Philippines set for Validation under the EITI 2019 Standards

On April 1, the second Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) Validation commenced for the Philippines. The Validation is the assessment of EITI-implementing countries on their ability to meet the EITI Standard.

Countries will be scored based on three components of the Validation: 1) stakeholder engagement - participation of all stakeholders from government, industry, and civil society, 2) transparency - disclosure requirements such as beneficial ownership registry, and 3) outcomes and impact - addressing national priorities on natural resource governance. 

The first Validation found the Philippines to have made Satisfactory Progress in 2017, the first EITI implementing country to achieve that status. 

As civil society representatives to the PH-EITI Multi-stakeholder Group, Bantay Kita sees the Validation as an opportunity to further discuss challenges in implementing EITI and how it can be more relevant both at the national and subnational level. 

“Over the past months, the PH-EITI MSG has been working to gather all evidence to show progress of the Philippines. All stakeholders, not only civil society, have contributed to communicating EITI data and initiated outreach activities from local communities to policymakers,” said Vincent Lazatin, National Coordinator of Bantay Kita. 

Aniceta Baltar, a civil society representative to the PH-EITI MSG said that “Stakeholders involved in the Validation process would be honest and able to articulate what really is happening on the ground with the transparency initiative of extractive industries in our country. Beyond aiming to be on top, the one of greater value is knowing the real score, the  PH-EITI's actual situation, and how we can perform better.”

“The Validation looks at how it continues to execute its mandate, and at what level it does. It also gauges what positive impacts the Initiative were able to bring across to its constituents and stakeholders,” she added. 
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The final result of the Validation is expected to be announced by the EITI Board around the fourth quarter of 2021.