Revenue Watch and Publish What You Pay US Praise New Transparency Bill in House of Representatives

Revenue Watch, Publish What You Pay US and our coalition partners welcomed a new U.S. bill that would require all SEC-listed companies, foreign and domestic, to report oil, gas and mineral payments made to foreign governments.  

The "Extractive Industries Transparency Disclosure Act" introduced on May 15 by Rep. Barney Frank, Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, would enable investors to assess risk by following the money paid to governments in regions where conflict, poverty and instability are often fueled by the extractive industries.

"Promoting national stability is good business," said RWI Director Karin Lissakers. "Extractive companies risk billions of dollars over several decades in volatile but resource-rich nations like Nigeria, or Equatorial Guinea. Country-by-country disclosure helps shareholders understand where their money is at greatest risk and how to seek a secure return on their investment."

A full hearing on the issue is planned for the second week of June in the House of Representatives. The House Financial Services Committee held a prior hearing on extractive industry transparency in late 2007. PWYP members Ian Gary from Oxfam America and Father Patrick Lafon from the Catholic Church in Cameroon, testified about the need for transparency and reform. They were joined RWI advisor Terry Karl.

You can learn more and follow the progress of the Extractive Industry Transparency Disclosure Act at our new campaign website: www.OpentheBooks.org ...

New This Month: Drilling Down, the Civil Society Guide to Extractive Industry Revenues and the EITI

We are pleased to announce the forthcoming release of Drilling Down, a comprehensive civil society guide to the EITI process. This milestone publication contains a step-by-step explanation of the different phases of EITI implementation and unpacks the complex technical and strategic issues that activists face at every stage. Using real-world examples and data from multiple countries, it illustrates the fundamental issues behind the EITI, including government accounting systems, types of extractive industry contracts, and the different fiscal regimes that control the flow of funds to and from governments.

Produced by Revenue Watch and authored by transparency and extractives industry expert David Goldwyn, Drilling Down is written specifically for the non-expert civil society reader. In addition to the defining EITI concepts and stages of implementation, the book provides recommendations for interpreting an EITI audit and effectively communicating the results, and also explores advanced extractive revenue management issues, such as contracts and legal and economic frameworks, areas of vulnerability in accounting, and revenue and expenditure tracking.

The guide is scheduled for release this month, and will be followed by a companion training manual later this year. A series of launch events will be held beginning in Madrid, Spain, on May 26 at the evening reception of the EITI Board meeting.

To request copies of Drilling Down and learn more about RWI's civil society capacity-building initiatives, please send email to info@revenuewatch.org.

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RWI Expert Warns Senators Over Deadlocked Oil Legislation in Iraq

	RWI's Yahia Said (right) testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, with witnesses Nir Rosen (far left) and Dr. Stephen Biddle.

In early April, as the world watched the Iraqi oil center of Basra erupt in violence, Revenue Watch's Yahia Said testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Iraq's political progress, as part of a series of hearings culminating in testimony from General David Petraeus, commander of the multi-national force in Iraq.

Yahia, who is RWI Middle East and North Africa Director, warned lawmakers that ending the deadlock over oil legislation, and ensuring that upcoming elections remain on track, are the keys to unlocking Iraq's development potential. Yahia expressed concern that U.S. military forces were being drawn into an unsavory effort by the central government effort to weaken regional opposition groups ahead of the provincial elections scheduled for October.

"Without prospects for peaceful political succession, public distrust in government will only deepen, and issues like constitutional review and the oil law, that define Iraq's future success, will remain in limbo," he said. During the past several years, Revenue Watch has advised policy-makers in the U.S. and Iraq on the drafting and negotiation of oil legislation. Read more ...

Revenue Watch Convenes African Leaders, Lawmakers and Advocates for Briefing on Resource Wealth Management

	RWI Africa Coordinator Emmanuel Kuyole, with panelists Anthony Paul (back), Paul Collier and Hon. Moses Asaga of the Ghanaian Parliament

In February, more than 75 policymakers and advocates from across Africa joined Revenue Watch staff and leaders in Dakar, Senegal for an in-depth discussion on the generation, management and expenditure of natural resource wealth in African nations.

