In the heart of Namak Mandi Peshawar, Faraz Ahmad, a 30-year-old gemstone exporter, works tirelessly to cut, polish and shape raw gemstones into beautiful pieces ready for the market ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations.
Amid the rhythm of gemstones polishing and cutting machines, he is seen motivating co labourers to meet the growing demands of domestic jewelers and international investors.
Faraz’s workshop is a microcosm of bustling gemstone trade at Namak Mandi, where gemstones are as precious as they are abundant, yet often undervalued due to an outdated mining method and lack of modern technology.
As the famous Pashto song “ Mong da Khyber Zalmi” (we are youth of Khyber Pakthunkhwa) plays in the background, Faraz’s hard work reflects on how demand for KP’s gemstones has surged both locally and internationally.
The province is a treasure trove for rare gemstones such as Ruby, Emerald, Sapphire, Topaz and Aquamarine, making it a hotspot for investors seeking quality stones for jewelry and other business.
These gems, often found across KP, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir and parts of Balochistan, have the potential to become a significant revenue source for the region and the country subject to its mechanized mining.
Faraz inherited his business from his father 10 years ago and is now part of an industry poised to growth. From the emeralds of Swat to topaz of Mardan, the peridot of Kohistan and rubies of Chitral, these stones also demand across the Gulf, Central Asia, Europe and South Asia.
“A person with technical know-how can easily earn Rs15,000 per carat from Emerald and Sapphire and up to Rs 100,000 profit from Rubby after making about Rs 0.6 million investment,” says Faraz. “As local and international buyers flock to Namak Mandi, the gemstone trade supports over 300,000 people since the market’s inception in 1970.”
Despite the wealth of natural resources, the gemstone industry in KP faces significant hurdles due to lack of patronage and poor policies, resulting in wastage of this precious resource.
“Lack of modern technology, laboratories and professional training prevents KP’s gemstones industry from reaching its full economic potential,” Faraz said.
Challenges of un-mechanized traditional mining methods lead to significant gemstone loss in KP while lack of infrastructure like professional stone-cutting facilities and mining technologies, severely limits their profitability.
Mamoor Khan, the patron-in-chief of All Pakistan Commercial Exporters Association (APCEA) believes that the sector’s future lies in its development on modern lines.
“Pakistan is home to diverse and rare varieties of gemstones and the potential to export millions of carats of rubies, emeralds and peridots remains untapped,” Mamoor Khan said. “This sector has the potential to become a major contributor to country’s economy, if fully tapped.”
In fact, he said that exports from APCEA alone amounted to USD 4 million in 2021-22, while gemstones and jewelry exports collectively rose from USD 14.1 million in 2018 to USD 14.6 million in 2019. “But, for the gemstones industry to realize its full potential, the KP government’s intervention is crucial.”
Dr. Muhammad Naeem, former Chairman of Economics Department at University of Peshawar was also critical of the past governments for neglecting gemstones sector like textiles, IT and agriculture. “With proper support of the government, the gemstones sector could increase exports to billions of dollars.”
But, he said, this would require significant investment in infrastructure, modern gemological laboratories and provision of subsidized technical training for miners.
“Establishment of modern gems labs was imperative in major cities like Peshawar, Mansehra, Swat, Muzaffarabad and Gilgit to avoid waste of precious resource and improve quality to compete internationally,” Dr Naeem said.
Besides formulation of an inclusive policy for provision of safe extraction techniques and curbing its smuggling, providing modern technical hardware to gems miners at the subsidized rates can flourish this industry.
Meanwhile, Gems and Gemological Institute Peshawar (GGIP) spokesman said that over 4500 students of KP and erstwhile Fata were trained by master trainers in gemstones mining, cutting and polishing in last two years.
“A draft act for setting up Gems and Jewelry Authority has been approved while gemstones were included in the list of priority sectors in strategic trade policy framework (2020-25),” said Director Trade Development Authority of Pakistan, Sabaz Ali.
He said gemstones and jewelry besides mines and mineral sectors would avail more opportunities in terms of technology transfers with positive impact on country’s exports under CPEC.
“In Peshawar, a Gemstones City would be set up to provide modern facilities of training for gemstones miners, certification, polishing and cutting of gemstones,” he said.
Likewise, he informed that gemstones entrepreneurs would be provided marketing and packing training as per international standards while linkages between local and international companies would be strengthened to bolster gemstones exports.