How Can EITI’s Gender Agenda Drive Real Impact in Extractive Governance?
Who shapes decisions about natural resources and who benefits from them is one of the defining governance questions of a just energy transition. Yet the people most affected by mining and energy projects, particularly women, remain underrepresented in many of the institutions that govern them.
One place where these dynamics increasingly play out is the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a global initiative that brings together governments, companies and civil society to improve transparency and accountability in the extractive sector. In recent years, gender considerations have become a growing part of its work, including through provisions in the 2019 and 2023 EITI Standards.
These changes have led to progress, including more gender‑disaggregated employment data and greater participation of women in multi‑stakeholder groups (MSGs). But representation alone does not translate into influence. As gender provisions become embedded in EITI, the question for civil society is shifting: how can these provisions be used more strategically to shape decisions, financing and accountability in the sector?
Evolution of the gender requirements in the EITI Standards
What the evidence shows
The EITI International Secretariat’s latest assessment of countries’ progress in meeting the gender-related requirements of the 2023 EITI Standard indicates continued improvements in gender representation.
Women now account for about 30 percent of MSG participants, up from about 20 percent in 2020. Progress remains uneven across regions and constituencies. In Latin America and the Caribbean, however, women make up nearly half of MSG members across constituencies. Globally, civil society groups tend to have the most balanced representation, while companies and government representatives still lag behind.
Progress on disclosures also varies. Countries increasingly report gender-disaggregated employment data and include gender objectives in EITI work plans. But transparency remains limited in areas that shape outcomes more directly, such as:
- Consultations with women and community consent during licensing processes
- How disclosure of extractive revenues and social expenditures benefit women and communities
- Publication of gender impact assessments
Through engagement with stakeholders across different countries, NRGI, RJN and EITI have identified several recurring barriers:
- Women remain under‑represented in governance and consultation processes
- Financing and revenue management rarely consider gender priorities
- Gendered impacts of governance risks, including gender-based violence, are often overlooked
- Significant systematic gaps persist in collection and use of gender‑disaggregated data, particularly on informal work and local economic participation
Extractive sector decisions shape jobs, revenues and local development outcomes. Without meaningful participation and accountability, inequalities risk persisting. As the energy transition accelerates demand for minerals, governance frameworks such as EITI can help by strengthening gender‑disaggregated data, helping improve compensation practices, informing policy reform and strengthen community engagement.
What country experiences show
In a recent webinar*, members of the Resource Justice Network shared their experiences implementing EITI’s gender requirements.
In Mexico, Beatriz Olivera, executive director of Engenera, emphasized linking representation with influence. While women participate in the MSG and a gender working group exists, policy discussions often overlook women in affected territories and their ability to participate meaningfully. However, Mexico also offers a strong example, disclosing gender‑disaggregated employment data and reaching 60 percent female representation in its MSG.
Zambia shows how institutional arrangements can shift representation. Nsama Chikwanka, National coordinator of Publish What You Pay/Resource Justice Network Zambia, described how their work incorporated gender considerations into constituency rules, supported leadership training, and strengthened subnational structures. Today, women hold five of the six civil society seats on the MSG.
In the Philippines, Beverly Besmanos, the national coordinator of Bantay Kita/Resource Justice Network, highlighted how national policy frameworks can reinforce EITI progress. Gender‑responsive budgeting rules and community planning requirements have helped bring gender considerations into mining governance. However, she also emphasized the need for local platforms that enable communities and women to access and use EITI disclosures.
Senegal also shows the value of civil‑society‑generated data. Women in Mining Senegal developed an index tracking women’s participation across both large‑scale and artisanal and small‑scale mining (ASM). Their training programs have supported women’s engagement in negotiation and oversight processes.
Together, these experiences highlight that progress depends not only on representation but also on institutional support, capacity and access to information.
Where EITI can go further
EITI has created important openings for more inclusive governance. The challenge now is to use them strategically. Three areas stand out:
- Enhance representation and inclusion
- Ensure women can fully and safely participate in EITI MSGs, including women from affected territories, worker organizations and grassroots groups. Practical support such as travel, childcare and safeguarding can help remove barriers.
- Update constituency rules and election processes to require gender balance and leadership rotation, and provide adequate onboarding and orientation for new women leaders.
- Track the gender composition of members and alternates, document obstacles to participation and include corrective actions in MSG work plans.
- Improve the collection and use of gender-disaggregated data
- Use EITI validation cycles to set country-specific gender targets that turn disclosures into reform priorities.
- Document and publish gender impact assessments (GIAs), gender‑responsive licensing consultations and monitoring plans for large projects.
- Data on employment, consultation processes, socioenvironmental challenges and socioeconomic barriers can complement public-private reporting and strengthen public debate.
- Strengthen gender‑responsive financing and revenue management
- Reporting can show how social expenditure and resource revenues reach communities and women.
- Extractive revenues can support services and infrastructure to address women’s needs.
- Revenue‑sharing mechanisms and public spending policies should better reflect women’s needs.
By focusing on these areas, EITI and its MSGs can serve as a practical mechanism for advancing gender equity in the extractive sector and the energy transition.
Civil society engagement with EITI’s gender agenda remains important. But the focus now needs to move beyond representation alone. Progress will depend on sustained commitment and coordinated action from governments, companies and civil society organizations. Strengthening gender‑responsive financing, data and participation within EITI can help ensure that transparency leads to more equitable outcomes.
*A webinar co‑organized by Resource Justice Network, Natural Resource Governance Institute, and Transparency International - Accountable Mining Programme, as part of a broader campaign to advance gender equity under the World Bank – EGPS, in line with the EITI 2023 Standard.
