Half a dozen Revenue Watch delegates joined over 500 participants at the fourth EITI Global Conference from February 16 to 18, in Doha, Qatar.
Representatives from over 80 countries gathered to celebrate the achievements of the initiative thus far, to share experiences of support and implementation, and discuss ways of moving forward. The Republic of Azerbaijan was accepted as EITI Compliant, becoming the first implementing country to pass the EITI Validation process that determines whether an implementing country has met EITI requirements. Tanzania was also admitted as the 26th EITI Candidate country while Norway became the first OECD country to implement EITI shortly before the conference. Revenue Watch offered its warm congratulations to both. Shortly after the Doha event, Afghanistan formally declared its intent to implement EITI.
In many ways this conference marked a consolidation of Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative as a global standard. The governance structure of the initiative was formalized, with the establishment of the EITI Members’ Association under Norwegian Law, and a new EITI Board was elected, including Revenue Watch's own board chair Anthony Richter, who will serve on the EITI board through 2011.
In a special side meeting hosted by Revenue Watch, officials from national oil companies in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Norway and Qatar met with international finance experts and business leaders including EITI Chairman Peter Eigen and George Soros of the Open Society Institute.
Companies voiced anxiety about losing revenue in the global downturn and setting aside regulatory reforms that could lead to long-term fiscal and national growth. "State-owned oil companies are a pivot-point in this crisis," said RWI director Karin Lissakers, director of Revenue Watch Institute. "They are realizing that transparency in revenue management and reporting has become an economic necessity."
Many speakers at the global conference agreed that the economic downturn and the volatility of commodity prices not only makes EITI more relevant than ever but also presents an opportunity to advance the transparency and accountability agenda. In his remarks at the opening plenary, George Soros warned producing countries against energy deals that favor quick profit over sound practice. "The commodity downturn is likely to be temporary," he said, "but the deals bind you for decades. Don't give away the store for short-term gains."
The EITI continues to expand, garnering support and participation from new countries, companies and civil society organizations. Ministers from Mozambique, Ethiopia and Albania all officially declared their country's commitment to implement EITI. Japan announced that it will become an EITI Supporting Country, making all members of the G7 group of industrialized countries EITI supporters. Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy and Industry Affairs, H.E. Dr. Mohammed Saleh Al-Sada, reiterated Qatar’s support for EITI and announced that Qatar Petroleum will become an EITI supporting company. The Arab League also made a statement before the conference expressing its support for the principles of the EITI.
There are still many challenges to overcome, however. The majority of current EITI Candidate countries are required to carry out the Validation process by March 9, 2010 in order to maintain their status as implementing countries. Though some Candidate countries have followed Azerbaijan's lead and taken the first steps towards Validation, others will have to work hard to meet the deadline.
One theme running through the conference was need to ensure a meaningful role for civil society organizations in the EITI process. The President of Liberia Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf stressed the importance of political will in a successful EITI process but also made it clear that civil society has a vital role to play. Accepting an award from the EITI secretariat in recognition of Liberia's remarkable progress on EITI, President Sirleaf insisted that Liberian civil society leader and RWI grantee Alfred Brownell join her on stage to share the honor.
Publish What You Pay International (PWYP) and others expressed concern over recent cases of harassment and intimidation of transparency activists, most recently in Gabon. Though EITI Chairman, Peter Eigen, emphasized the importance of protecting and respecting activists and advocates, PWYP called on the EITI to adopt a stronger public stance against attempts to interfere with civil society’s operations.
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