Brussels, 31/10/2007 (Agence Europe) - The annual conference of the Kimberley Process, which is being chaired this year by the European Commission, will be held in Brussels on 5-8 November 2007. The Kimberley Process was set up in 2000 and imposes diamond trade rules on all participating countries (production controls and export certificates) to prevent blood diamonds (diamonds mined in war-torn African countries and sold to raise funds for civil wars) reaching the global market. The conference will look at progress in the peer control system, improved transparency of statistics and civil society representation, and making greater use of science and technology to ensure greater respect of the rules. The conference will also examine the situation in the Cote d'Ivoire (which is not part of the Kimberley Process) and progress in Ghana, Liberia and Latin America, particularly Venezuela. Some 300 participants (ministers, officials, industry representatives and members of civil society) will agree on measures to shore up the system. Further info: http://www.kimberleyprocess.com (A.B.)