CIBJO Guidelines will outline the management processes for doing so in a consistent way. We are committed to working with CIBJO in promoting good practices to all members of the industry and will provide the means for companies to certify and assure their responsible sourcing practices through the RJC Code of Practices.”

When the Responsible Sourcing Committee completes the drafting of the Responsible Sourcing Guidelines document, it will be made available for both peer and public review. The final draft will be submitted for ratification as an official Blue Book at the 2018 CIBJO Congress later this year, where it is envisioned that the working committee will be transformed into a CIBJO Commission, which will be charged with reviewing and updating the document on a regular basis.

April 26, 2018

CIBJO is paying tribute to the memory of a former president, Friedrich (Fritz) Schwarzer, who died recently in Austria, after decades of public service in the jewellery industry, both in his native country and internationally, and more than 60 years of experience in the trade. He headed the World Jewellery Confederation from 1993 through 1996.

Born in 1938 into a Viennese household that was steeped in the jewellery industry, at the the tender age of 18 he was already named a limited partner in the family business, which was a company manufacturing and dealing in gold and silver products.

He joined the jewellery trade full time after his university studies, during which he was awarded the title of “Engineer” in 1961 and a graduate degree in business (Diplomkaufmann) in 1964.

Alongside his own business he was a dedicated public servant, first representing the Austrian jewellery wholesale trade in CIBJO in 1975. Back home, he served as Vice Chairman of the Vienna Chamber of Commerce – Jewellery Trade, from 1981 to 1985 and again from 1995 to 2005, and as Chairman from 2005 to 2010. He was granted the title of Commercial Councillor (Kommerzialrat) in 2002, and was awarded the body’s silver medal in honour of his service in 2004.

Additionally, he served as a lay judge in the Vienna Commercial Court from 1988 to 1993, and as a lay judge in the Higher Regional Court from 1993 to 2001.

He was the recipient of many other awards and recognitions, including being a Knight of the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem, and a recipient of the Grand Cross Royal Order of the Lion of Godenu.

“Fritz was one of the pillars of the modern jewellery industry, both in Austria and globally, through his many years of dedicated service to CIBJO and its members around the world,” said CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri. “We all are dependent upon those of our colleagues who take time out of their busy schedules to work on behalf of the community, and Fritz was one the best. He will be remembered with great fondness and respect.”

Friedrich Schwarzer is survived by his wife, Professor Elfriede Schwarzer, a renowned pearl expert, who herself served for many years as President of the CIBJO Pearl Commission.