Conflict Diamonds: A New Dataset

Peer-reviewed Journal Article

Gilmore, Elisabeth; Nils Petter Gleditsch; Jan Ketil Rød & Päivi Lujala (2005) Conflict Diamonds: A New Dataset, Conflict Management and Peace Science 22(3): 257–292.

Natural resources, and diamonds especially, are commonly believed to play a significant role in the onset and duration of armed civil conflict. Although there is ample case study evidence that diamonds and similar resources have been used by rebel groups to finance fighting, there are few systematic empirical studies assessing the role of lootable resources in civil conflict. This is largely due to lack of reliable data on production and location. In this article we discuss priorities for the collection of data on conflict-relevant resources and introduce a new dataset, DIADATA, that provides a comprehensive list of diamond deposits accompanied by geographic coordinates throughout the world. The dataset includes characteristics relevant to conflict such as production status and geological form of the deposit. Particularly important is the distinction between primary and secondary diamonds, because the latter are more easily lootable. The dataset incorporates a spatial as well as a temporal dimension.

The dataset is available here

Authors

Elisabeth Gilmore

Elisabeth Gilmore

Associate Senior Researcher

Nils Petter Gleditsch

Nils Petter Gleditsch

Research Professor

Päivi Lujala

Päivi Lujala

Post-doctoral Fellow in Economics at NTNU

Jan Ketil Rød

Jan Ketil Rød

Associate Professor of Geography at NTNU