With some champions in Congress and support from the White House, we're hoping to see domestic legislation that not only fines companies who pollute, but also uses some of these funds to help affected communities build their resilience. If we are successful domestically, we can lay the groundwork for a global deal at the UN Climate Change Conference this December—an agreement that will create a more hospitable climate for us all.

Also in this issue: A force of peace in Peru; Rebuilding in Bangladesh; Oxfam America's new role in Darfur.

Last month, Newmont released the results of an independent review, which provides information about the company's community relationships and important recommendations for improving operations on the ground. The review, the first of its kind by a major mining company, came at the request of shareholders, led by New York-based Christian Brothers Investment Services, concerned about protests and environmental problems at Newmont's mining projects around the world. The company will formally present the results of the report to shareholders at the annual meeting.

"We commend Newmont for conducting a critical assessment of their community relationships. As shareholders gather this week, plans for urgent action to improve relations with the communities living near its operations should be at the top of the agenda," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America.

Recommendations from the report include handling community conflicts at an earlier stage, holding management accountable for community relations, and establishing effective grievance processes at all sites. The report indentifies problems with Newmont's community interaction at several locations, including sites in Ghana and Peru.

Nearly 10,000 villagers, mainly poor farmers, were displaced by the Newmont's Ahafo mine in Ghana. The report identified the long-term success of the resettlement as one of the greatest risks confronting the project and called on Newmont to actively monitor the implementation of resettlement. Newmont and the World Bank (IFC) will be conducting an audit of the resettlement program this year. Oxfam urges Newmont to make the audit process transparent and participatory.

Newmont's Yanacocha mine in Peru has been the site of repeated protests and violence in recent years. In 2007, local mining activists were the targets of harassments and death threats.

"The report identified an atmosphere of fear and intimidation among local residents at the Yanacocha mine, who worry about speaking out against the company out of fear of harassment by the mine's security forces," said Offenheiser. "It is very troubling that people are afraid to peacefully express their concerns. Newmont must address this situation immediately."

Communities affected by mining projects should have a role in decision-making about how the project will affect their lands and livelihoods. The report recommends an action plan that includes clarification of Newmont's commitment to the principle of free, prior and informed consent for communities.

"Newmont's endorsement of the principle of free, prior and informed consent for communities would be an important step forward," said Offenheiser. "The key now is to engage with local communities and apply this principle to company practice. We are pleased that Newmont's board of directors has accepted the report's analysis and recommendations and directed management to engage with affected communities on the report's findings."

The Newmont report also highlighted community concern about lack of access to information about the revenues the company pays to local and national governments, leaving communities unable to hold their governments accountable for how mining revenues are used.

"Newmont has been a leader in committing to greater transparency and can help address community concerns about revenue sharing by recommitting to disclose all payments made to host governments," said Offenheiser. "Endorsing mandatory public disclosure policies like the Extractive Industries Transparency Disclosure Act would be an important first step."

Oxfam advocated passage of the Extractive Industries Transparency Disclosure Act, legislation that would require all mining, oil, and gas companies registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission to disclose the payments made to foreign governments. The bill, which was introduced by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) in the 110th Congress, is expected to be reintroduced shortly.

"Adopting a regional mining policy directive is an important first step toward strengthening regional protections for the basic rights and livelihoods of mining-affected communities in West Africa and ensuring that these countries' mineral resources contribute to their sustainable development," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America.

Ministers from 11 West African countries met on April 17 in Abuja, Nigeria to review a draft mining directive that covers a broad range of financial, social and environmental issues relating to the industry. The draft was developed by the ECOWAS Commission with input from government officials, civil society organizations, and communities affected by mining.

Revenues from the mining industry form an important part of the economies of many West African countries. However, these revenues do not always translate into benefits for citizens. For example, Ghana is the second-largest gold producer in Africa—producing 2.5 million ounces of gold in 2007—but nearly 80 percent of Ghanaians are living on less than $2 per day.

The ECOWAS member countries currently have individual mining policies, but the need for foreign investment often leads to competition by offering tax reductions and exemptions, which deprives countries of sustainable benefits. A strong common policy is needed to ensure that the mining industry respects the rights of local communities and the environment and contributes to sustainable development.