Presenters included Oxford economist and RWI advisory board member Paul Collier, the Honorable Ahmed Kante, Minister of Mines for Guinea Conakry, the Honorable Moses Asaga of the Ghanaian parliament, among other local and international experts and practitioners. After the formal sessions, attendees joined George Soros and Revenue Watch staff and leaders for a dinner with special guest His Excellency Chief Timpre Sylva, the governor of Bayelsa state in Nigeria.

In his remarks, the governor declared his commitment to transparency and good governance in Nigeria and throughout Africa, and signaled his desire to receive practical assistance from RWI on improving revenue management and expenditure at the state level.

The growing international call for reform and transparency, led by Revenue Watch and other groups, and the current explosion in commodity prices have raised both the pressure and the incentives for African countries to seek new ways to derive economic and development benefits from the oil, gas and mining industries.

Read more and view agenda and presentation materials at www.revenuewatch.org/dakar...

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Most Oil and Gas Companies in Report Show Poor Performance on Transparency, Anti-Corruption Practices

In May, PWYP-US and Revenue Watch hosted the United States launch of a new report from Transparency International (TI), assessing the disclosure and anti-corruption practices of 42 oil and gas companies around the globe.

	Audio: Juanita Olay and Karin Lissakers Discuss the Report ...

Although a few proactive companies have demonstrated that better disclosure is possible, the majority are far from transparent about their payments to resource-rich countries, according to the report from the Promoting Revenue Transparency project, a partnership between TI and RWI. The report urges companies to broaden and standardize reporting practices to include country-by-country reporting on payments to governments. The report also calls on governments, stock exchanges and regulatory agencies to institute mandatory reporting regulations for extractive industry companies.

At the Capitol Hill launch event, Bennett Freeman, Revenue Watch board member and Senior Vice President of Social Research and Policy for the Calvert Group investment fund, told the audience that the report "demonstrates how far we've come globally … and how far we have yet to travel and need to travel." Calling transparency "the investor's best friend," Freeman, TI's Juanita Olaya and leaders from Revenue Watch and Global Witness and other groups reminded corporations, lawmakers and civil society members of the long-term gains in stability and profit that only a transparent environment can provide.

Download a copy of the report and hear commentary from Juanita Olaya and Karin Lissakers …

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Ghana: Managing the Coming Oil Windfall

In June 2007, commercial quantities of oil were discovered for the first time in Ghana, at Cape Three Points in the Tano Basin. Drilling is expected to begin in late 2009. Estimates of the size of this find range from 170 million to 1.3 billion barrels, with anticipated daily production predicted at between 40,000 and 150,000 barrels, which could create oil revenues exceeding Ghana's current revenues from mining.

In anticipation of this significant change to Ghana's extractives sector, the government convened a national forum on oil and development in February with the support of the Norwegian Government. The forum was intended as a first step in the creation of a new national oil and gas policy. Although civil society organizations were invited to help shape this new national strategy, the conveners made it clear the national program would have little room for civil society participation.

To help maximize the effectiveness of civil society participation in the process, Revenue Watch supported a joint workshop prior to the national forum. to foster broad consultations between civil society, Ghana's EITI (GHEITI) group and the Parliament's select committee on mining and energy; Key discussion topics included refocusing the national EITI process and structure for GHEITI, in the light of Ghana's impending expansion from mining into oil.

Not long after the government forum, members of Ghana's Publish What You Pay coalition gathered with members of the press for the local launch of Revenue Watch's 2007 book Escaping the Resource Curse. Participants in the March 11 event in Accra also included Reverend Father Patrick Amos, director of dialogue and advocacy for good governance from the Ghana Catholic Bishop's Conference and Mr. Amponsah Tawiah of the Ghana Minerals Commission.

