India to Chair Kimberley Process in 2026

India will chair the Kimberley Process (KP) in 2026, ending a two-year deadlock that threatened to leave the position vacant.

The certification scheme unanimously approved India’s bid to serve as 2026 chair just before Christmas, and the country assumed the vice chair role for the final week of 2025. This year marks the third time India has headed the KP.

Ghana had previously gotten the nod to be 2026 vice chair, and will assume the chair role in 2027.

India’s selection caps two years of wrangling over who should xhair the certification scheme. The KP couldn’t agree on a vice chair for 2024, and at the end of that year, it decided to let then chair the United Arab Emirates head it for a second year in a row. Thailand initially served as 2025’s vice chair, but withdrew from the post before the end of the year, leaving the KP with no obvious successor.

Top: The flag of India on a map of India (photo: Getty Images)