By Fanuel Chinowaita
MUTARE, Marange, Chiyadzwa – 8 July 2025 – The Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) is facing fierce backlash from workers, trade unions, and community leaders following its decision to retrench nearly 300 employees a number that could rise to 600 amid worsening financial troubles.
The move has reignited long-standing anger in the Marange and Bocha communities, where the company stands accused of broken promises, unfair labour practices, and environmental neglect.
The retrenchment notices, issued last week, come at a time when ZCDC is reportedly battling a sharp decline in global demand for natural diamonds, worsened by the growing dominance of synthetic, laboratory-produced gems.
In meetings with stakeholders, company officials cited market volatility, stockpiling of unsold diamonds, and rising debts as reasons for downsizing operations. However, critics argue that the decision reflects a deeper failure of accountability, and may signal a quiet exit from Marange without fulfilling outstanding obligations to workers and the displaced community.
Justice Chinhema, Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Minerals Workers Union (ZDAMWU), condemned the retrenchments as “procedurally flawed,” saying workers were not consulted and proper legal frameworks were ignored. He urged affected employees not to accept retrenchment packages until all legal channels had been explored.
Cosmas Sunguro, the President of the Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Workers Union (ZIDAWU), added that workers were being sacrificed for management failures.
“We are not happy at all. This development reflects the insensitivity of ZCDC management. Ordinary workers are being sacrificed for someone else’s mismanagement.
“While we were initially told the exercise was voluntary, workers were shown the painful path to the job market. It’s back to zero for some”,said Sunguro.
Sunguro expressed concern that the burden of the retrenchments would shift to the already struggling Marange community, where unemployment and poverty are widespread. “The procedure must be followed. Workers have families to look after. Unfortunately, the burden now falls on the host community. More problems are coming on top of their already heavy burdens,” he said.
The impact of the layoffs goes beyond the company gates. In Marange, the retrenchments are being seen as the latest blow in a long chain of betrayals dating back to 2009, when over 1,000 families were forcibly relocated from Chiadzwa to Arda Transau to make way for diamond mining. Many of those families say they were never compensated, and the houses they were given are now crumbling, with cracked walls and poor infrastructure.
Malvern Mudiwa, Chairman and Founder for the Marange Development Trust (MDT), condemned the retrenchments, accusing ZCDC of attempting to restructure operations in a manner that excludes the Marange community.
“We suspect they want to restructure and run the company without the community. We have lost everything. As a community, we had benefited through employment. Now we have nothing.
“People were relocated to Arda but were never compensated. Now they want to close and leave. Are we even sure these people have title deeds for those houses?”
Mudiwa questioned whether ZCDC had allocated any money toward environmental rehabilitation or social reinvestment, warning that abandoned mine pits, polluted rivers, and broken livelihoods would be the company’s only legacy.
“If ZCDC is going, has it set aside funds for rehabilitation? Are they going to close the holes they’re leaving behind, or just vanish and dump the damage on us?” he asked.
Mudiwa also blasted ZCDC’s failure to invest in local infrastructure, lamenting the state of the road leading to Chiadzwa.
“There’s a tollgate at 22 Miles, and we pay, but the road to Chiadzwa is riddled with potholes. ZCDC even failed to construct a tarred road despite the wealth from our diamonds.”
Bilia Tinodini Matambo, Chairperson of the Marange Women’s Alliance, said the company’s financial woes were shared during a recent workshop held in Mutare, where community producers complained about delays in payment for farm produce supplied to ZCDC.
“ZCDC admitted they’re financially struggling due to the rise of synthetic diamonds which have taken over the alluvial diamond market.ZCDC said buyers are now running for lab made diamonds, leaving ours behind,” said Matambo.
She said the Public Relations Manager of the company said the Diamond mining Company had resorted to stockpiling unsold diamonds and surviving on loans during periods of low market demand, a situation that has left it unable to pay both workers and creditors.
“We are also having a problem of stockpiling. While we wait for the market to improve, we survive through loans. Now that the market is down, we are burdened. Yet people still need money,” ZCDC said.
“Working without being paid and being retrenched without volunteering is not good, t’s a dilemma. The company also can’t keep workers it can’t afford. It’s a tricky situation” said Matambo.
While acknowledging the economic challenges facing the diamond industry, Josphat Makaza of the Chiadzwa Community Development Trust (CCDT) stressed that ZCDC must not use market fluctuations as an excuse to walk away from its responsibilities.
“When demand falls, diamond-producing countries suffer. But retrenching workers without fair compensation worsens unemployment,” he said. “The government must stop exporting raw minerals and invest in local value addition. Otherwise, we’ll keep suffering in a country full of resources.”
Makaza also raised concerns about ZCDC’s failure to fund the Community Share Ownership Trust, citing a 2016 parliamentary report that revealed only $400,000 of a promised $50 million had ever been deposited—most of it reportedly misused.
“We are sitting on pledges. There’s no visible development. What happens when the company leaves?” he asked.
Moses Mukwada of Bocha Diamond Community Development offered one of the most scathing critiques.
“ZCDC’s hand-to-mouth approach is unjustified. If retrenchments must happen, why target locals while keeping non-local security guards? They’re pushing communities deeper into poverty,” he said.
Mukwada accused the company of causing more harm than good in the region.
“ZCDC has done more harm than if diamonds were never mined. They’ve left no infrastructure, no sustainable projects just destruction,” he said. “Masquerading as a benevolent company, ZCDC is nothing but a thief in sheep’s clothing. They’ve looted our diamonds and left behind dust and devastation.”
He warned that without urgent government intervention, the closure or collapse of ZCDC could leave Marange with a toxic legacy of environmental damage, abandoned infrastructure, and deepened poverty.
As ZDAMWU pursues legal action and community leaders demand answers, calls are growing louder for the government to step in. Stakeholders are demanding that ZCDC halt the retrenchments until fair criteria are applied, issue title deeds to relocated families in Arda Transau, rehabilitate mined-out lands, and reinvest meaningfully in sustainable community livelihoods.
For now, hundreds of workers and families in Marange and Bocha face an uncertain future, one that once again reflects Zimbabwe’s wider struggle with resource exploitation and the elusive promise of prosperity through minerals.
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