Sierra Leone: Strengthening Civil Society Capacity in the EITI Process

In 2006 with the support of the World Bank's Development Grant Facility and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, RWI provided funding to the National Advocacy Coalition on the Extractives (NACE) in Sierra Leone. The project aimed to educate civil society in Sierra Leone on the principles of EITI and how those principles ensure accountable and responsible governance on the part of governments and mining companies in natural resource exploitation and revenue management. The project also sought to build the interest and capacity of civil society groups, especially at the community level, around transparent and participatory management of public resources, through a series of trainings, regional exchanges, and research and advocacy projects.

Due in large part to NACE's work carried out under this grant, Sierra Leone has now officially signed on to the EITI process, culminating in the multi-stakeholder launch event held in late June 2007. RWI staff conducted a site visit to Sierra Leone to participate in the EITI Launch event, as well as meet with coalition members, government and industry, and to see NACE's work in action. RWI determined that the advancement of the initiative is clearly the result of NACE's proactive approach to mobilizing CSO's, government and industry–over the last several months they have established a multi-stakeholder steering committee made up of all three stakeholders, crafted an MOU among steering committee members, and drafted a framework and work plan for moving the EITI process forward.