By Ahmed Mousa Jiyad.
Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.
IEITI New Annual Report 2013: Again, Modest Progress but More Improvement Still Needed
The Iraq Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (IEITI) succeeded in launching its fifth annual Report 2013 on 10th December 2015, almost three weeks earlier than its previous report. Moreover, IEITI plans to issue Report 2014 by the end of March 2016. Obviously, this is a commendable progress.
On previous occasions I reviewed and assessed IEITI Reports starting from the first one for 2009. These assessments are available on this IBN website and can be accessed through the following link:
https://www.iraq-businessnews.com/category/oil-gas/ahmed-mousa-jiyad/
Despite the progress acknowledged above, my thorough review of the latest IEITI Report indicates very minor qualitative improvements in this current Report and in some items there are few serious setbacks from previous report. Major parts are repetitive due to copy and paste method from previous reports.
The mind-set of the Reconciler/Administrator of the Report (PwC) and its used methodology led to reduce its contribution and make it confined to reconciliation of oil export revenues only, leaving other Iraqi entities to contributing some of the remaining parts of the Report without critical examination of their contents by the Reconciler/Administrator.
In this respect I have identified serious discrepancies that were not addressed in the Report; many important missing items that the Report should have covered; flaws that are impacting the quality of the Report; lack of progress and apparent low learning curve, among others.
This IEITI Report in its current form still, unfortunately, far from what is required under EITI new Standard and to a large extent did not comply fully with the ToR of the consultancy assignment.
In this annual assessment of IEITI Report, I will provide a background note followed by critical review and evaluation of the issues covered by the Report and end with concluding remarks.
Please click here to download Ahmed Mousa Jiyad’s full report.
Mr Jiyad is an independent development consultant, scholar and Associate with Centre for Global Energy Studies (CGES), London. He was formerly a senior economist with the Iraq National Oil Company and Iraq’s Ministry of Oil, Chief Expert for the Council of Ministers, Director at the Ministry of Trade, and International Specialist with UN organizations in Uganda, Sudan and Jordan. He is now based in Norway (Email: [email protected], Skype ID: Ahmed Mousa Jiyad).
Iraq Needs More Transparency in Petroleum Industry; Not Abandoning It
I received feedback from a consultant working with Ministry of Oil concerning the Executive Summary of my assessment for this year IEITI New Annual Report posted on IBN website 22 December 2015: https://www.iraq-businessnews.com/2015/12/22/ieiti-annual-report-progress-but-improvement-still-needed/
The consultant suggests ending the release of annual reports by Iraq Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative-IEITI.
The proposal, in my view, is alarming and comes at a time when more effective transparency is needed in the country in general and in the extractive industry in particular. Effectively, such proposal means dissolving IEITI National Secretariat, dismantling related Multi Stakeholder Group and Iraq’ withdrawal from EITI.
Transparency advocates and defenders, IEITI-NS and concerned civil society organization-SCO should take note of such proposal and possible implications.
Considering the importance of the matter I would like to share my answer I posted to the consultant followed by the exact text of the email I received earlier from the consultant (after removing name and email address.)
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Dear!!!!!
Warm greetings and many thanks for your feedback; highly appreciated.
I could agree with you that “Old information are useless for any kind of Control or monitoring”, that “not many of the oil producing countries, …., practice it” and could partially agree also that IEITI report “lost momentum ”.
That said, I would like to attract your kind attention to the following facts:
1- Most “annual reports” that are issued by international organizations use information and data that most likely at least to two years old. The process of compiling and analyzing of available data and publishing them in annual report probably takes good deal of preparation time;
2- Though “price of oil” is vital, EITI framework methodology and intentions cover much more than such price; it is about the entire value/ decision chain of the extractive industry;
3- Previous roles of EITI permit a two year back coverage; but the new EITI Standard since Sydney conference requires only one year back coverage.
4- As I mentioned in my assessment of latest IEITI report that Report 2013 was released in December 2015, Report 2014 will be released in March 2016 and Report 2015 will be released in December 2016. Undoubtedly, this is good progress as far as issuing the annual report is concerned and also in compliance of EITI Standard.
But I strongly disagree with you that:
“the whole exercise is a piece of propaganda”;
“ such reports are considered a waste of time and money spent.” ;
And you “wish they stop it and save the budgeted finance on other necessary items urgently needed by the country under the prevailing hard living circumstances.”(After words correction).
Instead, I think what is needed is to take positive stand by supporting IEITI to:
Improve the quality, coverage and accuracy of its annual reports guided by the principle “good value for money”;
Compel IEITI to adhere fully to the requirements of EITI new Standard and any modification of such Standard;
Enhancing IEITI institutional and human capacities to enable it play fundamental role in the process.
What is needed: more transparency not stop IEITI annual reports.
Best regards,
Ahmed Mousa Jiyad,
Iraq/Development Consultancy & Research,
Norway.
27 Feb 2016
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From:
Sent: Friday, February 26, 2016 12:44 PM
To: Ahmed Mousa Jiyad
Subject: Re: IEITI New Annual Report ألتقرير ألسنوي ألخامس لمبادرة ألشفافية في ألصناعات ألأستخراجية في ألعراق
Dear Ahmed
Thank you for your email on the present IEITI report .
I was a keen follower of the report in the begining , and there used to be celelibrations in the Ministry with full presence of the media . the event lost momentum as the years went by due to its ill structure and limited value but this year it passed nearly unnoticed.
Two reasons contributed for its non-importance:
1. The present report still informs about 2013 sales ! ( 2 years late).Most people believe that Old information are useless for any kind of Control or monitoring
2. the price of oil has fallen so badly that such kind of information is not a priority to the government or the man in the street who is much warried about the source of his income ( mainly dependent on ailing oil sales )
It seems that the whole excercise is a piece of propaganda that not many of the oil producing countries believe in it or practice it., and that such reports are considered a waist of time and money spent. Therefore I wish they stop it and save the budgeted finance on other necessary itemes urgently needed by the country under the prevaling hard living circumstancences.
Regards
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