RWI is pleased to announce our new parliamentary strengthening toolkit for civil society, donors and other practitioners. This toolkit is the outcome of four years of work with parliaments on improving the management of oil and minerals. We hope it will inspire and help others to work with parliaments on this crucial area for development.
When RWI began its parliamentary capacity building program in 2008, we had some understanding of the high risks and potential rewards of this new area of work. Legislative oversight in countries rich in oil and minerals was generally weak. Experts have long argued that in countries that raise revenues from oil and mineral projects, government accountability to citizens and legislators is the weakest. On the other hand, parliaments have extensive powers that can help improve oil and mineral governance. When provided with incentives and knowledge, parliaments can shape legislation to secure transparent and prudent use of revenues from extractive industries. They can call on ministers and senior officials to testify about how laws and policies are enforced and spending decisions executed. They can champion the concerns and needs of citizens affected by extraction.
With support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, we set out to implement pilot parliamentary strengthening projects in Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda and Sierra Leone. We chose to work in countries where parliaments were involved in contract reviews or were about to modify national oil, gas or mining laws. We went into this new area of work conscious that we might fail and we developed rigorous monitoring and evaluation processes that would give us a sense of impacts and lessons from the project as we worked.
From the start, the project proved challenging. In some countries, negotiating a plan to work with parliaments took up to a year. Once we got past parliamentary gatekeepers, we had to work hard to earn the trust of some legislators who questioned our close links with civil society organizations.
We eventually earned the respect of our parliamentary partners through our provision of unbiased and technically sound training, responsive technical advice and ongoing interaction with majority and minority leaders, and committee chairs. But other hurdles arose: party whips stifling independent voices in parliament; bills introduced and consultations called with limited notice; limited time--on occasions as little as two days--to review bills and contracts tabled for parliamentary debate and approval.
We're proud to say our team rose to meet these challenges. Our technical advisors worked overnight to provide emergency legislative analysis and advice when it was needed, often having to reconcile incongruent versions of the same bills. Our expert trainers adjusted to unpredictable parliamentary agendas, flying in with limited notice. Our partners collaborated extensively with media and citizens to build pressure for reform with little time to plan or prepare.
Four years on, our initial gamble seems to have paid off. In Ghana, parliament passed an innovative revenue management bill, in large part because of the expert review RWI provided. In Sierra Leone, civil society found conflicts between mining agreements and the new national law and, together with MPs who became champions of transparency, succeeded in generating intense debate and ultimately securing a review of these contracts. In Uganda, MPs joined the fight for contract transparency and obtained copies of contracts for the parliamentary library. In Tanzania, the new mining law reduces loopholes in taxation and royalties due to the government. If adequately enforced, these changes will increase mineral revenues, boosting spending and growth.
None of the accomplishments could have occurred without the dedication and leadership of our partners: the National Advocacy Coalition on Extractives (NACE) in Sierra Leone, the Africa Energy Governance Institute (AFIEGO) in Uganda, the Parliamentary Center in Ghana and the Policy Forum in Tanzania.
These partners have now earned the trust and respect of their parliamentary partners and are equipped with the knowledge to provide information to new parliamentarians when they need it. In Uganda for instance, AFIEGO continues to work with parliament towards the approval of a petroleum bill that will ensure the country's newfound oil wealth is harnessed for the public good.
Parliaments in other countries need support too. RWI has recently started work in the Philippines and Iraq, where legislators are reviewing new oil or mining laws. Many other parliaments face the same challenges, and our capacity to respond is limited.
This need motivated us to develop our new parliamentary strengthening toolkit, which will enable and inspire civil society, donors and experts to work with parliaments on oil, gas and mining.
RWI's parliamentary factsheet and our impact assessment, “The Capacity to Change,” outline our work and examine lessons learned from this pilot program.
Briefing papers provide short and digestible overviews of key issues in oil, gas and mineral management and options for parliamentary action.
Training videos provide lessons on engaging parliaments on contract transparency and legislative reform.
Going forward, we will continue our work with parliaments and share additional tools like training modules and briefings on new topics. Our pilot program demonstrated that capacity-building efforts can help parliamentarians, civil society and media work together to promote change. Getting parliaments involved is essential to ensure countries secure the full benefits of their natural resource endowments.
Matteo Pellegrini is RWI head of capacity development.