Media Feed: Escaping the Resource Curse Launched (ModernGhana.com)

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Nigeria: Partnering with Local Government in the Niger Delta

Revenue Watch's collaborative dialogue with the government of Nigeria's Bayelsa State deepened and progressed in meetings between Emmanuel Kuyole and Antoine Heuty and Governor Timpre Sylva and key state officials. Following preliminary dialogues at RWI's Dakar meeting for African leaders and civil society, His Excellency Chief Sylva invited Revenue Watch to a state retreat on Sustainable Development Strategy in March.

	Bayelsa State Governor Chief Timpre Sylva and George Soros in February during RWI's Dakar workshop on resource wealth in Africa

Revenue Watch was pleased to present to this group of sub-national leaders and begin to advise on Bayelsa State's planned transparency and reform program. Revenue Watch participation lead to the announcement of a Bayelsa Expenditure and Income and Transparency Initiative by Chief Sylva at the recent Gulf of Guinea Conference.

On April 14, a Nigerian Election Appeal Tribunal nullified the election of Chief Sylva and ordered a new election in Bayelsa state. The judiciary's action rightfully emphasizes the flaws in the Spring 2007 elections. However, the move will delay Revenue Watch programs with Bayelsa State until new or current leadership is confirmed there.

We are also supporting a network of Niger Delta NGOs - the Niger Delta Citizens Budget Platform - to foster civil society monitoring of extractive industries revenues. Our work in Bayelsa State is part of a wider project to improve capacity at the state and local level for the effective collective and use of extractive industry revenues and for monitoring and evaluation of governments and companies by local civil society groups. RWI's sub-national initiative will include similar work in Peru and sub-Saharan Africa.   back to top

Sierra Leone: Mining and the EITI

Emmanuel Kuyole and Antoine Heuty were also in Sierra Lone during February, to explore future technical assistance and capacity-building projects, in particular a possible review of mining sector fiscal regimes and agreements.

The team met with various stakeholders including the country's EITI steering committee Minister for Presidential & Public Affairs, the Anti-Corruption Commission, the National Revenue Authority, Law Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Mines and Mineral Resources and the Vice-Speaker of the House of Parliament.

Revenue Watch will be following up with analysis of Sierra Leone's consolidated mines and minerals draft bill, advice on the current review of mining agreements, and further dialogue with local parliamentarians. As a start in March 2008 RWI submitted a brief to SL policymakers and parliamentarians on the basic fiscal and legal issues of concern in developing the draft bill from RWI's perspective.   back to top

Tanzania: Workshop and Consultations

During RWI's November mission to Tanzania, Advisory Board member Tony Paul and Matt Genasci met with representatives from the Tanzanian Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) to discuss the potential for RWI input on Tanzania's model PSA and local content policies as they relate to the exploitation of natural gas.

Natural gas production in Tanzania is modest at present, but there are high hopes for substantially increased production in the near future following accelerating exploration. RWI's conversations with TPDC were wide-ranging, and TPDC representatives were especially keen to learn from Tony's experience in Trinidad & Tobago with respect to local content and value-added.

TPDC personnel also identified a number of deficiencies—primarily fiscal—in their most recent model PSA, and indicated that they may come back to RWI for input and international perspectives to address these. RWI and Tony have maintained contact with TPDC over the past several months, though RWI has yet to receive a formal request for assistance.   back to top

Sao Tomé and Principe: Discussion and Strategy Session

In late 2007, RWI attended a Lusophone regional workshop organized by the PWYP coalition, International Alert and UNDP on oil revenue in Sao Tomé and Principe. The meeting began with a civil society dialogue among all relevant stakeholders on implementation of Sao Tomé's revenue management legislation, in particular the establishment of the Petroleum Oversight Committee and the Public Registry Information Office, as well as implementation of the EITI. After the roundtable, a training and best practices workshop was held for Portuguese-speaking delegates from Mozambique, Angola, Guinea Bissau and Sao Tomé and Principe, to enhance civil society capacity for EITI participation and broader budget transparency initiatives. The workshop identified mechanisms for ongoing information exchange, in particular among civil society representatives from Africa's Portuguese-speaking countries. RWI made contact with several new and promising civil society organizations from Mozambique and Guinea Bissau, and will be following up on possible partnership with them during a May 2008 regional scoping trip.   back to top

Workshop for Parliamentarians in East Africa

In February, Revenue Watch and the National Democratic Institute led a two-day workshop in Arusha, Tanzania. Held in partnership with the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) and the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank, the event brought East African lawmakers with officials and NGO leaders from Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya among other African nations, as well as independent experts and representatives of the private sector and international civil society groups.

