facts about diamonds mining in south africa

South Africa is one of Africa's choicest countries that are spearheading development on the continent The country which had been an apartheid country recently hosted the FIFA world cup in 2010 but there are other fascinating facts about South Africa that you probably have not heard of before In this article we'll bring to light the best 10 amazing and fun facts about South Africa People use the Kimberley region for mining as it is one of the only places in the world where you can find a large deposit of diamonds as the conditions to make diamonds are very rare and also because the availability for labour is very good due to the large population of Africa and the lack of job opportunities

[INFOGRAPHIC] Mining in South Africa

South Africa is one of the top mining regions in the world Famous for its abundance of profitable mineral resources such as gold diamonds coal and platinum the country is estimated to have the world's fifth-largest mining sector in terms of GDP value The following infographic breaks down some facts and figures to know about the mining industry in South Africa

Diamonds Are Forever? As the largest producer of diamonds in the world diamond mining in Africa is woven into the history of the continent At once the source of immense wealth and extreme poverty the history of diamond mining and the future of the diamond mining industry in Africa is a hot topic around the world

At Kimberley visitors can view a 17-minute movie about the location and the history of diamond mining in Africa They also get to walk out on a high platform to view The Big Hole take a ride down a faux mining shaft enter a locked vault to view genuine diamonds of all colors and visit a small museum

Diamonds were discovered in South America as early as 1725 The discovery occurred in Minas Gerais Brazil just as the production in India was dwindling Diamonds were found in North America in the 1840s although this was soon eclipsed by the discovery of diamonds in Africa in the late 1860s and early 1870s and the ensuing Great Diamond Rush

Diamond industrialist Ehud Arye Laniado is a man passionate about diamonds From his early 20s in Africa and later in Belgium honing his expertise in forecasting the value of polished diamonds by examining rough diamonds by hand till today four decades later as chairman of his international diamond businesses spanning mining exploration rough and polished diamond valuation trading

Top 10 interesting facts about South Africa diamond

Top 10 interesting facts about South Africa diamond mining I need a professionally written article on the top 10 interesting facts about South Africa diamond mining I need bizarre facts Facts about early diamond mining who used to work the mines and whether they tried smuggling the diamonds or not What means they used to smuggle and so

With the list of mines in South Africa one can easily tell that mining is indeed a major income earner for different groups of employees and workers This sector has taken up a good number of people So what are the South African mines worth noting? Well South Africa is known for mining of coal and gold among other naturally occurring minerals

After several years of talks and visits Venezuela and South Africa finally signed an agreement on the organization of joint ventures in the business of mining particularly diamonds in Orinoco Mining Arc south Venezuela writes AVN South African Deputy Minister of Mineral Resources Godfrey Oliphant and his Venezuelan counterpart Vctor Cano inked the agreement with a focus on

South Africa Table of Contents South Africa's modern history has often been dated from the first commercial mining of diamonds and gold in the 1870s and the 1880s when the region became a magnet for European investment (see Diamonds) Mining in the region predated European arrivals by several centuries however as the new government recalled in its

Shimansky's History of Diamonds in South Africa A look at the background of Mzansi's most sought-after stone Though the global history of diamonds dates back around 3 3 billion years when these treasured stones were first formed by high pressure and heat deep within the earth's crust the South African story of these gems only began in 1867 with their local discovery

This is the case of blood diamonds in Africa which are sold financially to support wrong causes such as armies and warlords Instead of representing love and commitment blood diamonds in Africa mostly stand for violence harsh mining conditions slavery and more

Brief history of diamond mining in South Africa Brief history of diamond mining in South Africa Kimberley Process Certification Scheme is established to stem the flow of conflict diamonds 2003 First women employed in mining positions 2004 Mining Charter comes into effect

Last month we gave you 20 interesting facts about the land down under This month we feature South Africa You might know already that South Africa has 11 official languages and was the recent host of the 2010 FIFA World Cup but here are 20 lesser known facts about this friendly and fascination country

THE DIAMOND INDUSTRY FACT SHEET

An estimated US$13 billion worth of rough diamonds are produced per year of which approximately US$8 5 billion are from Africa (approximately 65%) The diamond industry employs approximately ten million people around the world both directly and indirectly across a wide spectrum of roles from mining to retail Global diamond jewellery sales

Facts about Diamond Mining tell you about a number of diamond mines in the world More than 90 percent of the world's supply of diamond is located on 50 largest mines There are several disperse areas in the world which also become the mining sources of diamonds

Economic activity in modern-day South Africa has been centred on mining activities their ancillary services and supplies The country's stock exchange in Johannesburg was established in 1887 a decade after the first diamonds were discovered on the banks of the Orange River and almost simultaneously with the gold rush on the world-famous Witwatersrand

There are roughly 80 000 people employed in South Africa's coal sector behind only the gold and platinum sectors in terms of workforce Diamonds As with the gold and coal sectors diamond mining in South Africa dates back to the 1860s The Eureka diamond weighing 21 3 carats was found in the Hopetown region in 1867

The mining industry in South Africa is highly regulated in terms of its social and environmental performance with companies having to uphold stringent standards which in some cases go beyond the requirements of many international best practice guidelines in order to maintain their licence to operate

The story of South African diamonds started when the first diamond was discovered in 1867 by 15-year-old Erasmus Jacobs on the Orange River This 21 24 carat diamond was named the Eureka diamond and is the single most important diamond in the history of South Africa

South Africa is found at the southernmost region of Africa with a long coastline that reaches more than 2 500 km (1 553 mi) and along two oceans (the South Atlantic and the Indian) At 1 219 912 km 2 (471 011 sq mi) South Africa is the 25th-largest country in the world and is almost the size of Colombia Njesuthi in the Drakensberg at 3 408 m (11 181 ft) is the highest part in South Africa