Le Conseil d'administration convient que São Tomé a réalisé des progrès significatifs dans la mise en oeuvre de la Norme ITIE 2016.

Decision reference: 2020-38 / BC-292
Decision basis: EITI Articles of Association 2019-2021, Article 12.1. ix)

10 July 2020

Décision du Conseil d'administration

Le Conseil d'administration est arrivé à la conclusion suivante:

Le Conseil d’administration de l’ITIE convient que Sao Tomé-et-Principe n’a pas appliqué les mesures correctives tirées de la deuxième Validation du pays. Sao Tomé-et-Principe a par conséquent enregistré des progrès globalement significatifs dans la mise en œuvre de la Norme ITIE 2016.

Le Conseil d’administration reconnaît que Sao Tomé-et-Principe a maintenu un haut niveau de divulgation qui aide le grand public à comprendre des questions telles que la gestion des revenus pétroliers et les paiements sociaux. Le gouvernement est encouragé à combler les lacunes qui persistent dans les divulgations relatives aux licences et à la qualité des données.

Sao Tomé-et-Principe est vivement invité à adopter une approche plus durable et proportionnelle de la mise en œuvre de l’ITIE, dans la mesure où le secteur pétrolier est en phase de prospection et où les revenus restent modestes. Le gouvernement est encouragé à instaurer la divulgation systématique des données ITIE sur les sites Internet des entités de l’État, à collaborer avec l’auditeur général (le tribunal des comptes) pour accroître la qualité des données et à intégrer le secrétariat national de l’ITIE dans les structures de l’État.

Le Conseil d’administration a déterminé que Sao Tomé-et-Principe disposerait d’un délai de 12 mois avant la quatrième Validation, c’est-à-dire jusqu’au 9 juillet 2021, pour mener à bien les mesures correctives concernant l’octroi des licences (Exigence 2.2), le registre des licences (Exigence 2.3) et la qualité des données (Exigence 4.9). La quatrième Validation évaluera aussi les progrès accomplis eu égard à l’Exigence 2.5 concernant la propriété effective, ainsi que les nouvelles dispositions de la Norme ITIE 2019. Le Conseil d’administration a convenu que STP ne devrait pas être suspendue étant donné le nombre et la nature des lacunes restantes et les efforts de bonne foi du GMP pour répondre à ces exigences.

Si le pays n’accomplit pas de progrès satisfaisants lors de la quatrième Validation, il s’exposera à une radiation conformément aux dispositions de l’Article 6 de la Norme ITIE. Comme le prévoit la Norme ITIE, le Groupe multipartite de Sao Tomé-et-Principe aura la possibilité de demander une prorogation de ce délai ou de demander que la Validation commence plus tôt que prévu.

Mesures correctives et recommandations stratégiques

Le Conseil d’administration de l’ITIE a convenu que Sao Tomé-et-Principe devait prendre les mesures correctives ci-dessous. L’exécution de ces mesures correctives sera évaluée dans le cadre d’une quatrième Validation, qui commencera le 9 juillet 2021 :

Conformément à l’Exigence 2.2, l’Agence nationale du pétrole (ANP) doit divulguer le processus d’octroi des licences pétrolières, en indiquant les critères techniques et financiers ainsi que tout écart significatif par rapport au cadre légal régissant les octrois et les transferts des licences pétrolières pour l’année à l’étude.
Conformément à l’Exigence 2.3.b, Sao Tomé-et-Principe doit tenir un système public de registre ou de cadastre, avec notamment des informations actualisées et complètes sur les dates des demandes de licences déposées par les entreprises couvertes dans le Rapport ITIE. Tout obstacle juridique ou pratique important s’opposant à cette divulgation complète doit être mentionné et expliqué dans le Rapport ITIE ou sur le site Internet de l’ANP, de même que les plans du gouvernement visant à surmonter ces obstacles ainsi que le calendrier prévu pour y parvenir.
Conformément à l’Exigence 4.9, Sao Tomé-et-Principe doit démontrer que les Termes de Référence de l’Administrateur Indépendant sont conformes aux Termes de Référence standard et que le Groupe multipartite participe concrètement à la préparation du Rapport ITIE. L’Administrateur Indépendant doit présenter un avis clair quant à l’exhaustivité et à la fiabilité des données financières rapprochées, conformément à l’Exigence 4.9 et aux Termes de Référence standard pour les Administrateurs Indépendants.

