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Africa Regional Meeting 2011,
Kinshasa May 24-27
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The Africa Regional Meeting, held every 2-3 years, is the principal space for PWYP campaigners from throughout Africa to discuss and exchange experiences, to learn from one another and to advance the extractive industry transparency agenda. This meeting is taking place at a crucial moment in the long term process to contextualize the campaign and give it an African regional perspective. The Kinshasa meeting is the fifth Africa Regional Meeting, after Pointe Noire (2004), Kribi (2005), Limbe (2006) and Abuja (2008). From Pointe Noire to Kinshasa, the campaign has experienced exceptional progress both in terms of achievements and in terms of the growth of the movement. The meeting in Kinshasa will be a key moment to respond to these rapid changes by giving a clear strategic orientation to the Africa campaign based
on a common understanding of the new environment of extractive industry transparency, and by implementing systems that would ensure cohesion and solidarity among the different coalitions and members.
Visit our site for more information including key objectives of the meeting, a preliminary agenda and practical information.
Réunion régionale de l’Afrique 2011,
Kinshasa mai 24-27
La Réunion régionale pour l’Afrique, tenue chaque 2 à 3 ans, est la principale tribune où les militants de PCQVP de toute l’Afrique discutent et échangent leurs expériences, apprennent les uns des autres et font avancer leur programme de transparence dans l’industrie extractive.
La Réunion régionale de PCQVP pour l’Afrique qui se tiendra à Kinshasa aura lieu à un moment clé dans le processus à long terme consistant à contextualiser la campagne et à lui donner une perspective régionale africaine. La réunion de Kinshasa est la cinquième Réunion africaine, après celles de Pointe Noire (2004), Kribi (2005), Limbe (2006) et Abuja (2008). Comme décrit ci-haut, de Pointe Noire à Kinshasa, la campagne a connu des améliorations remarquables en termes des réalisations et en termes de croissance du mouvement. La réunion de Kinshasa sera un moment clé pour répondre à ces changements rapides en donnant une orientation claire et stratégique
à la campagne africaine basée sur une compréhension commune du nouvel environnement de la transparence de l’industrie extractive et par la mise en œuvre des systèmes qui garantiraient la cohésion et la solidarité au sein des différentes coalitions et de membres.
Visitez notre site pour en découvrir plus – les objectifs principaux de la réunion, un programme préliminaire et des informations pratiques.
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PWYP coalition welcomes two new members
United Steel Workers join the US coalition !
United Steel Workers represents 850,000 workers in the US, Canada and Caribbean and is the principal union representing oil and gas industry and mineral workers (barring the coal industry).
Benjamin Davis - International Director of United Steel Workers - stated, “transparency requirements for multinational corporations in the extractive industries are an important step for empowering workers and communities and subjecting the activities of these companies to public accountability and democratic control.”
Since joining, United Steel Workers have already made a submission to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on the implementation of Dodd-Frank. Noting their support for the PWYP submission, USW have said that no exemptions should be provided; companies should be required to file rather than furnish the required disclosures; the EITI is a floor rather than a ceiling; ‘project’ should be defined in relation to the lease, license and/or other concession-level arrangement that assigns it with rights and fiscal obligations; and the SEC should make public a compilation that includes the full level of detail that companies are required to report under Dodd Frank 1504 as well as the company reports.
The USW submission also highlighted the importance of country- and project-level revenue transparency in enhancing employee safety and employer-employee relations. Great work USW!
Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund has joined the UK coalition !
SCIAF is the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund, the official aid and international development charity of the Catholic Church in Scotland. They campaign to tackle the root causes of poverty and injustice and work in over 16 countries across Asia, Africa and Latin America. Welcome SCIAF!
Ugandan activists call on British Prime Minister to end resource curse
Ugandan activists have delivered a letter to Prime Minister David Cameron, calling on the UK Government to ‘end the resource curse’ by supporting greater transparency in the oil industry. The letter was organised by the Publish What You Pay Coalition and signed by over 200 civil society activists from Uganda. It calls on the UK Government to force oil, gas and mining companies listed in the UK to be more transparent in their operations abroad.
The call comes at a crucial time, as Uganda gears up to start producing large quantities of oil which has the potential to transform the country’s economy and help lift people out of poverty. Activists are calling for access to information about payments oil companies make to the Ugandan government. Access to this information would empower citizens to hold their leaders to account for the money received for natural resources. It would help end the ‘resource curse’ and reduce the corruption and instability that has for too long been associated with the industry.