"Oxfam is particularly encouraged by the mining directive's clear provisions for the protection of the human rights of local communities. This includes their right to free, prior and informed consent, which gives communities a meaningful role in decision-making about mining projects that would affect them," said Offenheiser. "We also applaud the directive's support for the disclosure of financial and environmental information relating to the mining sector."

Too often, mining industry contracts and revenues are kept secret. This lack of accountability facilitates embezzlement, corruption and revenue misappropriation leading to the industry's failure to alleviate poverty in West African countries. Measures to improve transparency in the directive will go a long way to inform the public about mining revenues. This will enable communities to hold governments accountable for using revenues to support vital services like healthcare and education.

However, the directive does not cover all the critical issues relating to the impacts of mining on affected communities. In particular, Oxfam believes the environmental protections can and should be further strengthened.

"Oxfam calls on the ECOWAS member states to engage with relevant stakeholders, particularly civil society and affected communities, to work to implement the directive and further strengthen legal provisions to increase transparency and protection of human rights and the environment," said Offenheiser.

Back in 2007, ECOWAS requested Oxfam America's involvement based on the organization's experience and expertise in the mining sector. Throughout the process, Oxfam worked to facilitate civil society's participation in the formation of the mining directive. More than 50 West African civil society organizations from 11 countries joined and participated in the formulation process.

In the arid north of the country, where the government has prioritized copper mining, farmers and copper mines struggle to co-exist. Both need water, but the major copper mines, with support from the government and plenty of capital, are buying up the water rights. Farmers, many poor and without powerful friends in the government, are seeing their rivers and streams dry up—or worse, become so polluted they can't use the water.

In 2004, the 2,000 residents of Caimanes, a remote town in Chile's IV Region, faced an additional challenge: a massive tailings dam Pelambres Mining Company built on their doorstep. The dam, which collects waste rock from dissolved copper, would allow the Las Pelambres mine to continue operating for an additional 28 years. And the new tailings dam, when full, will hold 1.7 billion tons of waste.

Despite this huge new source of pollution to their water sources, local people had few outlets to defend their rights. Chile has no provisions in its laws on mining that require any citizen participation in approving or authorizing any expansion of existing mining operations.

But farmers in Caimanes and several other villages continued to voice their concerns that the dam would destroy an entire valley and cut off their supply of water. They said that acid will drain out of the dam, polluting what water that remains, and endangering the one stream that provides their town with water. Tailings dams are also usually a source of dust particles containing heavy metals—these can blow into town and poison people and their animals.

Caimanes is in the poorest region of Chile. Farmers there are concerned about their ability to continue to earn a living, but are also aware that a major earthquake could collapse the dam. This has happened before: In 1965 an earthquake spilled 10 million cubic meters (350 million cubic feet) of mine waste out of a similar holding area and killed 200 people.

Community response

In 2004 community members in Caimanes began working with the Environmental Oversight Office (the Fiscalía del Medio Ambiente or FIMA, a Chilean NGO). They gathered signatures on petitions and filed them in legal courts and requested an injunction to halt construction of the tailings dam. In 2005 the Caimanes community group representing farmers in the area alleged that the permit process for the dam had not been followed properly and that there were archeological sites that were being damaged in the construction. In 2007 a local court in the nearby city of Los Vilos ordered that the mine company halt construction of the tailings dam.

Government and company response

The Las Pelambres mine company appealed the 2007 court order, and the decision put responsibility on a government water commission. This commission had already approved a permit for the construction of the tailings dam, with limited participation from local farmers, so it allowed construction to continue. In 2008 the Chile's supreme court ruled that the right to water for the farmers affected by the tailings dam was being violated, and awarded each of the farmers $40,000. In December 2008 the company announced that it had finished the tailings dam.

Oxfam involvement

Oxfam America provided grant funding for FIMA to help the citizens of Caimanes to defend their rights in court, and raise awareness about their situation among people in Chile. FIMA advocated for a hearing at the Latin American Water Tribunal in 2007, which issued a statement calling for the dam construction to be stopped and the citizens compensated. FIMA has also published reports about the situation in Caimanes and prompted considerable coverage of this case in the international media.

