08Jun Moyo Gemstones
To make this happen, we are collaborating with the Tanzania Women Miners Association (TAWOMA), in conjunction with Pact (a not-for-profit international development organisation) and US-based, African gemstone specialist, ANZA Gems (run by the amazing Monica Stephenson).
We were in Tanzania in May for our first market days when we met with over 70 miners from several communities in the Tanga region to look at their rough gem material and make some initial purchases. Our mission was to prove the concept and work out a process of buying and exporting that would work for the miners, the relevant government agencies and ourselves. We're happy to report that the results exceeded our expectations on many levels and we are already looking forward to the next market days.
We've already had some very positive feedback from the miners, who said they felt the system made life easier for them and they were more confident that they would receive fair prices for their gemstones, whilst trading in a safe and controlled environment.
As for the gemstones, they are currently on their way to our cutters in both Sri Lanka and the USA, so we hope to be able to show you some of the results in the near future. We'll be setting up a new section on our website where you will find all of the Moyo Gems we have available.
In the meantime, you can follow the progress of the project on Twitter (@moyogems) and Instagram (@moyogems).
The new gems will be available on our website very soon or get in touch to let us know you would be interested in of these types of gems, sourced in Tanzania by female miners.
More details can be found on the website: https://moyogems.com/
Further Photos of our recent trip in 2019:
