Monrovia, Liberia; Thursday, July 4, 2013: The Multi-stakeholders Steering Group (MSG) of the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) will tomorrow, July 5, 2013 begin a two-day retreat intended to review findings and recommendations from the Fourth EITI Reconciliation Report for Liberia and the Post Contract Award Process Audit. Both reports were endorsed and launched by the MSG on May 16, 2013. 

The event will take place at the Baptist Seminary on the Robertsfield Highway. It will enable stakeholders to discuss opportunities and challenges surrounding the reports and identify practical areas for policy implementation in bringing improvements to the way Liberia’s resources are managed.

The retreat will bring together members of the MSG and other heads of line ministries and agencies involved with the oil, mining, agriculture, and forestry sectors along with senior technical staff of these agencies. Agencies expected to form part of the retreat include the General Auditing Commission (GAC), National Bureau of Concessions (NBC), National Investment Commission (NIC), National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL), Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy (MLME), Ministry of Finance (MOF), Public Procurement and Concessions Commission (PPCC), Forestry Development Authority (FDA), and the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA). The LEITI has also invited Moore Stephens, LLP (London) and Ernst & Young (Ghana) to form part of the two-day event. Legal experts are also invited to provide overview of the recommendations contained in the 4th Reconciliation and Post Award Process Audit reports.

Day 1 will focus on the 4th EITI Reconciliation Report for Liberia prepared by the Reconciler, Ernst and Young (Ghana), captures all material payments of taxes, royalties, land/surface rentals and other administrative fees paid to, and acknowledged by the Government of Liberia by all oil, mining, forestry and agricultural companies for the period July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011. Additionally, the report includes In-kind Contributions made by extractive companies, Revenue Tracking, and Amount Due.  The report was also expanded to include payments reported by four other Government agencies including the Liberia Maritime Authority (LMA), the National Port Authority (NPA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Liberia Civil Aviation Authority (LCAA).

Day 2 will center on the Post Award Process Audit. The report covers 68 companies operating in the oil, mining, forestry and agricultural sectors whose contracts, licenses and permits and rights were granted/amended by the Government of Liberia for the period July 13, 2009 up to and including December 31, 2011. The objective was to ascertain whether these rights and permits were awarded in line with applicable Liberian Laws. The report shows that some of these contracts and permits were awarded either in full or partial compliance with the applicable Laws of the Republic of Liberia while others failed to meet the requirements. The audit/investigation was commissioned by the LEITI MSG in July 2011 and conducted by Moore Stephens LLP (London) in Collaboration with Parker and Associates (Liberia).

Meanwhile, the LEITI Secretariat will today, July 4, 2013 formally present the reports to the President of Liberia, Her Excellency Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. The presentation ceremony will take place at the Executive Mansion in Monrovia at about 3:00pm.  

The girls of St. Teresa Convent High School in Monrovia have won this year’s Inter-high School Debate organized by the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency (LEITI). The competition was held under the theme: “Talking about our Resources”.

Convent won the competition in which nine other schools involved in the LEITI Extractive Club (e-Club) Program participated, after defeating the Len Millar High School with 90.5 to 71.75 points in an epic final clash. Other high schools that participated in the race include Caver Mission, Isaac A. David, Haywood Mission, G.W. Gibson, William V.S. Tubman, St. Mary, Jimmy Jolocon and the B.W. Harris which was defending the title after winning the 2012 Edition of the competition. The final clash involved a debate in which the St. Teresa Convent argued in favor of calls by some Liberians that the LEITI should be involved in the negotiation and award process of contracts in the extractive sector while the Len Millar High School challenged the proposition.

Compounding the victory, Angel Yalartai, an Eleventh Grade student of the winning side was crowned as “Most Valuable Debater”.

Speaking on Friday at the end of the two-day event (May 13-14, 2013) held in the YMCA Conference Room on Crown Hill, LEITI Head of Secretariat, Samson S. Tokpah labelled this year’s competition as a “remarkable event” and described everyone who participated in it as a victor. The LEITI Boss said the kind of information provided and quality of arguments raised by those high school kids show that Liberia is not only rich in natural resources, but also in human resources.

Mr. Tokpah disclosed that in addition to the trophies and medals awarded to the winning team and first runner-ups, the LEITI is arranging internship program at some extractive companies for all ten members of the champion team. He further revealed that the “Most Valuable Debater” (MVP) will be sponsored on a peer-to-peer learning exchange program to Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean. Trinidad and Tobago is one of few countries in the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) that are implementing such youth development program.

The Head of Secretariat also extended gratitude to the German Government for providing funding for the program through the German Development Corporation (GIZ) as well as the judges who presided over the debate. Judges for this year’s debate include Mr. Randolph Davis of the General Auditing Commission; Mr. Oliver Rogers of the Liberia Revenue Formation Office; Mr. Kofi Ireland of UNMIL and Madam Peggy Meres of the Public Procurement and Concession Commission. Others gracing the event include Ms. Jualiane Weymann of the GIZ; Honorable Moses Acarous Gray of the Hose of Representative and educators amongst others. 

The Inter-high School Debate project is part of LEITI’s efforts to provide increased access to the public on the management of Liberia’s extractive resources. Its primarily  goal is to increase citizens’ participation in the resource debate and ensure that national policies and decisions increasingly reflect their views and concerns, especially young people who constitute a greater majority of the population and whose future would be determined by those decisions. This year’s competition enabled the students to engage one another in arguments on several issues of public concerns around the extractive sectors. The final rounds of the debate were broadcast live on Fabric FM 101.1 and relayed on several stations around the world.

The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) is an autonomous agency established through an Act of the Legislature, to promote the transparent management of Liberia’s extractive resources. It is a tripartite arrangement governed by a Multi-stakeholders Steering Group (MSG), consisting of representatives of the Government of Liberia, civil society organizations, the private sector, and Liberia’s development partners.

Monrovia, Liberia; Thursday, May 16, 2013: The Multi-stakeholders Steering Group (MSG) of the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) has endorsed the Fourth EITI Reconciliation Report for Liberia and the Post Award Process Audit Report. The decision was made today during an emergency MSG meeting held at the LEITI Secretariat in Monrovia. 

The 4th EITI Report for Liberia, prepared by the Reconciler, Ernst and Young (Ghana), captures all material payments of taxes, royalties, land/surface rentals and other administrative fees paid to, and acknowledged by the Government of Liberia by all oil, mining, forestry and agricultural companies for the period July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011. Additionally, the report includes In-kind Contributions made by extractive companies, Revenue Tracking, and Amount Due. The report was also expanded to include payments reported by four other Government agencies including the Liberia Maritime Authority (LMA), the National Port Authority (NPA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Liberia Civil Aviation Authority (LCAA).The report shows that during the period under review, the extractive sector contributed US$117m to the Liberian economy, a 65% increment in what was reported in the previous year. This shows a sustained growth of contributions by the extractive sector to the economy, from $29m in 2007/2008; $35m in 2008/2009; and $71m in 2009/2010 to $117m in 2010/2011.

The Post Award Process Audit covers 68 companies operating in the oil, mining, forestry and agricultural sectors whose contracts, licenses and permits and rights were granted/amended by the Government of Liberia for the period July 13, 2009 up to and including December 31, 2011. The objective was to ascertain whether these rights and permits were awarded in line with applicable Liberian Laws. The report shows that some of these contracts and permits were awarded either in full or partial compliance with the applicable Laws of the Republic of Liberia while others failed to meet the requirements. The audit/investigation was commissioned by the LEITI MSG in July 2011 and conducted by Moore Stephens LLP (London) in Collaboration with Parker and Associates (Liberia). This audit is the first of its kind to be conducted by the LEITI.

At today’s meeting, the MSG resolved to organize a special retreat at which stakeholders will review recommendations from these reports, with the aim of identifying areas for policy implementation.

Meanwhile, the launch of the reports will be followed by massive dissemination exercises including extensive outreach throughout the fifteen counties of Liberia.

The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) is an autonomous agency established through an Act of the Legislature, to promote the transparent management of Liberia’s extractive resources. It is a tripartite arrangement governed by a Multi-stakeholders Steering Group (MSG), consisting of representatives of the Government of Liberia, civil society organizations, the private sector, and Liberia’s development partners.

Monrovia, May 9, 2013: The President Pro-Tempore of the Liberian Senate, Honorable Gbehzongar Findley has been elected to represent Liberia and other implementing countries on the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) International Board for 2013-2015. Ghana will serve as Alternate Member to Liberia on the Board.