Although the citizens of Caimanes did win compensation and a favorable judgment in court, they did not succeed in blocking the dam construction. "Unfortunately for the people, there are no winners," says a report published by FIMA, The Battle for Water in the Pupío Valley. "This compensation will not make up for the destruction of the quality of life in the valley." FIMA says in the report that the people achieved a "legal and economic victory, but a social and environmental defeat."

Nevertheless, the case sets an important precedent and provides an example to the global mining industry of how responsible companies should not operate.

El Salvador is a densely populated nation, with over 300 people living in each square kilometer (with roughly 800 people living in each square mile). It is also a country where 96 percent of the surface water is contaminated, and where only 3 percent of the original forest cover still stands. It is for these reasons that Oxfam, the Catholic Church, the Roundtable on Metals Mining, and other sectors of society believe that mining projects are inappropriate for the country under current conditions. With this telephone call to the radio station, the President agreed. His strong and firm position could have far reaching implications for the efforts of various civil society organizations to reform the current Mining Law.

The arrival of mining companies to El Salvador in recent years has provoked tensions and conflicts between affected communities and other sectors of society. Under the rules of the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), Canadian mining company Pacific Rim began an arbitration process last December against El Salvador for refusing to grant the company a mining production license. Saca says he would prefer to confront the company and be forced to pay it the US $77 million it says it has invested in the country rather than negotiate with the company and grant the license.

Oxfam America, which has raised concerns about mining activity in El Salvador, its impacts on communities, and its role in the development process, supports Saca's position.

"It's an important step for El Salvador to be the first Latin American country that undertakes a critical analysis of the costs and benefits of these mining projects and exercises its right to say 'no' to mining within its borders," says Andrés McKinley, a program officer for extractive industries with Oxfam's office in Central America. Oxfam America has an international campaign which maintains that both communities and governments have the right to know the full extent of the potential impacts of mining projects and the right to freely decide whether or not they want these projects in the country. (Right to Know, Right to Decide Campaign).

In its desire to turn the words of the highest government authority into a firm commitment, the National Roundtable On Metals Mining presented a memorandum in the legislature on March 3. This correspondence asks the legislators to vote in favor of a bill that prohibits metals mining in El Salvador. The bill was originally presented by the Roundtable in December 2006.

"The position of the president is an excellent one, albeit belated," says Francisco Pineda of the National Roundtable on Metals Mining."After four years in government he proved us—the communities, the church and the studies—correct: mining is bad. That's why we are presenting this memorandum, so that the President's message can become a political position," he said. "This issue was second on the agenda, which means it is considered important. Legislators of different parties and factions that wouldn't meet with us in the past are now doing so. We listened to the speech given by an ARENA legislator and he took the same position as the President. We hope this is not merely because we are in a campaign season, but that they continue to take this position for the good of the Salvadoran people."

Since 2005, Oxfam America has been working on the issue of mining in Central America. Through its studies, such as the recently published report, "Metals Mining and Sustainable Development in Central America: An assessment of Benefits and Costs"; its participation in forums; its dialogue with NGOs and government agencies; and media interviews, Oxfam has promoted public debate on mining. We provide information on mining and its impacts, and provide advocacy training to coalitions of organizations concerned about the possible impacts of this industry. In addition, we help coalitions engage in productive dialogue with the government, to develop concrete proposals, and use non-violent strategies.

This decision, reported by the Ghana News Agency, comes a week after the release of a report by Oxfam America and its local partner, the Integrated Social Development Center (ISODEC), on the challenges posed by Ghana's coming oil boom. The report, Ghana's Big Test: Oil's Challenge to Democratic Development, recommends, among other things: transparency of payments from oil companies to governments as well as disclosure of all petroleum agreements; open and competitive licensing procedures for oil and gas blocks; the active participation of civil society; and the establishment of an appropriate legal and institutional framework for the industry.

