Implementing EITI for Impact

Book excerpt: Oil, natural gas, and mineral deposits (“Extractive Resources”) offer the potential to generate significant financial benefits and help countries fuel their economic growth and development, employment, business opportunities, and incomes, ultimately leading to a better life for the citizens of those countries through sustained poverty reduction and inclusive growth. Leveraging these Extractive Resources to attain such beneficial outcomes requires accountability and transparency in governance. The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) was launched in 2002 in an effort to improve public accountability of governments. It provides a pathway to better managed Extractive Resources that benefit the people of a country. EITI is a global standard designed to improve transparency in the sector by publication of reconciled payments by companies and revenues received by governments from oil, gas, and mining exploration and production operations. It helps to promote and support improved governance, especially in resource-rich countries. This handbook builds upon an earlier publication, “Implementing EITI: Applying Early Lessons from the Field” (Darby 2008), issued by the World Bank Oil, Gas and Mining unit (SEGOM) and the EITI Multi-donor Trust Fund. Using the Extractive Industries Value Chain as an analytical tool, this handbook holistically analyzes the importance of EITI to domestic economies, governance structures, and local populations, and suggests measures to leverage its potential to ensure inclusive growth and sustainable development. The basic purpose of this handbook is to provide: • Guidance to stakeholders (including policymakers, industry, and civil society) in countries currently implementing, or seeking to implement, EITI; • Guidance on the measures required to launch and implement EITI successfully; and • Guidance to EITI implementing countries in “mainstreaming” EITI into the good-governance agenda by recommending global good-fit practices that build on the EITI standards and practices. EITI stakeholders and implementing countries will benefit greatly from this handbook