COTE D'IVOIRE NAMES MEMBERS OF EXTRACTIVE

UNCLAS ABIDJAN 000149 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS EEB FOR ELLIOT REPKO, KERRI DIZOGLIO TREASURY FOR D.PETERS, R.HALL DEPARTMENT PASS TO USTR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EPET EITC ETRD EFIN PREL PGOV IBRD IV SUBJECT: COTE D'IVOIRE NAMES MEMBERS OF EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES TRANSPARENCY INITIATIVE CIVIL SOCIETY COMMITTEE ¶1. (SBU) On January 29, the Ministry of Mines and Energy named the 26 members of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative National Committee. The group is government-heavy, and includes representatives from the Prime Minister's Office; the Ministries of Economy and Finance, Mines and Energy, Planning and Development, Interior, Justice, Environment, and Commerce; the Supreme Court, the national association of local governments, and the National Assembly (the Prime Minister's representative chairs the committee). ¶2. (U) For the oil and gas industry there are representatives from CNR Energy (Canadian),Foxtrot Energy (a consortium of the French company Bouygues and the Ivoirian state oil company PETROCI),the Society of Mines and Ity and the Society for the Development of Mines of Cote d'Ivoire. Civil society has representatives from three labor unions, a national political humor weekly, the local branch of Publish What You Pay and the Coalition for Anti-Corruption and Transparency in Cote d'Ivoire. ¶3. (SBU) Econoff met with Michel Yoboue the representative of the local Publish What You Pay branch. Yoboue reported the National Committee has met twice, and has only begun to get organized. It is concentrating on formulating a national plan of action (which is currently under review by the EITI staff in Oslo) and adopting a budget. 90 percent of the budget is paid by the government, and 10 percent by the World Bank. Yoboue asked for USG and international assistance in requiring the petroleum industries, government agencies and other actors to provide copies of contracts, production figures and other documentation that would help in expanding transparency. Yoboue also asked for USG assistance with training in public financing, contracts and auditing. The Ivoirian branch of Publish What You Pay is actually a consortium of four separate groups, all of whom have links with known USG partners. These partners include the World Bank, Revenue Watch, Global Witness, AfriCanada and local human rights groups MIDH, LIDHO and the Association of Women Jurists. ¶4. (SBU) Comment. The nomination of the national committee is yet another milestone in Cote d'Ivoire's adherence to the conditions to become members of the EITI. Post notes the lack of any women on the board, as well as the government-heavy structure. However, the ministerial mix includes those controlled by opposition parties and at least one NGO with the ability to engage substantively with the bigger, more sophisticated players on the Committee. It is too early to judge how successful the Committee will be in achieving the EITI's stated objectives. Embassy Abidjan will follow closely the operation of this organization and look for ways to engage with like-minded members of the Committee. End Comment. NESBITT