Five (5) of the twenty (20) seats on the EITI Board are allotted to implementing countries. Liberia and other countries, including Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Mozambique, Sao Tome, Zambia and Tanzania, categorized as “Africa Region Block 1”, are entitled to one representative and an Alternate. Following a call for nomination from the EITI Secretariat in late 2012, the Multi-stakeholders Steering Group (MSG) of the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) nominated Senator Findley to contest the single seat with nominees from the other countries.

Announcing the victory on Wednesday, the Head of Secretariat of the LEITI, Mr. Samson S. Tokpah said the race in which Honorable Findley was nominated was a though one. “This victory did not come easy this time around. Nigeria and Ghana put up a good fight. Nigeria was represented by its EITI Board Chair Ledum Mitee, and Ghana by its Minister of Finance, Seth Terkper”. He therefore hailed members of the LEITI MSG, whose resolve and commonness of purpose, he said, have made this representation possible. “Members of the MSG reached out to their counterparts in other countries sometimes at their own expense to solicit support for the Liberia’s nominee”, Mr. Tokpah said.

The LEITI Head of Secretariat said, Senator Findley’s election is a victory for the Liberian EITI. “Our voice on the Board will be pivotal in shaping the direction of the EITI at a time when the initiative is faced with many critical decisions including Contract Transparency, project-by-project reporting and incorporating new reporting requirements in Europe and the United States into EITI implementation”.

The mandate of the current Board ends in May 2013, and the new Board, to be confirmed and commissioned at the Global EITI Conference scheduled for May 22-24, 2013 in Sydney, Australia, will serve for the next two years. Liberia was represented on the out-going Board by former Lands and Mines Minister, Dr. Roosevelt Jayjay, who was recently honored by the MSG for his devotion while representing Liberia on the EITI Board.

The Board of the EITI is responsible for providing strategic and policy direction and overseeing the EITI at an international level. It is made up of representatives from each constituency (including governments of supporting and implementing countries, extractive companies and investors, and civil society organizations).

Monrovia, April 18, 2013, 2013: The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) has received funding from the German Development Corporation (GIZ) to organize a major debate amongst high schools in Montserrado County. The project is part of LEITI’s efforts to provide increased access to the public on the management of Liberia’s extractive resources. 

The grant agreement was signed on today at the LEITI Secretariat in Monrovia, with Mr. Samson S. Tokpah, Head of the LEITI Secretariat signing for the LEITI and Juliane Weymann, Advisor of the GIZ Regional Resource Governance Project in West Africa, signing on behalf of her institution.

The project, the Secretariat says, will be a two-day event, comprising of a symposium and debate. The debate will take the form of a ‘knockout’ competition in which students from the ten high schools currently participating in the LEITI e-Club (Extractive Club) program will engage one another in arguments on issues around the extractive sectors, while the symposium will enable students to listen to practical discourses on transparency and accountability in the natural resource management to be delivered by selected experts. Winners of the competition will be awarded various prizes including certificates of participation, medals and internship at the LEITI Secretariat. The proposed participating high schools include B.W. Harris, St. Teresa’s Convent,  G.W. Gibson and W.V.S. Tubman. Others are Jimmy Jolocon, Haywood Mission Institute, Len Millar, Isaac David and Caver Mission. 

This program, the Secretariat says, will primarily increase citizens’ participation in the resource debate and ensure that national policies and decisions increasingly reflect their views and concerns, especially young people who constitute a greater majority of the population and whose future would be determined by those decisions. The debates are expected to be held mid May 2013.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, LEITI Head of Secretariat, Samson S. Tokpah said, the LEITI is the first country to have introduced such youth development program in the global EITI Community, followed by Trinidad and Granada, and lately, Nigeria. He said this further confirms the LEITI record as a pace setter in the EITI implementation. 

Mr. Tokpah further expressed gratitude to the GIZ Family, noting, the gesture does not only confirm the German Government’s passion to support the LEITI, but also shows its strong commitment to supporting peace and development in Liberia. Reflecting on the many support the GIZ has been providing the Secretariat recently, Mr. Tokpah named the GIZ funding towards the hosting of a similar debate program last year; the creation of the LEITI Resource Center; and the e-Club  Program amongst others. “We are aware that the many gains the LEITI has made over the past years would not have been possible without the contributions of partners such as the GIZ, African Development Bank and others”, Mr. Tokpah concluded. 

