On May 15, the World Diamond Council (WDC) elected Feriel Zerouki, De Beers’ senior vice president of corporate affairs, its new president.
Zerouki has been the group’s vice president for the past three years. She takes over from Edward Asscher, who completed the second of two nonconsecutive terms as WDC president.
WDC also elected Ronnie VanderLinden its new vice president. The organization’s bylaws say VanderLinden, who also is president of the International Diamond Manufacturers Association, will become WDC’s next president when Zerouki ends her term in office.
In other WDC news, its board elected Anoop Mehta, president of the Bharat Diamond Bourse, treasurer, and re-appointed Udi Sheintal, managing director for the Israeli Diamond Manufacturers Association, as secretary.
Born in the United Arab Emirates, Zerouki has worked at De Beers since 2005, when she joined the company as a supply chain analyst. In 2009 she became manager of De Beers’ best practice principles program, and in 2014 she was named the company’s head of international relations.
In addition to her work at De Beers—where she has helped launch its Tracr and Gemfair programs—Zerouki serves on the board of directors of the Responsible Jewellery Council and this year was appointed to the board of the Jewelers Vigilance Committee.
In April, she was a guest on the JCK’s podcast, The Jewelry District, along with husband Mahiar Borhanjoo, who also works in the diamond business.
The World Diamond Council represents the industry in front of the Kimberley Process, the certification scheme that aims to prevent conflict diamonds from entering the legitimate supply chain.
(Photo courtesy of the World Diamond Council)
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