The workshop resulted in a resolution by lawmakers to review laws and contracts, strengthen parliamentary oversight and foster East African Community cooperation on the management of oil and mineral resources, through measures including the convening of a permanent forum of parliamentarians, civil society representatives and others to share information and foster best practices. The resolution also asks EAC members to consider joining the EITI (wasn't the language stronger than this?)

RWI and NDI are in early discussion with EALA on next steps in implementing key elements of the resolution, including EITI follow-up in the region.   back to top

Cambodia: Strengthening Civil Society and Good Governance

Revenue Watch, in collaboration with Pact Cambodia and Oxfam America, organized a workshop on "Strengthening Civil Society, Managing Extractive Industries, and Good Governance" in Cambodia in late March. With support from USAID, this preparatory meeting was held prior to an international UNDP conference on poverty reduction and oil and gas Revenues.

The workshop's broad objective was to educate civil society and better equip them on issues of revenue transparency. Revenue Watch presentations covered the extractive industries value chain, the EITI, Publish What You Pay, and managing expectations. Most participants were members of the newly-formed "Cambodians for Resource Revenue Transparency" (CRRT) coalition. RWI Board members Willy Olsen and Joe Bell were there to offer their advice and support.   back to top

Review of Recent Changes in Petroleum Fiscal Systems

Revenue Watch is evaluating the recent increase in contract renegotiations and changes to fiscal agreements between producing companies and producing countries in the oil and mining sectors. Our review assesses these policy shifts and their impact and implications for countries considering a new look at their extractive sector fiscal regimes.

Though traditional industry wisdom cites investor confidence and long-term development as reasons to stick to existing contracts without question, our research into current international practice suggests that these assumptions are outmoded. Governments may have legitimate concerns over fair profit-sharing when conditions such as price or profitability change, or over how to better manage the petroleum sector according to their national objectives. Though several countries have effectively negotiated better deals for themselves and their citizens, many nations remain wary of reconsidering their terms.

RWI is examining how governments can balance the pros and cons of renegotiation. Our initial survey shows that changes occur more often than expected; governments modify contractual terms not only to increase their profit share, but also to provide incentives for investors. We will be expanding our survey to include a review of renegotiations in mining contracts, with related comparisons between the mining and petroleum sectors. See all Projects ...

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Canada and the EITI

Canada is both a major oil and mineral producer and the home base for many important oil, gas and mining companies. Most mining companies are listed on Canada's stock exchanges. The historical reluctance of government and industry to engage on the EITI has been a disappointment.

Thus, the government's 2007 decision become an active supporter of EITI was most welcome. The change in attitude is palpable. Canada made its first contribution to the World Bank EITI trust fund, gave a grant to Revenue Watch to organize a regional EITI workshop in Lima, Peru, and most recently held an EITI industry workshop in Ottawa, with participation from EITI director Jonas Moberg and Karin Lissakers of Revenue Watch. Natural Resources Canada (NRCAN), the government entity that looks out for the industry, is also becoming engaged in EITI efforts. Nevertheless, the companies at the Ottawa event seemed suspicious of the transparency movement. Nexen, for example, which is itself quite transparent with regard to payments to governments, was not on a panel and would only comment from the floor.

