What is EITI?

The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) is a global initiative that promotes the open and accountable management of oil, gas and mineral resources. It seeks to strengthen government and company systems, inform public debate, and enhance trust.

The EITI was first announced at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in 2002 (the Earth Summit 2002) and was officially launched in London in 2003. EITI is currently being implemented in 55 countries globally.

Its implementation is overseen by the EITI International Board chaired by Rt Hon Helen Clark. The Board has representatives from extractive companies, international civil society organizations and supporting country governments.

The EITI International Board is supported by the International Secretariat based in Oslo, Norway.

How EITI Works

Each EITI member country ensures that information, along the extractives value chain, is publicly available and is assessed against the EITI Standard in a process called Validation. Validation reviews each country’s progress against the EITI Requirements and makes recommendations for improving the governance of the extractive sector. The validation process is overseen by the EITI Board through the International Secretariat. There are five categories of progress under Validation: Outstanding, Satisfactory, Meaningful, Inadequate and No Progress. Depending on the Validation process outcome, countries are regularly reassessed thereby encouraging continuous improvement. Read more about the EITI here.