The sharp decline in Gécamines is presented in Figure 3 and
Table 1. From 1988 to 1995, copper production dropped by 90 percent. Production of zinc, a
byproduct of copper mining was down to only 4 percent of its 1988 level, and ceased to be
produced in 1999. Manganese exploitation ceased in 1975. Cobalt production was stable
from 1988 to 1990 when the Kamoto mine caved-in, and in spite of sharp increases in cobalt
prices in 1991 production came down to 20 percent its 1988 level in 1993. In the years that
followed, diamonds surpassed copper as main export, with 30 percent of total exports.
Mining as a share of GDP was reduced from 11.3 percent to 4.7 percent in five years (see
Table 1)