RWI has encouraged officials to make Canada "the Norway of mining," drawing on its domestic experience with indigenous rights, environmentally sound mining techniques and effective regulation to provide technical assistance to other countries. Canada has a new PWYP coordinator supported by RWI and a number of Canadian donors, and RWI and PWYP-US are now working with Canadian civil society to encourage monitoring and advocacy for transparent and accountable policies in the nation's extractive activities at home and abroad. PWYP partners around the world should reach out to the Canadian embassy in their respective countries. Much work remains to bring Canadian companies on board.

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Staff Updates

	Chandra Kirana, Emmanuel Kuyole and Tricia Yeoh during RWI and OSI meetings in Dakar, Senegal

New Regional Coordinators: We are pleased to announce three new Regional Coordinators.

Indonesia Regional Coordinator Chandra Kirana has a background in psychology and development, as well as in the extractive industries. Her work in Indonesia has focused on strengthening communications and advocacy skills of civil society groups throughout the archipelago. She has also worked internationally, as a campaigner with Greenpeace International and as the Head of the Secretariat of the World Bank Group Extractive Industries Review.

Africa Regional Coordinator Emmanuel Kuyole is leading our research, advocacy, technical assistance and capacity-building for the West and Southern Africa regions. For the past eight years, Emmanuel has worked on economic justice campaigns at ISODEC in Ghana. Prior to that, Emmanuel was the program officer for the Structural Adjustment Participatory Review Initiative, reviewing the impact of lending and policy advice in select African countries. Emmanuel also played a central role in framing Ghana’s ambitious EITI approach.

Malaysia Regional Coordinator Tricia Yeoh, trained in the field of econometrics, is presently the Director of the Centre for Public Policy Studies, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, an independent and non-partisan think tank. Tricia has worked closely with civil society organizations, media, academia, and policymakers in Malaysia to promote greater accountability, transparency, and governance, specifically through monitoring of national budget and developmental plans.

Program Officers for Capacity Building: As demand for RWI capacity-building expertise continues to grow, Vanessa Herringshaw, Director of Training and Capacity Building is expanding her team with two new members, whose names will be familiar to many of you!

Rebecca Iwerks has been at the Open Society Institute's Indonesia Project, where she helped manage grants in the areas of public health, access to justice, media, and local governance. Over the past year, Rebecca has also worked part time supporting RWI's work in the Asia Pacific region, including support for emerging civil society coalitions and groundwork for regional strategy discussions. Prior to joining OSI, Rebecca worked with Burmese exile organizations in India and Thailand.

Matteo Pellegrini spent the past three years as Africa Coordinator of the Publish What You Pay Campaign. As a key leader in the PWYP community, he was responsible for supporting coalitions and partners across the continent with trainings, advocacy and communications advice. Matteo worked previously as a World Bank consultant on governance in financial institutions and consulting on development at BEUC, a Brussels-based consumer organization.

We are also pleased to be joined by New York-based Program Assistant Page Dykstra, who comes most recently from the International Republican Institute, where she worked in Sudan on grant programs with political parties and the Southern Sudan legislature. Page is an honors graduate of Princeton with a specialty in public affairs and peacebuilding in Africa.

Finally, a warm welcome to Marie-Ange Kalenga, who succeeds Matteo in the role of Africa Coordinator for Publish What You Pay this month. She has been completing her Masters degree in Development Studies and working for Search for Common Ground. Her previous experience includes work at EuroNGOs, the Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP), Human Rights Watch, and the United Nations Volunteers program.   back to top

RevenueWatch.org: New Look and New Resources

Revenue Watch is pleased to present its new web site, with a new structure and design created with input from across the RWI community. We are excited to offer our materials, commentary and news organized in this new and easy-to-use format.

Our new site includes a growing list of Country Profiles with analysis from Revenue Watch and key statistical data; individual Project pages offering brief descriptions of our current work, a list of our grants, grantees and partners, and new details about RWI, including mission, areas of focus and financial information.

In the coming months, we will continue to update and expand the materials on the site, with more news, new publications and translations and additional country profiles. If you have suggestions, questions or comments about the new RevenueWatch.org, please contact Internet director Jed Miller at jmiller@revenuewatch.org.  

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