December 2015 News and Analysis from NRGI
United States moves to recapture its position as a leader on extractives transparency
On December 11, after years of delays, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission moved to implement mandatory disclosure of oil, gas and mining companies' payments to governments, as required by section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Act. In this post on the Brookings Institution's blog, NRGI's Daniel Kaufmann and Joseph Williams discuss the proposed rule and its implications for transparency.
NRGI 2016 Course Listing
Dates and descriptions for NRGI's 2016 training course offerings, including global courses and regional knowledge hubs, have been posted. Also included are previews of two brand-new, free online courses. One is a 12-week facilitated course featuring more than a dozen top experts in the resource governance field. The other is a 90-minute oil governance simulation set in the fictional country of Petronia (above).
NRGI's Top 10 Blogs of 2015
NRGI’s blog received tens of thousands of unique visits this year. From country-specific perspectives to globally relevant policy discussions, NRGI experts offered a wide range of insights. Take a look at the 10 most-read blogs of 2015.
Financing Options for the Ugandan National Oil Company
This briefing assesses four potential funding models for the newly created national oil company of Uganda and frames the main trade-offs between them.
Select NRGI Country Strategy Synopses Now Available
NRGI is completing strategies for more than a dozen primary countries of focus. Strategy synopses containing contextual analysis and an outline of NRGI’s work are now available for the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Mongolia and Tanzania.
Spotlight on Data
Philippines Has New Repository of Hydrocarbon and Mining Contracts, Powered by ResourceContracts.org
This year, NRGI and EITI Philippines partnered to develop contracts.ph-eiti.org, a country site that uses the ResourceContracts.org platform for publishing contracts in an open data format.
Blog
An Analysis of Ghana's 2015 Oil Revenue Performance: Testing the Model
This has been a turbulent year for Ghana’s public finances. One setback was the continued drop in oil prices. But most importantly, the country's magnitude of debt, mostly accumulated following oil discoveries, became so vast by last April that the IMF stepped in to bail Ghana out.
One Tax to Rule Them All: A Variable-Rate Royalty Might be More Effective with Volatile Extractive Prices
In the last decade, governments of resource-rich countries have struggled to tax their extractive industries more effectively. It is a tall order—countries must design an inescapable tax regime that taxes companies more in times of high profits and allows some relief in periods when gains are low. Few authorities have found a perfect solution.
NRGI in the News and On the Web
The New York Times: A Mansion, A Shell Company and Resentment in Bel Air
Reuters: Exxon blocking U.S. progress on energy transparency: watchdog chief
Financial Times [paywall]: Reform of Nigeria’s oil industry tops administration’s to-do list
The World Bank: Tackling Corruption in Fragile States
Bangkok Post: Portraits of Misery Beneath the Surface
The Irrawaddy (Myanmar): ‘Unearth’: The Stories Behind Burma’s Extractive Industries Careers
NRGI is hiring. Learn more.
Resource Governance Index Recruiting Researchers and Peer Reviewers for 2016 Edition
NRGI is recruiting researchers from across Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America to work on next year's Resource Governance Index, which will cover 79 countries. A full description of the roles and a list of requirements are available here.
The Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) helps people to realize the benefits of their countries’ endowments of oil, gas and minerals. We do this through technical advice, advocacy, applied research, policy analysis, and capacity development. We work with innovative agents of change within government ministries, civil society, the media, legislatures, the private sector, and international institutions to promote accountable and effective governance in the extractive industries. For more information, please see: www.resourcegovernance.org.