THE ENERGY GOVERNANCE AND CAPACITY INITIATIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 STATE 014935 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ENRG EPET EAID ECON ETRD PGOV SUBJECT: THE ENERGY GOVERNANCE AND CAPACITY INITIATIVE STATE 00014935 001.2 OF 003 ¶1. SUMMARY. The Office of the Coordinator for International Energy Affairs (S/CIEA),in coordination with USAID, our missions overseas, and State's regional and functional bureaus, is proud to unveil the Energy Governance and Capacity Initiative (EGCI). EGCI is designed to help countries with recent energy discoveries develop the institutional capacity to sustainably manage these resources. We have identified the first tier countries for this program and will be sending out assessment missions in the coming weeks and months. Working closely with other agencies to harness USG technical expertise, EGCI will help countries develop energy master plans, buildup regulatory regimes, ensure proper fiscal oversight of resources, and combat corruption. The goal is simple and clear: help these countries avoid the "resources curse" and gain the ability to use their energy revenue windfalls to achieve long term development goals. While EGCI can't do that alone, it can build on the political will of countries to help them achieve this goal. END SUMMARY The Revenue Management Challenge ¶2. EGCI addresses a very real threat to U.S. development, economic and foreign policy goals in resource rich developing countries. As the President stated during his 2009 trip to Ghana, development depends on good governance and the U.S. should focus on supporting governance wherever possible. Effective revenue management and governance of the energy sector is especially crucial for energy-rich countries. They often lack the institutional capacity to manage the development of their resources. Oil and gas revenue windfalls are transitory; a failure to implement a strong regulatory regime and effective sector management from the outset can result in the permanent loss of what could have been a developing country's best chance to raise itself out of poverty. In many cases, poor energy sector governance has led to political and economic instability, domestic conflict and regional insecurity. ¶3. New energy producing countries are at the greatest risk for mismanagement because they often lack the institutional capabilities to mange their energy and financial sectors. Revenue management systems, in particular need to be in place in advance of monetary streams in order to enable effective control and planning as well as to minimize the likelihood of corruption. Support for governmental entities, such as finance and energy ministries, and the creation of independent regulators are essential to ensuring good governance in this sector. Support for civil society organizations also is integral to achieving democratic and transparency goals as they relate to energy resources. EGCI Objectives ¶4. Implementation of a formalized approach to strengthening energy sector governance and transparency is crucial given its importance to the economies of many developing countries. EGCI is the first USG effort to promote an integrated approach to good governance and transparency of the energy sector in energy resource rich countries. The benefits of having an integrated program become even greater when the range of U.S. foreign policy and economic interests affected by the energy sector are taken into account. For countries like Ghana, Uganda, and Papua New Guinea, each of which is poised to receive tens of billions of dollars in new oil and gas export revenues during the coming decade, the need to bolster institutional capacity shortfalls is critical in order to guarantee their long-term economic and political stability. We believe that EGCI programs, along with sustained diplomatic attention to energy sector issues, can make a difference in targeted countries. ¶5. EGCI will employ a whole-of-government approach to tap into the technical expertise of the USG (e.g., USAID, Treasury, Interior, Commerce, and State) to address specific shortcomings identified in targeted countries and to create sustainable peer-to-peer energy governance relationships with the USG. Such government- to-government assistance offers unbiased, sound advice and guidance that many countries need and simply cannot STATE 00014935 002.2 OF 003 obtain elsewhere. This assistance will be specifically designed to complement other reform efforts (e.g., EITI; Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, Australian Agency for International Development, as well as other foreign development agency efforts and World Bank Group programs),while tailored to address capacity shortfalls in ways otherwise not obtainable. The EGCI approach is to make relatively small investments in technical assistance and training in countries that are receptive to our assistance with the objective of building up their capacity to adequately manage their resources. We anticipate that USG resources will not be needed for long in target countries because resource revenues should be available for governments to cover longer term needs once revenues begin to flow. ¶6. Examples of possible EGCI programs and activities are: --Workshops and seminars on leasing, revenue management and regulatory best practices for the oil and gas sectors; --In-country support to create an independent energy sector regulator; --Legal and technical guidance to support the implementation of reforms and policies to create the commercial environment needed to attract large scale investment; --Advice on oil and gas revenue sharing and distribution, including related financial and tax management; --Implementation of financial tracking systems and other measures to reduce corruption; --Technical training in oil and gas resource identification, assessment methodology and best practices related to data analysis and management; and --Capacity building assistance to boost in-house technical and management skills in ministries and governmental entities related to the energy sector. ¶7. While specific goals will vary by country, based on particular needs, possible end results in country could be: --Creation of an independent energy sector regulator; --Development of an energy sector master plan; --Implementation of a transparent and efficient revenue management system; --Establishment of optimized budget policies and financial management mechanisms; --Clarification on tax and legal policies affecting hydrocarbon sector investment; --Implementation of anti-corruption measures; and --Completion of technical training to bolster technical and functional management capabilities of Energy, Finance and other relevant government ministries. Where We Are Now ¶8. S/CIEA worked directly with regional bureaus, missions and USAID to carefully select priority countries, based on specific criteria. All these countries have oil and/or natural gas resource potential that could support significant near-term production and revenue generation. Institutional capacity shortfalls exist to varying degrees, but the countries were selected based on our analysis that substantive gains in solving these shortfalls can be made within two to three years. After this time, the selected country would be on a sustainable path that can be monitored through other U.S. assistance efforts, multilateral development banks or non-governmental organizations. ¶9. We are working closely with the Office of the Director of Foreign Assistance (F) to identify resources for EGCI. For activities taking place in FY 2010, F has identified resources to cover the travel costs of assessment missions and initial training programs that may be agreed upon following assessments. These funds will be managed by USAID's EGAT Bureau. Once assessment missions are complete, we will have a better idea which programs are suitable for specific countries going forward. F will work with S/CIEA and specific countries to make sure funding is available within country budgets for EGCI in FY 2011. For FY 2012, interested posts should incorporate planning and funding requests for EGCI in their mission program planning. Missions are also encouraged to look at the level of personnel support needed to ensure that energy and governance issues, including EGCI programs, are adequately covered. STATE 00014935 003.2 OF 003 ¶10. We are currently assembling teams to send out to the first tier of EGCI countries (e.g., Uganda, Papua New Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Suriname, Guyana, Vietnam, and Timor Leste). After these technical teams complete their assessment missions, we will work with USAID, Interior's Minerals Management Service (MMS) and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance, Commerce's Commercial Law Development Program, and other bureaus within State to identify programs tailored to the countries' specific needs. ¶11. Once this program is established, we will be looking at other countries that may benefit from EGCI. We look forward to working with our partners in the interagency on this program. If individual posts have an interest in EGCI, please contact Paul Hueper (hueperpf@state.gov) or Michael Sullivan (sullivanma2@state.gov) at S/CIEA. ¶12. Minimize considered. CLINTON