2nd SLEITI Reconciliation Report Launched
The Government of Sierra Leone and the multi-stakeholder group of the Sierra Leone Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative launched the 2nd SLEITI Reconciliation Report (2008-2010) on Monday 24th September at the British Council Auditorium.
In his remarks, the chairman of the occasion Dr Kaifala Marah, said that EITI is an initiative which aims at enhancing transparency around the generation and spending of revenues from the extractive sector so as to improve the development outcomes, reduce the potential for corruption or large scale embezzlement of funds by hosts governments, and to stimulate debate about the use to which these revenues are put.
The representative from Extractive Companies, Mr. Ibrahim Sorie Kamara, maintained that the initiative encourages governments, extractive companies (publicly and private owned), international agencies, and NGOs to work together to develop a framework to promote transparency in payments in the extractive industries, ensure that payments and revenues from the extractive industry are subjected to a credible and independent reconciliation process through the application of international auditing standards that produce and implement a communication strategy that will engage people from communities, extractive industry companies, development partners and civil society organizations to ensure that EITI criteria and principles of transparency, accountability and good governance are strengthened.
The Minister of Mines and Minerals Resources Alhaji Minkailu Mansaray noted that to help the EITI for transparency and accountability in the reporting and disclosure by all extractive industry companies of revenues due to, or paid to the government, in that case his ministry has updated a website for transparency to all who is concerned to know how the ministry is working with the mining companies. He noted that the Sierra Leone mineral resources includes diamonds, rutile, bauxite, iron ore and gold, adding that the mining sector accounts for about 80% of export revenues.
In his keynote address on behalf of the president, Dr Kaifala Marah who doubles as chairperson of the occasion, said to ensure that all data of material revenues received by government entities and of all material payments made by companies are reported on a disaggregated basis through the reporting templates to be provided by the reconciler.
Dr. Marrah furthered that the report of each company shall be duly signed by the authorized officer of the company and attested to by the external auditor of the company stating that the report is fair and accurate. He noted that the report of the government entities shall be signed by the head of the reporting entities attested to by the auditor general. Finally he hopes that the dream will become reality in this country.
A SLEITI song was performed by the Education Centre for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
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