Across the globe, coloured gemstones such as sapphire are produced by low technology mining and processing using rudimentary tools. Women engage in this Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM) as it has low barriers to entry and can provide some level of finance to support women and their families. Women are also actively engaged in some countries as gemstone traders, cutters and jewellers. This industry has rarely been considered from a global value chain perspective, in particular regarding the role of gender and women's opportunities for empowerment in the sector. Little attention has been paid to the economic organisation of the sector by business disciplines. In this research I present a feminist inspired examination of the opportunities for women's empowerment in the gemstone supply chain and a critique of some aspects of current formalisation processes, which may further disempower women. Using a life history methodology, I keep the perspectives and the voices of women in this value chain at the centre of my inquiry into women's empowerment. Through listening to narratives v Publications Included in This Thesis Lawson, L. (2018). Rice, sapphires and cattle: Work lives of women artisanal and small-scale miners in Madagascar. In K. Lahiri-Dutt (Ed.), Between the plough and the pick: Informal, artisanal and small-scale mining in the contemporary world (pp. 171-192). Canberra: The Australian National University Press (ANU). Reproduced here as Chapter 5. Lawson, L., & Lahiri-Dutt, K. (2020). Women sapphire traders in Madagascar: Challenges and opportunities for empowerment. The Extractive Industries and Society, 7(2), 405-411.Reproduced here as Chapter 6.