In response, Juliane Weymann, Advisor of the GIZ Regional Resource Governance Project in West Africa, pledged her institution’s continuous support to the LEITI process even beyond the “Validation” Process. The LEITI goes to Validation in 2014, a kind of assessment that will determine whether or not Liberia can retain its EITI complaint status.

The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) is an autonomous agency established through an Act of the Legislature, to promote the transparent management of Liberia’s extractive resources. It is a tripartite arrangement governed by a Multi-stakeholders Steering Group (MSG), consisting of representatives of the Government of Liberia, civil society organizations, the private sector, and Liberia’s development partners.

Background
The Head of Secretariat received an invitation from the World Bank in March 2013 to serve as a panelist at the Annual World Bank Land and Poverty Conference, Washington DC, scheduled for April 8-11, 2013. The invitation was outlined in the Secretariat Update at the February and March 2013 MSG meetings with no objection noted.

Conference
While the general theme of theme conference was Moving Towards Transparent Land Governance, the Head of Secretariat was asked to serve as one of the panelists on the session titled: Closing the accountability loop: Towards sustainable mechanisms for transparence and participation. The Head of Secretariat provided insights on the LEITI experience around “the emerging trend towards increased disclosure in the land sector, particularly with respect to large-scale land acquisitions, and the opportunities and challenges that this poses for both governments and investors”. Given that Liberia includes agriculture under its EITI scope, the conference organizers was excited to hear the Liberia story around commercial agriculture. The session was chaired/moderated by Sanjay Pradhan, Vice President, World Bank.

Panelists include:

1. Hugette Labelle, Chair, Transparency International - Increasing Access to Information to Hold Governments and Investors Accountable
   
2. Nirarta Samadhi, President Delivery Unit, Government of Indonesia - Increasing Transparency and Accountability in Large-Scale Investments: Lessons Learned from Indonesia’s Moratorium in New Forestry and Oil Pam Investments
   
3. Tom Langan, Vice President, Unilever Transparency and Good Governance of Agriculture Investments: Perspectives from an Industry Leader
   
4. Samson Tokpah, Head of Secretariat, Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) - Increasing the Transparency of commercial Agriculture: Lessons Learned from the Liberia EITI
   

Notably, during her presentation Transparency International Chair applauded Liberia for its continuing efforts in strengthening and supporting issues around transparency and accountability.

The conference was attended by nearly 800 participants from the private sector, civil society, government, etc.

Cost
Travel and accommodation ($4,500) was covered by the World Bank under its Economic Governance & Institutional Reform Project (EGIRP). Per Government of Liberia Travel Guidelines, the Head of Secretariat was provided an additional $350 as incidental allowance.

Monrovia, April 11, 2013, 2013: The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) and the German Development Corporation (GIZ) have on today, April 11, 2013, signed an agreement that will facilitate the production of a “Contract Matrix”. The matrix is a simplified version of all contracts awarded by the Government of Liberia in the oil, mining, agriculture, and forestry sectors. 

The signing ceremony took place at the LEITI Secretariat in Monrovia, with Konah D. Karmo, Deputy Head of the LEITI Secretariat signing for the LEITI and Juliane Weymann,   Advisor of the GIZ Regional Resource Governance Project in West Africa, signing on behalf of her institution.

In line with the agreement, the GIZ will provide funding that will enable the Secretariat secure legal services experts to produce easy-to-read versions of all concessions agreements within the oil, mining, agriculture, and forestry sectors. The project is part of the LEITI’s efforts to ensure increased access to the public on contracts and agreements signed by the Government. To ensure that the Matrix is as accurate as possible, the process will seek collaboration from legal minds at the companies, supervising agencies of government, and the civil society. It will also leverage the services of the National Bureau of Concession, National Investment Commission, etc.

The Secretariat notes that while it has strived, in line with the LEITI Act of 2009, to make these contracts accessible to the public in hard and electronic copies including access on its website, it is yet challenging for the average citizens to understand the terms and provisions due to their complex legal nature. This general lack of understanding of these concession agreements, the Secretariat says, continues to create a void wherein citizens make their own inferences, some of which may not be the true intent of the agreements. 

