SLEITI Briefs President Koroma By State House Communications Unit Sierra Leone Extractive Industries and Transparency Initiative (SLEITI) on Thursday 6th November briefed President Ernest Bai Koroma at State House on progress and ongoing efforts being made by the institution to not only publish its 2012 Reconciliation Report but also secured from the EITI Board an open ended extension of the deadline as a result of the Ebola outbreak in the country. President Koroma commended SLEITI and the Multi Stakeholder Group (MSG) for the good work. He said EITI has become a great pillar that will guide and determine the level of integrity and good governance in the country saying that it has helped where leakages were and how they would be stopped to enhance revenue generation in the country, and also emphasized the importance of the mining sector to Sierra Leone’s development. The president stated that EITI and MSG must remain committed and ensure that the country stays compliant by clearly defining the processes and guarantee that every citizen benefits from the country’s rich extractive sector. “It is not only a question of making the benefits available to Sierra Leoneans today but we must ensure that future generations be provided for.” He also emphasized the need for transparency of the processes, revenues, reporting and fiscal regimes to be above board, and assured SLEITI and MSG of government’s support by putting in place the structures that are required to strengthen the secretariat to be up to the task. President Koroma urged the secretariat to enhance the efficiency of the whole process. The Acting Director of SLEITI Mina Horace said Sierra Leone’s suspension was lifted in April 2014 and designated EITI compliant which served as an indication of the country’s sustained commitment to the process. She informed the president that the 2013 annual activity report has already been published in fulfillment of the reporting target that was set by the EITI Board. Commenting on the EITI value chain analysis, Mrs. Horace stated that the process will increase the understanding of the scope of available information, assist in identifying key issues that need to be addressed in order to comply with EITI requirements and established a process linked to national priorities and government policies. She also disclosed that the MSG intends to expand the scope of SLEITI to cover fisheries and forestry.
Posted on: Thu, 06 Nov 2014 15:58:47 +0000
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