"From the very beginning, the President of the Republic sought, with this move, the following: to give a signal to the market of the seriousness of Angola in the continuous search for solutions to improve the reputation of its institutions and companies", said Diamantino de Azevedo, at the opening of the EITI National Coordinating Committee meeting.
Angola is preparing to submit its candidacy this month, between the 28th and 31st, awaiting the final pronouncement of the EITI Secretariat, chaired by Helen Clark, until next June.
Diamantino de Azevedo underlined that, by joining the initiative, the Portuguese-speaking country intends to give greater comfort to investors, oblige all actors in the extractive industries to be more rigorous in complying with legislation and weighting in decision-making.
"Operating the country under a plan to disseminate the value of transparency, as well as working with employees, service providers, suppliers and the community, to improve the current image of national extractive industries, prepare large national companies for their insertion in the stock exchanges, through initial public offerings", he stressed.
The official considered that the EITI aims to improve transparency, through the extractive industries, because through it instruments are created that facilitate the disclosure by the industry of tax payments and government institutions, indicating the amounts received from these industries.
"We believe that through the EITI it is important to promote better governance in countries rich in oil, gas and mineral resources, reducing the risk of misappropriation or misappropriation of funds generated by the development of a country's extractive industries," said the minister.
Diamantino de Azevedo highlighted the fact that the initiative works through the joint cooperation of governments, companies in the sector, civil society, investors and international organizations, "as one of the best existing platforms in its specialty today".
The meeting served to present the process of Angola's accession to the EITI, the validation of both the logo of the National Committee for the Coordination of the EITI and the dossier inherent to the Angolan candidacy process.
The Angolan dossier includes adhesion documents, the application form, presidential orders, minutes of meetings and activity and budget plans of the National Committee for the Coordination of the EITI.
The EITI is a voluntary platform to promote transparency and responsible management of revenues from the extractive sectors (mining and oil) implemented by interested countries and companies operating in these industries.
The EITI National Coordination Committee, whose board was sworn in in June 2020, is made up of representatives of the Government, industries and civil society, with the Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas as chairman.
Last year, Tchota, a platform that integrates several national non-governmental organizations, held a conference in Luanda around Angola's accession to the EITI, an initiative praised by the participants, despite the challenges.
At the event, the director of Mosaiko, Friar Júlio Candeeiro, defended greater and better sharing of information on the extractive industry between the Government, companies and citizens.
In the presentation of the theme "Civil Society's Vision on Angola's Accession Process to the EITI, Júlio Candeeiro praised Angola's candidacy for the initiative, hoping that accession will not be "just another charm operation", but that the country " make a real effort to implement the rules and criteria of this initiative, because it is very good".
