By Mark Doyle BBC West Africa Correspondent

Sierra Leone has officially exported a single 110-carat diamond worth several million dollars, for the first time in over a decade of war.

The sale indicates that post-war measures aimed at regulating the diamond trade may be beginning to work.

A country's best friend?

The war in Sierra Leone, which destabilised the whole west African region, was declared over early this year after British and United Nations troops helped restore peace.

The diamond exported from Sierra Leone on Monday was described by Mines Minister Mohammed Deen as being the size of a substantial pebble.

Mr Deen said he had proudly shown it to the President of Sierra Leone shortly before it was flown out of the country for cutting and polishing.

Uncut, it has an export value of $1m, but according to the minister it could fetch five times that in Europe.

Curse

Mr Deen said the fact that such a diamond had been exported legally was proof that a licensing and certification scheme put in place as part of post-war reconstruction efforts was beginning to work.

Miners hope a diamond will change their lives

Diamond exports had leapt from $9m in the year 2000 to $26m in 2001.

But the real importance of the exported diamond may be symbolic.

The war in Sierra Leone was driven by the search for illegally-mined diamonds, and during the conflict almost all of the country's gems were smuggled out through neighbouring states.

Instead of being a blessing, diamonds were a curse.

That situation appears to be changing for the better.