Malawi passes first ever EITI validation assessment
The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a global standard for the good governance of oil, gas and mineral resources, has commended Malawi for its commitment to meeting the EITI set standards.
This is contained in a 2019 Validation Scorecard Report which shows that the country has published all contracts in line with the requirements of EITI standards.
The EITI standards, among others, require countries to bring transparency to their extractive areas such as oil, gas and mining sectors, including making advancements in systematic disclosure of EITI data that can strengthen government systems.
The report says Malawi has established its multi-stakeholder group as a platform for fact-based debate and allowed its production and export data to be scrutinised through the publication of its second EITI report.
Reads the report in part: “While the country has significant deposits of minerals such as bauxite, coal, limestone and uranium, the extractive sector is still in development, with few large-scale mining operations in place and a petroleum sector in exploration phase.”
The EITI board assessed the status of eight implementing countries, including Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Norway and Trinidad and Tobago at its meeting in Kiev, Ukraine in February.
The board established that Nigeria and Norway had achieved satisfactory progress overall in implementing the EITI standards during the first review.
“The overall travel of direction is positive and governments, companies and civil society across regions are demonstrating strong commitment to bringing transparency and accountability to the management of their natural resources and using EITI data,” said EITI chairperson Fredrik Reinfeldt.
The validation, which involved mapping the sector, assessing strengths, recognising impact and diagnosing weaknesses, prescribes corrective actions to be addressed within 12 to 18 months. n