Contexte

Sao Tomé-et-Principe a été admise en tant que pays candidat à l’ITIE en 2008. La deuxième Validation de Sao Tomé-et-Principe en vertu de la Norme ITIE a débuté le 8 mars 2018. Le 29 juin 2018, le Conseil d’administration de l’ITIE a conclu que Sao Tomé-et-Principe avait accompli des « progrès significatifs assortis d’améliorations substantielles » dans la mise en œuvre de la Norme ITIE 2016. Trois mesures correctives ont été identifiées par le Conseil d’administration, qui a aussi décidé que l’évaluation de leur exécution aurait lieu lors d’une troisième Validation débutant le 29 juin 2019. Ces mesures correctives concernaient:

L’octroi des licences (Exigence 2.2),
Le registre des licences (Exigence 2.3) et
La qualité des données (Exigence 4.9).

Sao Tomé-et-Principe a entrepris quelques activités pour exécuter les mesures correctives :

Le Rapport ITIE 2016-2017 a été publié le 22 février 2019.
Un atelier de préparation à la Validation a été organisé le 13 décembre 2019 pour évaluer les progrès accomplis dans l’application des mesures correctives.
Le 14 décembre 2019, le Groupe multipartite s’est réuni pour examiner les progrès accomplis dans l’application des mesures correctives tirées de la deuxième Validation.
Le 27 décembre 2019, le Groupe multipartite a communiqué une réponse de l’ANP concernant l’application des mesures correctives correspondant aux Exigences 2.2 et 2.3.

La troisème Validation de Sao Tomé-et-Principe a commencé le 29 decembre 2020. Le Secrétariat international a évalué les progrès accomplis et a jugé que Sao Tomé-et-Principe n'a pas mis en œuvre les trois mesures correctives. Le projet d’évaluation a été envoyé au Groupe multipartite le 3 avril 2020. Suite aux commentaires du Groupe multipartite qui ont été reçus le 11 mai 2020, l’évaluation a été finalisée en vue de son examen par le Conseil d’administration de l’ITIE.

