There is no doubt that one prominent industry in Guyana which can assist to fill the void and which can bring real prosperity to the nation is the jewellery industry. Gold is wealth and Guyana prides itself with possession of such a scarce resource. Guyana is the only CARICOM country with a substantial gold production, and uses its own gold in the manufacturing of jewellery, as compared with other countries, which import gold.

Yet, it is sad that the current image of the jewellery industry is very poor, in the local, regional or international markets.

There are mounting complaints about the quality of jewellery produced by goldsmiths. Investigation of some of the complaints by way of testing revealed massive under-karating of the jewellery, whether deliberate or unintentional. Consumers are always suspicious about the quality of jewellery displayed for sale.

There are numerous mal-practices in the industry, and these are linked to under-karating, e.g. failure to stamp gold jewellery with both a carat mark and a manufacturing identity mark; failure to determine the purity of raw gold used in alloying; failure to smelt raw gold before alloying; and failure to move away from the inaccurate, traditional “stone test” method carried out to determine gold content or carat.

In addition there are other mal-practices in accepting raw gold from traders and retailers, who determine how many pennyweights of finished jewellery should be returned per ounce of raw gold supplied.

Also, the practice of buying scrap gold on the basis of a stone test method and reworking it as is, for subsequent resale. And, the practice of accepting used gold jewellery from customers for reworking, and mixing it with gold jewellery from other customers without regard for gold content.

All these mal-practices must be adequately addressed. The jewellery industry is still very much a ‘cottage’ industry and considerable efforts are needed to prepare the industry for the challenges of a wider market.

The industry must be given the opportunity to buy carat gold and carat solders, alloyed to high internationally-accepted standards. Ideally, a precious metal finder (or dealer) should offer fine 24ct, 22ct, or 18ct, whatever, and the corresponding gold solders in hard, medium and easy grades.

More gold testing facilities should be introduced where manufacturers can easily have their ‘raw’ and finished products tested for fine gold content.

Legislation should be introduced to allow for the compulsory registering of every jewellery manufacturing firm, individual marker and jewellery importer. Each firm at the time of registration must also register an identification mark, suitable for stamping onto even very small articles of jewellery.

The national standard established and which is being revised for the marking of jewellery should be complied with. All articles manufactured should be marked with the appropriate fineness mark.

The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission is the Regulatory Body for the jewellery industry. To ensure compliance with standards and laws, Inspectors would need to occasionally inspect workshops and factories, wholesale and retail outlets, and also, to remove samples for testing.

Skills must be improved and it is advisable to initiate technical training courses and seminars, demonstrations and lectures, by competent and qualified practitioners of the craft. In fact, a training institute has been established, but this must provide full-time training of trainee bench-workers.

The Guyana National Association of Goldsmiths and Jewellers must adequately represent the interests of the industry and work actively to promote the industry. The main aims of the Association should be the upgrading of technical, design and managerial standards, and improving marketing skills, influencing and advising on Government policies.