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| World Bank to Nigeria: expedite transparency bill | |
10 Dec 2005
The World Bank has urged the Nigerian parliament to expedite action on the revenue transparency bill.By Olusola bello This call came amidst fear that the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) process is being undermined because of lack of any serious engagement by leading state producers of oil, oil producing companies and consumers. The bank said the major oil producing countries like Saudi Arabia and consumers like China and India attempts to undermine increase revenue transparency in the oil industry. The challenges we face are huge. "The world's largest oil producer is probably the least transparent. The issue of their involvement has been barely breached" the World Bank's economist Michael Levitsky delegates at the world petroleum congress in Johannesburg, he said. Twenty countries have now joined the EITI, with Kazakhstan being the latest. The UK indicated "great advances" had been made by pilot members Nigeria and Azerbaijan, "although Nigeria's revenue transparency bill is still awaiting parliamentary approval." The bank said the growing number of firms signing up still lacked a leading heavy weight, seriously undermining the future viability of EITI despite progress over the last two or three years, delegates said. The sharp rise in oil price it sated had also made some countries less enthusiastic to sign up EITI, said Stuart Brook, head of international relations at Chevron said. He said the process of disclosure under EITI also has to be by governments rather than oil firms because of contract confidentialities, which if released, should be realsed by all companies in a given country. Meanwhile Mauritania's new military rulers are to adopt an international initiative aimed at improving transparency in oil revenues, the country's energy and oil minister has said Mohamed Ali Ould Sidi Mohamed said Mauritania would sign up to the EITI. Oil firms operations in Mauritania have estimated its reserve to run into the hundred of millions barrels. Oil production is expected to begin in January 2006, and the country has also discovered gas, Sidi Mohamed said. http://www.businessdayonline.com/?c=52&a=2328 Olusola Bello, Business Day Nigeria |
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