OECD Development Centre Working Papers

ISSN :
1815-1949 (online)
DOI :
10.1787/18151949
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The OECD Development Centre links OECD members with developing and emerging economies and fosters debate and discussion to seek creative policy solutions to emerging global issues and development challenges. This series of working papers is intended to disseminate the OECD Development Centre’s research findings rapidly among specialists in the field concerned. These papers are generally available in the original English or French, with a summary in the other language.
 

Extracting the Maximum from the EITI You or your institution have access to this content

Authors:
Dilan Ölcer1
Author Affiliations
  • 1: OECD, France

Publication Date
11 Mar 2009
Bibliographic information
No.:
276
Pages
52
DOI
10.1787/225520261678

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For many countries rich in oil, gas and minerals, development remains an elusive goal. The rich get richer, the poor stay poor, inequality rises, economies stagnate, corruption flourishes and conflict deepens. The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) has helped to direct attention towards this sector, which has traditionally been shrouded in secrecy. It is one of the international "soft law" tools supported by the international development community to curb corruption and help resource-rich countries benefit from the revenues from their soil. However, corruption indicators show that EITI countries are not really improving their scores. Does this suggest that there should be a scaling down of expectations about what the EITI could deliver or can it be made more effective? This paper highlights deficiencies in the way the EITI works and makes recommendations that seek to increase the effectiveness of this initiative.
Keywords:
transparency, corruption, EITI, natural resources
JEL Classification:
  • M14: Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting / Business Administration / Corporate Culture; Social Responsibility
  • Q32: Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics / Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation / Exhaustible Resources and Economic Development
  • Q38: Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics / Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation / Government Policy