The Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE), a DMCC (Dubai Multi Commodities Centre') platform, yesterday (October 16) opened the third edition of its biennial two-day Dubai Diamond Conference 2017 (DDC 2017).

Themed ‘Shaping the future of an interconnected marketplace’, the  conference is known for identifying the main issues impacting the global industry, is dealing with a rich agenda of subjects critical to the future of the diamond business worldwide and opened to its biggest-ever audience.

Abdullah Al Saleh, UAE Ministry of Economy, Undersecretary of Foreign Trade and Industry, UAE, and DMCC’s executive chairman, Ahmed Bin Sulayem inaugurated the conference, welcoming top-level speakers and panellists from every sector of the diamond pipeline and from across the world.

"It is really excellent to see that so many world-class experts have travelled from all over the world to attend the 3rd Dubai Diamond Conference. Dubai believes in the diamond industry’s potential to grow and we are committed to doing everything we can to support the industry,” said Al Saleh.

 Meanwhile, Bin Sulayem spoke about the critical role the Dubai Diamond Conference has developed in taking stock of developments in the industry and providing pointers for how it should tackle challenges as it moves forward. “Diamonds have long played an illustrious role in Dubai's heritage as a gateway for global trade. And, in just 15 short years, Dubai has become the third biggest diamond trading centre in the world. It didn’t happen by accident. It happened because we designed an environment that is safe, business friendly, and that conveniently links producing and consuming markets.’

 Speaking of the future, Ahmed Bin Sulayem set the agenda on the importance of connecting with and understanding millennials as recent research found that 37 per cent of millennials claim to distrust big business and brands.

“It’s a different world. And it goes beyond just advertising and marketing. What do we as an industry have to change to better appeal to this demographic? That’s why I find that one of today’s panels, ‘How diamonds fit in the new era of Millennials’, will be especially important,” Bin Sulayem concluded.

The conference, that is taking place in Dubai's Almas Tower which houses the Dubai Diamond Exchange, is bringing together international leaders of the diamond industry ranging from African Ministers to traders, financiers and world-renowned jewellers. – TradeArabia News Service