Assessment of EITI requirements

Not met
Partly met
Mostly met
Fully met
Exceeded

Scorecard by requirement View more	Assessment View more
Overall Progress
MSG oversight
1.1Government engagement
The government is fully, actively and effectively engaged in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the EITI process. Government representatives are taking part in outreach and efforts to promote public debate. While there has been continued and consistent support expressed by the government, challenges remain with respect to obtaining data on the Joint Development Zone with Nigeria from the Joint Development Authorities.
1.2Company engagement
Companies with presence in the country are actively and effectively engaged in the EITI process. There has been a positive step to expand company representation on the multi-stakeholder group (MSG), but there are also limitations in engaging any companies within the Joint Development Zone. Companies can also be more proactive particularly in outreach and information dissemination for their constituency and with other stakeholder groups.
1.3Civil society engagement
The active involvement of some civil society organisations in São Tomé and Princípe EITI demonstrates that civil society are fully, actively and effectively engaged in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the EITI process. There is however a continuing need for greater capacity and knowledge regarding the oil sector and transparency, as well as financial resources to support their operations.
1.4MSG governance
The MSG approved a revised ToR in 2017, defining the MSG’s roles and responsibilities in accordance with Requirement 1.4.b. The MSG has initiated a renewal of its membership, ensuring that all constituencies are adequately represented and qualified. Internal nominations procedures for selecting MSG representatives have been codified.
1.5Work plan
In accordance with requirement 1.5, the MSG approved an updated fully-costed work plan in October 2017. The objectives are in harmony with national priorities and outline plans for addressing capacity constraints that could form obstacles to EITI implementation. The work plan addresses the scope of EITI reporting.
Licenses and contracts
2.2License allocations
The 2016 – 2017 EITI Report provide information about the process for awarding and transferring licenses. Information about the recipients of licenses awarded and transferred in the period under review is available in the EITI Report and the ANP website. However, information about the process for awarding contract and transfers are not publicly available
2.3License register
Legal or practical barriers preventing the disclosure of application dates are not explained in the 2016-2017 EITI Report or in other publicly available sources, and there is no indication of the government attempting to record and disclose application dates following the second Validation. However, the MSG feedback on the Secretariat’s draft assessment includes ANP’s explanation of practical barriers to disclosures and a plan to overcome these.
2.4Policy on contract disclosure
Building on its clarification of the government’s policy on contract disclosure in previous EITI Reports, the MSG has worked with relevant stakeholders to publish all active oil and gas contracts, aside from the PSC for Block 2 concluded with Sinoangol, as encouraged by the EITI Standard.
2.1Legal framework
The 2014 EITI Report contains an overview of the legal framework and fiscal regime governing the extractive sector.
2.5Beneficial ownership	Not assessed
The multi-stakeholder group has initiated discussions related to disclosure of beneficial owners of companies operating in both the J Joint Development Zone and the Exclusive Economic Zone, and is considering to request beneficial ownership information in forthcoming EITI Reports. Disclosure of beneficial ownership is also an objective in the 2016 work plan.
2.6State participation
The 2014 EITI Report describes the participation of the government in production sharing agreements in the Exclusive Economic Zone and details this block-by block. The report explains that holdings are monitored by the National Petroleum Agency and sets out the terms of state participation. Until production, the company covers all costs. Accordingly, to date, state participation has not led to any revenues or costs.
Monitoring production
3.1Exploration data
The 2015 EITI Report provides an overview of the extractive industries in STP, including significant exploration activities in the EEZ. Gaps in coverage of activities in the JDZ are not assessed in terms of compliance with Requirement 3.1, given the Board’s prior approval of adapted implementation for the 2015 and 2016 EITI Reports.
3.2Production data	Not applicable
There is no production in the Exclusive Economic Zone and the Joint Development Zone. The requirement on production data is therefore not applicable to São Tomé and Princípe.
3.3Export data	Not applicable
There being no production, there are no exports from the Exclusive Economic Zone or the Joint Development Zone. The requirement on export data is therefore not applicable to São Tomé and Princípe.
Revenue collection
4.3Barter agreements	Not applicable
There is no evidence suggesting that infrastructure provisions and barter arrangements exist. The requirement on infrastructure provisions and barter arrangements is therefore not applicable to São Tomé and Princípe.
4.6Direct subnational payments	Not applicable
There are no provisions on direct subnational payments and no indication that extractive companies make payments to sub-national levels of government. The requirement on subnational direct payments is therefore not applicable to São Tomé and Principe.
4.7Disaggregation
