Oxfam: Open letter in support of meaningful Company Expectations for EITI Supporting Companies
To selected EITI Board Members and US-listed EITI Supporting Companies ... . Given your company’s status as an EITI Board Member and/or Supporting Company, we are reaching out to understand your position on EITI Company Expectations ahead of the February 2022 EITI Board meeting.
... Oxfam America has publicly stated that “accountability for EITI corporate members is essential to the continued integrity of the EITI Standard,” particularly in light of controversies underlying past civil society complaints implicating EITI Board Members and in light of the gaps in payment disclosure by some EITI Supporting Companies.
... Oxfam is inviting 29 EITI Supporting Companies – including all 12 Supporting Companies represented on the EITI Board – to answer the following questions:
- What minimum threshold of compliance with Company Expectations should be required for a company to be listed with the distinction of being an EITI Supporting Company?
- Does your company agree that Expectation 1 should mandate meaningful support, like requiring that EITI Supporting Companies will voice their support for – and not undermine by lobbying against – laws, regulations, and policies that promote transparency efforts aligned with the EITI Standard in the jurisdictions they operate in and globally?
- Does your company agree that EITI Supporting Companies should make project-level payments-to-government disclosures, in line with the EITI Standard, in all jurisdictions where they operate, as outlined in Company Expectations 2 and 3?
- Does your company believe that companies should be excused for not complying with Expectation 2 if they provide an explanation for their non-compliance? Has your company ever encountered a law that prevented you from complying with Expectation 2?
- What consequences should exist for EITI Supporting Companies that do not comply with the Company Expectations?
- Are EITI Board Members that do not comply with the Company Expectations able to adequately represent the interests of your company, the Supporting Company constituency, and the Initiative as a whole?