TO promote transparency and good governance in the extractive industries, the United States Agency for International Development has announced a US$500,000 Extractive Industries Transparency Project.

The aim of the project is to build capacity for administration and governance of Guyana’s extractive resources and address gaps identified in Guyana’s first published report. Programme support will also address required changes in data collection, monitoring and reporting systems that support Guyana’s attainment of the EITI standard.

Activities will include streamlining systematic public disclosure of data from the oil, gas, mining, forestry and fishery sectors; and raising awareness among citizens about the importance of transparency and accountability in the extractives sector.

The US embassy said in a release that the discovery of vast offshore oil reserves in 2015 constituted a milestone for the Guyana’s economic prospects and is expected to rapidly propel Guyana’s economy upward. During this transition period, transparency,

accountability and good governance will determine Guyana’s ability to responsibly manage its extractive resources and ensure revenues benefit the Guyanese people, and this programme supports attainment of these standards. Key programme partners include the Guyana Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) secretariat, the Multi-Stakeholder Group and other stakeholders from government, industry and civil society. The Pan American Development Foundation (PADF) is implementing this programme, which concludes in September 2020.

At a Special Capacity Building Workshop of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) back in October, Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman had asserted that while governments across the world tend to shy away from the publicity that comes with full transparency in their extractive sectors, the Government of Guyana believes that the positives are greater than the negatives in this regard. Trotman said that the government has made “monumental strides” in the past few years, and is proud of its submission of the first EITI Report ahead of the its deadline. The 6,000-page report will pave the way towards positive reformation and transparency in the extractive industry.

“Governments, by nature, tend to be shy about publicity, because these often have implications for national security and stability. In Guyana, we recognise this phenomenon, but still believe that the gains to be made by being transparent far outweigh the negatives that may arise. I speak from personal experience here. The government has committed to making all contracts public, and I believe this speaks to the level of seriousness we attach to the sector and its management,” Trotman said.

He added that the government is proud of its decision to make all petroleum contracts public, as, heading into 2020 and beyond, transparency in the oil-and- gas economy will be at an even greater demand. He pledged: “The natural resources sector will continue to be an important contributor to our economy, even as we prepare to embrace oil production in a few short months. It is with this foresight that we are keen to ensure that GYEITI is fully functional to respond to the new experiences that oil production will undoubtedly bring.”
Meanwhile, the EITI Multi-Stakeholder Group (MSG) has drafted an Action Plan to implement the recommendations outlined in the report, while an independent administrator will soon be brought onboard to prepare for the country’s second report. The minister said that since the submission of the first report, a number of outreaches have been conducted countrywide to help Guyanese understand the report’s contents and its benefits to the extractive sector.