I tell you, it is no joking fact that Uganda has joined EITI
The evidence says countries with a weak governance tradition fare badly once they get windfalls from natural resources such as oil and minerals. The vultures that have been eating will simply get more vicious as they circle around some more to eat a lot more.
But there is always an exception to the traditional story. To use the lazy examples, there are many more Nigerias and Angolas than Botswanas. Uganda, despite its sorry record on clean and accountable government, now seeks to be a Botswana.
In the middle of last week, news broke that Uganda had joined the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). This is some creature out there that shames good countries like Uganda, with revolutionary governments, into joining it.
Like we join many international organisations and sign onto many binding and non-binding international treaties and statutes and conventions to look cute among civilised nations (ICC anyone?), we did do EITI.
Launched in 2002, EITI bills itself the “global standard to promote the open and accountable management of oil, gas and mineral resources”.
Uganda becomes EITI’s 54th member country and the 26th in Africa. Membership, according to the organisation, “requires the disclosure of information along the extractive industry value chain from the point of extraction, to how revenues make their way through the government, and how they benefit the public.
By doing so, the EITI seeks to strengthen public and corporate governance, promote understanding of natural resource management, and provide the data to inform reforms for greater transparency and accountability in the extractives sector. In each of the 54 implementing countries, the EITI is supported by a coalition of government, companies, and civil society”.
We don’t have much of any minerals or even oil, but it appears we are on the cusp of getting whatever we have of these resources out of the ground. And for that the government has decided we are going to run an open shop.
Whoever is interested will have access to information about the resources, the money coming in, and how it is being used to “benefit the citizens and the economy”. We, the citizens, will ask questions and expect quick and accurate answers. So, entry into EITI makes us look cute.
Now, Uganda has never been shy to proclaim its grand intentions whether in fighting corruption or transforming the country in some form or other. Execution, however, has been the problem. We simply do not have the tradition of being prudent with the way we run public affairs. Will getting into EITI be the magic moment? May be.
If a country does not run the resources in an open way, EITI will shame it. But if shame were to change things, it would have done so in Uganda a long time ago. Shamelessness no longer shames anyone who matters. If the government is serious, it should show good intent by immediately making all the mining and oil and gas contracts public. If these resources are managed in the name of the citizens, the citizens should know how well this is happening.
But, again, why not just do the right thing as an accountable government in all areas and ensure transparency and accountability if these things are important? Why does the government need to join EITI, run by some board made up of foreigners, to be open with the people of Uganda?
There is no EITI equivalent for other sectors of the economy, so should we assume we will never see transparency in those sectors to the level EITI requires? While it is good to be part of EITI, the underlying logic that informs our joining is disturbing.
Mr Tabaire is a media trainer and commentator on public affairs based in Kampala. [email protected]
Twitter:@btabaire