Belinda Atim, one of the civil society activists who handed over the letter at 10 Downing Street, said:
“I am proud to be representing the voices of over 200 activists from across Uganda who are calling for transparency in the oil industry. We have sent Prime Minister Cameron the clear message that Ugandans need his support so that the resource course that has blighted so many of our neighbours in Africa doesn’t come to Uganda.
“By introducing a law that forces companies like Tullow Oil to publish all their payments to governments, David Cameron can make sure activists like me can get the information we desperately need to hold our leaders to account. We are determined to make sure that the huge revenues the government will generate from oil are used to help the people of Uganda, not to line the pockets of the wealthy elite.”
Read the rest of the story online
South East Asia Update and Web Portal
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PWYP has many members that are active in the Asia-Pacific region. A number of PWYP members in South East Asia are now collaborating at the regional level in order to campaign collectively for better governance of the extractive industries in South East Asia.
As part of this effort, PWYP Indonesia member IESR (Institute for Essential Services Reform) has set up a regional web portal giving an overview of the extractive industry situation in South East Asia. It provides a space for the exchange of ideas and experience for those who have an interest in the governance of the extractive industry in the region, but also aims to educate the public on the subject. The site includes country profiles, coverage of specific extractive issues in the region as well as the latest relevant news and will soon provide capacity building documents and EITI related materials.
The Conakry Declaration
Conakry. On March 13 – 15, PWYP members Global Rights and CECIDE held a three day workshop on natural resource exploitation and rights to participation and information. This was to empower local communities who – rather than benefiting from the exploitation of resources in their area - often face economic and social rights violations.
The workshop gathered representatives from Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Congo Brazzaville, and the Democratic Republic of Congoas well as community leaders from Guinean mining communities in Fria, Kindia, Léro, Sangarédi and Siguiri. Participants shared their experiences of protecting the rights of local communities, and received information on key issues such as Social and environmental impact assessment processes and Access to Information.
This session closed with the Conakry Declaration, where participants identified problematic issues and formulated a series of recommendations including the need for governments to negotiate equitable contracts in the natural resource sector and for companies to adhere to EITI standards in practice.
Read the declaration
Watch a video clip from a Guinean news channel on the workshop
The Burma-China Pipelines: Human Rights Violations, Applicable Law and Revenue Secrecy
EarthRights International has published a report analyzing corporate social responsibility and accountability with respect to the Shwe Natural Gas Project and the Burma-China oil transport project (the “Burma-China Pipelines”). This report documents the adverse impact these projects are having on the human rights of communities and uncovers evidence of corporate complicity in these abuses.
EarthRights international proposes a list of recommendations to the Burmese authorities, the companies operating on these projects, the international community and others to start to remedy the situation.
EarthRights had previously uncovered evidence of revenue mismanagement by the Burmese military government, and there is no evidence that the revenues generated by these pipelines are being used in a transparent or responsible manner. Indeed there is no sign of where the funds from the signing bonus for this project have gone and revenue transparency generally seems non-existent.
Voluntary initiatives in revenue transparency such as EITI have little chance of taking root in such a climate, an unfortunate situation which highlights the need for mandatory financial reporting regulation. For instance the introduction of Dodd-Frank in the United States will capture and reveal payments made by TOTAL, Chevron and CNOOC and others in Burma. Furthermore after examination of production sharing contracts, EarthRights International found that confidentiality requirements are absent, companies such as TOTAL will be free to publish figures (and indeed have done so in the past) without fear of violating their agreement with the military government.
Niger: Transparence
Le bulletin du ROTAB Publiez Ce Que Vous Payez
Dans ce numéro
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Conformité à l’ITIE – Le Niger franchit une étape décisive
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Enjeux - L’extraction de l’uranium n’est pas une source de richesse pour les pays africains
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Octroi de permis miniers et pétroliers – Le morcellement de la région d’Agadez
Lisez le bulletin
Job Opp
Publish What You Pay - International Director
Publish What You Pay seeks an international director to lead the strategic development and management of the network. The primary responsibility of the international director will be to develop and institutionalize support to the PWYP network. Managing a small team (currently two staff in London and one in Ghana) the successful candidate will have extensive experience in strategy development, fundraising and network management. A fixed-term contract of 2 years will be initially offered with the possibility to be renewed.
Start Date: May 2011
Salary: Commensurate with experience. Excellent benefits package.
To Apply Please email a cover letter & CV no later than end of business hours Monday, April 4, 2011 to: recruitment@publishwhatyoupay.org including job code in subject line:PWYP-DIR
Application Deadline: April 4, 2011
For more information please click here
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