The EITI has made good progress since it became operational in 2005/6 but it has not yet achieved the objectives it set itself when the Principles on which it is based were adopted. It is now time to respond to the findings of our evaluation and the lessons learned in the first five years and to build on the foundations that have been laid down. The EITI is now implemented by 36 countries and a number of others, including Colombia, Myanmar, the Philippines and the United States are preparing to implement. Altogether 98 EITI reconciliation reports have been published, covering over US $714bn. There is growing body of evidence that the EITI can play a role in improving natural resource governance. But the experience with implementation so far has demonstrated that as it is, the EITI is not adequately delivering against the EITI Principles to which all stakeholders are committed.
Obviously EITI alone cannot deliver good natural resource governance which requires greater transparency, a wide range of standards, laws and institution building. However, the EITI itself needs to evolve to remain relevant given what we have learned and given other significant developments in relation to transparency and natural resource governance.
As many of you know, the EITI Board last year launched a review of the future of the EITI. The Board and its Strategy Working Group have over the past year considered numerous proposals from our stakeholders for shaping the future of the EITI. The paper ‘Building on achievements’ is a reflection of this work. The proposals it contains are based on the recognition that the consensus between the EITI’s stakeholders has developed. It is based on the need to improve the quality of current implementation, by making EITI reports better, implementation simpler and the EITI as stronger platform for wider reforms. The strategy review represents the best chance for stakeholders to shape the EITI in the coming decade.
On behalf of the Board, I invite you to read the paper and submit your views, either by clicking "ADD NEW COMMENT" below, or should you prefer, by sending your comments to strategy@eiti.org.
Download 'Building on Achievements'
Photo: from an EITI town hall meeting in Bangka, Indonesia
Related content
