'No diamond looting,' says Chinamasa

Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa has claimed that there was no looting of diamonds in Zimbabwe.

Instead he said the 'missing' $15 billion in revenue was a result  of mis-pricing of the gems.

He said the country was "caught sleeping".

Chinamasa made the claims during  British Broadcasting Cooperation (BBC) Hard Talk show.

He is currently in London.

"On the $15 billion we are essentially saying over the years there has been an economic loss arising from trade mis-pricing" he said.

"It's not looting but mis-pricing. There has been under invoicing of commodities over a period of time.

"In that case we were caught sleeping. But the truth of matter is that it arose from mis-pricing and its an issue which we are now interrogating with the view of coming up with  necessary systems row prevent that happening in future".

In March, President Robert Mugabe shocked the country when he publicly announced that a staggering $15billion diamond revenue is missing.

However, no one has need arrested.

Zimbabwe is ranked as the  eight  world diamond producing country.

Chinamasa said the missing revenue is an economic loss.

He said there is a possibility that revenue could have been lost in  other  minerals due to mis-pricing.

"It's an economic loss that we have suffered not just in terms of diamonds probably across a wide spectrum of minerals".

Last week, Zanu-PF political commissar  Saviour Kasukuwere  claimed that Zimbabwe People First president  Joyce Mujuru smuggled diamonds to Kenya.