DUSHANBE, May 27, 2013, Asia-Plus – Tajik delegation, led by Ruhullo Hakimov, Deputy Finance Minister who is Chairman of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) Council in Tajikistan, attended the 6th Global Conference of EITI that took play in Sidney, Australia on May 23-24.  The conference theme was ‘Beyond Transparency.’

According to the Ministry of Finance (MoF) Secretariat, 1,200 delegates from 96 countries of the world participated in the EITI global conference in Sidney.

The conference reportedly focused on how transparency and the EITI is leading to change in the 39 implementing countries.

The conference considered and endorsed the key directions of further development of the EITI process, including changes made to the EITI charter and standards.

The new EITI Standard has been agreed and launched, ensuring more transparency in the years ahead.

The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative is the global standard for transparency of revenues from natural resources.  The EITI is made up of governments, companies and civil society groups that endorse and promote the transparent management of a country’s extractive industries, such as oil, gas and mining.

We will recall that the international EITI Board approved Tajikistan''s application for EITI Candidate status at its meeting in Oslo on February 26 and Tajikistan will now implement the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) standard and this is expected to ensure more transparency of the payments to Tajikistan''s government from its expanding extractives sector.  As an EITI Candidate country, Tajikistan has to start disclosing payments from its extractives sector, and meet all the requirements in the EITI standard within 2½ years to become EITI Compliant.