The matrix when produced will help to mitigate the information gap and serve as an additional tool to strengthen the LEITI communications and outreach activities by reducing the complex legal documents into easy-to-read documents for all citizens, particularly those within close proximity of concession areas. Basically, it will summarize the fiscal terms, contract start/end dates, community benefits, and other key provisions on the agreements.

Monrovia, February 21, 2013: As part of its efforts to ensure increased public awareness on the management of Liberia’s natural resources, the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) will tomorrow launch the Extractive Club Program in high schools. 

The program, branded  “e-Club”, will enable participating schools and students to access knowledge and relevant information on issues relative to the management of Liberia’s natural resources through extra-curricular activities, including   peer-to-peer discussions, lecture series, mentoring, and field trips amongst others. Ten schools from Montserrado County, particularly in Monrovia and its environs, have been selected to participate in the initial phase of this program, funded by the German Government. The participating high schools include B.W. Harris, St. Teresa’s Convent, G.W. Gibson, and Jimmy Jolocon. Others are St. Mary, William V.S. Tubman, Len Millar, Haywood Mission Institute, Isaac David Memorial and the Caver Mission.  

The launch will bring together over hundred students and other education stakeholders, as well as public officials and stakeholders of the LEITI process, and will see the certification of participating schools and students. The event will also include a special practical discourse on the topic: “Transparent Resource Management: Implications for Peace and Development”. The discourse, which is one of several speaker series planned as part of activities for the e-Club, will be delivered by Dr. Francis M. Kaikai, Head of Civil Affairs, United Nations Missions in Liberia. 
 
The occasion will begin with a parade by participating schools and the LEITI Secretariat from the St. Teresa’s Convent High School on Randall Street to the YMCA Gymnasium on Crown Hill, Broad Street, where the indoor program will commence at 10:00am.  

The agreement to establish the Extractive Clubs was signed between the LEITI Secretariat and the German Development Corporation in December 2012, with Mark Mattner, GIZ Project Coordinator signing for the institution and Mr. Samson S. Tokpah, Head of the LEITI Secretariat signing for the LEITI.  The LEITI plans on expanding the program to other high schools around the country.

The Third Report of the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) covering the period July 1, 2009 up to and including June 30, 2010 was published on December 16, 2011. The report contains payments data supplied by seventy-one (71) companies and revenues data supplied by five (5) agencies of Government. A total amount of US$69,720,697 was reported by the seventy one companies as combined payment of taxes, royalties, land/surface rental and other administrative fees, while the five agencies of the Government reported total receipts of US$71,896,113.

Total net difference of US$2,175,416 or 3% of total receipts shows that the Government reported more revenues than payments declared by the seventy-one (71) reporting companies. The net discrepancy can be traced to fifty (50) companies for which the Government reported receipts, but those companies did not submit payment data to the Reconcilers. The distribution of the discrepancy by categories is:

• Companies that were active at the time of the third report but did not submit payment data to the Reconcilers. Pit Sawers and Small Scale Miners account for US$1,868,011 or 86% of the net discrepancy.
• Companies that discontinued their operations prior to the preparation of the Third Report account for US$324,758 or 15% of the net discrepancy.
• Companies that submitted payment data but had differences between their payments and receipts declared by the Government on their behalf account for US$17,327 or -1% of the net discrepancy.

Total number of reporting companies increased from sixty-four (64) in LEITI Second Report to one-hundred-twenty-one (121) in the Third Report, accounting for 89.1% favorable change. Total revenue also increased from US$35,425,230 to US$71,896,113 during this period and accounts for 103% change.

The LEITI is an autonomous agency of the Government of Liberia. It was established by an Act of the Legislature as a partnership involving the Government of Liberia, the Private Sector, and the Civil Society of Liberia. It is supported by the Government of Liberia and Liberia’s development partners. The LEITI seeks to ensure transparency over payments to, and revenues received by, the Government of Liberia in connection with the operations of all oil, mining, logging, and agriculture companies operating in the country. The work of the LEITI consists of regular disclosure, audit/reconciliation, and publication of all material payments made by oil, mining, logging and agriculture companies (“Companies”) to the Government, and all material revenues received by the Government from the above-mentioned companies.  A critical component of the LEITI work program is the comprehensive and reliable reconciliation and/or audit of the payment and revenue data provided by both the Companies and the Government. The LEITI process also calls for massive and public dissemination of the EITI reports.