Good governance pushed

Business, Normal
Source:

The National, Thursday October 10th, 2013

 GOOD governance on the exploitation of the country’s resources can generate large revenues for economic growth and poverty reduction, PNG Civil Society Organisations (CSO) said.

Transparency International PNG operations manager Jerry Bagita said the extractive industries transparency initiative (EITI) aimed to strengthen governance and capture revenues from the resource sector.

The EITI sets a global standard for revenue transparency between companies and governments from natural resource extractive activities.

It is a robust yet flexible mechanism for monitoring and reconciling these payments and receipts.

Two key requirements of the EITI standard are:

  • Companies publish what they pay and governments publish what they receive in an EITI report; and
  • This process is overseen by multi-stakeholder group of governments, companies and civil society and published in a national EITI report that is accessible to the public for its review, dialogue and debate.

In May, the PNG government announced at the sixth global EITI conference its intention to apply for EITI candidacy.

The application for candidacy involves the invitation of civil society and industry to join the state in implementing the EITI.

During the second national consultation conference which ended yesterday, civil society representatives in all four regions were endorsed and self-selected seven CSO representatives to participate in the formal PNG EITI multi stakeholder group that would be established in November.

The seven CSO organisations included Transparency International PNG, Institute of National Affairs, Consultative Implementation and Monitoring Council, PNG Council of Churches, PNG Mining Watch, Business Against Corruption Alliance and PNG Eco Forestry Forum.