"This commitment by the government should be commended. In too many countries, petroleum agreements governing the sale of public resources have been kept secret. The new administration should build on this step to increase openness for more citizen participation in the formulation of public policy. In the case of oil, participation on the part of the people and of civil society has thus far been limited," said Ibrahima Aïdara, coordinator of the Extractive Industries Program in Oxfam's West Africa Regional Office based in Dakar, Senegal. "In addition to ensuring full transparency and public participation in the oil and gas sector, the government should also take steps to improve the management of the gold mining sector."

Steve Manteaw, media and campaigns coordinator for ISODEC, said: "President Mills has taken an important step to preserve Ghana's record of good governance and stability by preparing Ghana to support accountable and efficient development of the oil industry and the billions in government revenue it will generate."

The International Monetary Fund has predicted that government revenues from oil (producing approximately 120,000 barrels a day by 2011) and gas could reach a cumulative $20 billion over a production period of 2012-2030 in Jubilee field alone. The field gets its name from the discovery of oil there at the time of Ghana's 50th anniversary as a nation.

The Ghanaian president's commitment is in line with the objectives of Oxfam America's Right to Know, Right to Decide campaign focusing on greater transparency and the right of communities to have a say over how and whether oil, gas, and mining projects go forward. The emphasis on transparency and public participation is also a cornerstone of Oxfam America's efforts to increase public and civil society participation in the development of a regional mining convention being developed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Since last year, ECOWAS has been in the process of developing a mining convention that would promote common social, environmental, and transparency standards in the mining region across West Africa. Civil society is participating actively in the process and is ensuring that the concerns of the citizens, especially communities near mining projects, are taken into account.

"The new government in Ghana has a chance to take a fresh look both at preparations for the oil boom as well as the historical legacy of increased conflict and social and environmental impacts from gold mining production. The agenda for reform is both broad and deep, but the commitments by the new president are an important step in the right direction," said Aidara.

The independent review, released today, is the first of its kind by a major mining company and provides information about community relationships and important recommendations for improving the company's operations on the ground. The review, carried out over a two-year period, came at the request of shareholders, led by New York-based Christian Brothers Investment Services, concerned about protests and environmental problems at Newmont's mining projects around the world.

"The review is important for two reasons. First, it was driven by shareholders concerned about social impacts of Newmont's mining activities. And, second, the review confirmed that Newmont needs to take urgent action to improve relations with the communities living near its operations," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, President of Oxfam America. Oxfam will advocate for other companies to build on this experience in undertaking their own independent reviews.

The report indentifies problems with Newmont's community interaction at several locations, including sites in Peru and Ghana. Recommendations from the report include handling community conflicts at an earlier stage, holding management accountable for community relations, and establishing effective grievance processes at all sites.

Oxfam stresses the critical importance of community consent, meaning communities affected by mining projects should have a role in decision-making about how the project will affect their lands and livelihoods. According to the report, Newmont has endorsed this principle but has not fully implemented it.

"Newmont's endorsement of the principle of free, prior and informed consent for communities is an important step forward," said Offenheiser. "The key now is to engage with local communities and apply this principle to company practice. We are pleased that Newmont's board of directors has accepted the report's analysis and recommendations and directed management to engage with affected communities on the report's findings."

"The breadth of issues covered and the role of the advisory panel were encouraging aspects of this review," said Offenheiser. "However, the panel did express concerns about the company's resistance at times to providing requested information and laid out important suggestions for taking similar reviews forward."

Oxfam has particular concerns about the findings related to Newmont's Yanaocha mine in Peru—the site of repeated protests and violence in recent years. In 2007, local mining activists were the targets of harassments and death threats.

"The report identified an atmosphere of fear and intimidation among local residents at the Yanacocha mine, who worry about speaking out against the company out of fear of harassment by the mine's security forces," said Offenheiser. "It is very troubling that people are afraid to peacefully express their concerns. Newmont must address this situation immediately."

The Newmont report also highlighted community concern about lack of access to information about the revenues the company pays to local and national governments, leaving communities unable to hold their governments accountable for how mining revenues are used.

"Newmont has been a leader in committing to greater transparency and can help address community concerns about revenue sharing by recommitting to disclose all payments made to host governments," said Offenheiser. "Endorsing mandatory public disclosure policies like the Extractive Industries Transparency Disclosure Act would be an important first step."

