The Mines and Geosciences Bureau’s Acting Director Wilfredo G. Moncano, together with other Filipino representatives, attended the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) Global Conference 2019 at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Conference Center in Paris, France last June 18 to 19, 2019, with the theme, “Open Data, Build Trust.”
The two-day conference, which is held every three years, aims to explore the impact of the implementation of EITI to the governance of extractive industries in different countries. It also provides a platform for heads of state, civil society activists, and industry leaders from fifty-two (52) EITI implementing countries to discuss emerging issues, innovations, and practices in the extractive sector.
Members from each of the constituencies on the EITI board had the opportunity to discuss what the EITI has achieved since the last stakeholders’ meeting in Lima in 2016. Series of plenary sessions were focused on various topics regarding the EITI’s role in the extractive industry, such as EITI’s impact on inclusive development and implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and its push for transparency and accountability.
The conference also provided an opportunity to reinforce the importance of multi-stakeholder dialogue and openness in addressing corruption, tax evasion, and illicit financial flows in the extractive sector.
Ms. Helen Clark, a former New Zealand Prime Minister and United Nations Development Programme Head, was appointed as EITI’s new Chair, succeeding her predecessor, Mr. Fredrik Reinfeldt, who was appointed in 2016. During her time in the government, Ms. Clark led policy debate on a wide range of economic, social, environmental, and cultural issues, including sustainability and climate change, making her the perfect fit for the position. The EITI Board for 2019 to 2021 was also elected during the event.
The EITI has guided the Philippines in pursuing open governance in the extractive sector ever since its inception in 2012. It aims to promote transparency, inclusion, and accountability in the said sector for more sustainable growth.
The Philippines was also the first among 52 countries to have achieved “satisfactory progress” under a global standard of transparency in the extractive industries, as declared by the EITI Board in October 2017.
MGB Director Wilfredo G. Moncano (leftmost) with other Filipino representatives during the EITI Global Conference in Paris, France last June 18-19, 2019.
By: Mineral Economics, Information and Publication Division