THE government is developing a model that will help the country to exploit the controversial Marange diamonds profitably and ward off attempts to have Zimbabwe's precious stones banned from the world market, Mines and Mining Development deputy minister, Murisi Zwizwai said last week.

As part of the plan, the inclusive government would dispatch teams to some countries in the region that have profitably exploited their mineral resources such as Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.

"The ministry has arranged visits to Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and possibly Angola among other countries with good models of diamond exploitation," Zwizwai said in an interview on the sidelines of a mining conference last week.

"We will look at the various models in these countries and compare with what we have been doing in Marange with the aim of coming up with a hybrid model which will see us exploiting the Chiadzwa diamonds to the maximum."

Last month, an international diamond group called for a ban on trade in Zimbabwe's diamonds, suggesting proceeds had been used to fund human rights violations by President Robert Mugabe's previous government.

The call by the World Federation of Diamond Bourses followed a similar one by the European Union, which in January urged the Kimberly Process -- an international certification scheme to ensure that diamonds do not fund conflict -- to probe Zimbabwe diamond trade.

Zwizwai said the government would also identify appropriate investors to partner with the poorly equipped Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) in Marange.

But that could present problems for the country because African Consolidated Resources PLC, an English public company says it has valid legal title to Mining Claims on nearly all of the land incorporating what is commonly known as the Marange diamond fields.

ACR's Mining Claims and Certificates were issued to it in 2006 and it was ACR who made the discovery public.

The company has notified the government and ZMDC of its title and rights and it is preparing to have the matter heard in the High Court in Harare if no amicable conclusion to the dispute is reached.

But seemingly unaware of the pending litigation, Zwizwai said: "Valuing our membership to the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme, we also hope that the model will help us deal with the issue of illicit diamonds among others.

"Basically, we hope to be able to adequately address the three areas of security, exploitation and marketing."

The diamond rush at Marange began in 2006 when the ZMDC's moved in despite protests from ACR who hold claims in the area.

Although the official plan was for President Robert Mugabe's previous administration to mine at Marange, in practice mining was carried out to the benefit of senior government and Zanu PF officials, with little income accruing to the national coffers.

Scores of illegal miners also descended on the diamond fields, prompting a government crackdown which resulted in several deaths.

Before it joined the new government former opposition MDC-T said the absence of a tight legal and policy framework for the local mining sector had seen the country losing potential revenue due to influential people's continued illicit dealings.

Pearson Mungofa, then deputy secretary for Mines for the party said the only way the country could benefit from its mineral resources was to have a framework where the government and private companies collaborated in exploiting minerals.

He suggested a model similar to that adopted by Botswana, where the government partnered with the De Beers Group to establish Debswana. The two have 50-50% shares in the company, which mines diamonds, the backbone of Botswana's economy.