The Sociedade de Comercialização de Diamantes (Abbreviated SODIAM), in English the Diamond Trading Society, is the national diamond trading company of Angola. It is owned in part by ENDIAMA and exists to bring diamonds produced both through ENDIAMA's partnered mines and by artisanal miners to national and international markets.[1]
History
SODIAM was founded in November 1999 as a subsidiary of the state-owned diamond mining company ENDIAMA for the purpose of regulating and certifying diamond sales and exports. During the Angolan Civil War, rebel groups such as the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) were in control of much of the countryside, including many of Angola's most valuable diamond mining areas. These rebel groups financed their war in large part by bartering diamonds mined from these territories in exchange for weapons. In response to attacks by UNITA on civilians and United Nations personnel, the United Nations Security Council placed sanctions on UNITA, which included an embargo on diamonds from the country except for those certified authentic by the recognized government in Luanda.[1]