The 2014 EITI Report presents revenue data by individual company and revenue stream, and revenue is also presented by individual government entity.
4.9Data quality
The 2016-2017 EITI Report documents the audit policies and practices of reporting entities and provides recommendations to address weaknesses. Compliance with MSG-agreed assurances is documented and discrepancies were investigated. The report does not include a clear statement from the IA on the comprehensiveness and reliability of reconciled financial data.
4.1Comprehensiveness
The multi-stakeholder group has agreed a clear definition of materiality and materiality thresholds for company and government reporting, and the rationale is documented. Revenue flows are mapped out and all payments by companies (and receipts by government) from the Exclusive Economic Zone are included in the report and there were no financial flows from the Joint Development Zone in 2014
4.2In-kind revenues	Not applicable
There is no production and thus no in-kind revenue collected by the government. The requirement on in-kind revenues is therefore not applicable to São Tomé and Princípe.
4.4Transportation revenues	Not applicable
There is no indication that revenues from the transportation of commodities would constitute one of the largest revenue streams. The requirement on transportation revenue is not applicable to São Tomé and Princípe.
4.5SOE transactions	Not applicable
There is no extractive sector state-owned enterprise in São Tomé and Princípe. The requirement on transactions between state-owned enterprises and government is therefore not applicable.
4.8Data timeliness
The 2014 EITI Report was published in October 2015, less than one year after the end of the financial year.
Revenue allocation
5.1Distribution of revenues
Extractive revenues that are not recorded in the budget and their relation to the national budget are explained in the 2015 EITI Report. The detailed description of off-budget revenues and the reconciliation of transfers from the national oil account to the budget demonstrates that STP has gone beyond Requirement 5.1.
5.2Subnational transfers	Not applicable
Sub-national transfers are disclosed in the 2014 EITI Report. The legal provision related to subnational transfers of oil revenues is referenced, and the revenue sharing formula explained. There is no explanation for how the revenues are shared among the municipalities. Discrepancies between calculated and actual transfers are disclosed. Subnational transfers since the establishment of the Exclusive Economic Zone are reported by year, as absolute figures, share of the state budget and share of oil revenues.
5.3Revenue management and expenditures	Not assessed
The report describes all income to the National Oil Account from the Joint Development Authority and companies in the Exclusive Economic Zone and transfers to the treasury since 2005, and reconciles the transfers from the Central Bank (National Oil Account) to the treasury for 2003-14. The report also documents whether transfers were in line with the law. The report also includes the annual budgets of the Joint Development Authority for 2003-2014, and the contributions to the budget made by companies and governments.
Socio-economic contribution
6.1Mandatory social expenditures
The 2015 EITI Report clearly distinguishes between mandatory and voluntary social expenditures. It discloses comprehensive information on mandatory social contributions by companies in accordance to the PSCs, disclosures of mandatory social expenditures by companies disaggregated by project, beneficiary and between cash and in-kind expenditures.
6.2Quasi-fiscal expenditures	Not applicable
The 2016 EITI Report describes the MSWG’s definition of quasi-fiscal expenditures (consistent with the EITI Standard’s), its assessment of their materiality and reporting of SOEs’ unilateral disclosures of material quasi-fiscal expenditures in 2016.
6.3Economic contribution
The 2014 EITI Report includes, in absolute and relative terms, the contribution of the extractive industries to government revenue, exports and employment. GDP and other general information on the economy are presented in the report, but the contribution of the oil sector is not mentioned. With no production this is likely to be negligible.
Outcomes and impact
7.2Data accessibility	Not assessed
EITI data is accessible, machine-readable and actively disseminated, both in print and summarised formats. There is no reference to national revenue classification systems or international standards in the EITI Reports.
7.4Outcomes and impact of implementation
The 2016 annual progress report has been made publicly available and provides a summary of the MSG’s follow-up on past EITI recommendations, as well as a narrative account of efforts to strengthen implementation and general observations on the impact of EITI implementation.
7.1Public debate
The MSG has sought to ensure the EITI Reports are comprehensible, written in a clear style and actively promoted. The reports include information of national relevance that goes beyond the EITI Requirements and provides facts for public debate on the management of oil revenue, social projects and the management of the Joint Development Zone. Media references to the findings of the EITI Reports have been relatively few but have clearly resulted from outreach activities by São Tomé and Princípe EITI.
7.3Follow up on recommendations
The 2016 annual progress report and 2015 EITI Report detail the MSG’s follow-up on recommendations of STP’s EITI Reports and Validation. The MSG has actively followed up on past recommendations and the 2017-18 work plan has been updated with specific objectives and activities related to follow-up on EITI recommendations.