Oxfam advocated passage of the Extractive Industries Transparency Disclosure Act, legislation that would require all mining, oil, and gas companies registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission to disclose the payments made to foreign governments. The bill, which was introduced by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) in the 110th Congress, is expected to be reintroduced shortly.

Since 2006, Peru has seen an impressive annual economic growth rate of more than six percent. Mining has been the main driver of this impressive growth with copper production doubling and gold production up 30 percent over the past five years. Peru's mineral wealth has attracted investment from a wide range of foreign mining companies, including 13 of 17 members of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM). Mining exports surpassed $17 billion in 2007, amounting to 62 percent of the country's total exports.

"In the midst of this economic windfall, Peru's regulatory infrastructure remains weak and under-resourced," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, President of Oxfam America. "Forty percent of all Peruvians remain in poverty; in the mineral-rich Andes region, poverty rates exceed 70 percent."

Since large scale resource extraction generates relatively few jobs, mining benefits must trickle down to communities through government programs that redistribute revenues. In Peru, this redistribution process has proven highly problematic because of limited governmental capacity to regulate the industry. Currently, the Ministry of Energy and Mines is tasked with both promoting mining investment and enforcing social and environmental regulations—a problematic conflict of interest. The new Ministry of the Environment should assume this role to regulate mining and strengthen the independence of this ministry.

"There is a justifiable sense of frustration among the Peruvian people impacted by mining who have not reaped the benefits of resource wealth generated from their lands," said Offenheiser. "They have not seen these revenues translate into health services, education, or infrastructure to improve their everyday lives."

In many areas around large-scale mining operations, this frustration has lead to conflict and violence. The Peruvian government's public defender's office, Defensoria del Pueblo, recently counted more than 70 active conflicts around mining operations spread across the country.

"Communities do not trust the government to address their concerns and protect them from pollution and other harms that mining can cause," said Offenheiser. "They're left believing organized protesting is the only option for making their voices heard."

The Peruvian government has cracked down on social protests and criminalized activities defined "anti-mining" for fear that local protests could potentially disrupt foreign investment in mining. To make matters worse, some mining companies have exacerbated social tensions by using private security forces that have been accused of violating human rights.

Several steps, outlined in a new paper from Oxfam America, need to be taken by government, mining companies, international donors and civil society groups to reduce conflict and preserve the long term viability of the mining sector in Peru. These include recognizing the right of community consent; condemnation of all threats and harassment; strengthening government capacity and independence; and full disclosure of information on the social, environmental and economic impacts of mining.

At a minimum, mining companies should actively participate in Peru's Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) process, a global initiative designed to promote disclosure of revenue payments by oil, gas and mining companies. Members of the US Congress can help take this a step further by supporting legislation to make revenue disclosure mandatory. The Extractive Industry Transparency Disclosure (EITD) bill was introduced in the House and Senate in 2008. This legislation, expected for reintroduction in 2009, would require all oil, gas, and mining companies registered with the SEC to disclose their payments to host countries and extend transparency as a truly global standard for company operations.

"By publishing what they pay to the government, mining companies could help communities hold the government accountable for ensuring local economic development," said Offenheiser.

International donors, like the International Finance Corporation, can support these efforts by insisting on transparency, backing government efforts to strengthen capacity, supporting civil society efforts to hold mining companies accountable for compliance with human rights and environmental standards, and helping the Peruvian government diversify its economy in order to the reduce the country's dependence on resource extraction.

"Acting with full transparency and involving affected communities in the process from the start will go a long way to address the underlying cause of conflict," said Offenheiser. "This would open lines of communication that could foster the long term viability of the industry and the ability of mining to contribute to the development in Peru."

Oxfam America is joining other groups in Peru in calling for a complete investigation of these events, and for the individuals responsible for these crimes to be brought to justice.

"We are requesting that the Public Ministry [public prosecutor] and the police carry out an investigation," said Javier Aroca, coordinator of Oxfam International's extractive industries program. "It is essential that these accusations be investigated and that those responsible are punished to ensure that the laws of our country are enforced and that the fundamental rights of our citizens are protected. In the future, we must be able to attain peaceful solutions to social conflicts."

Startling revelations

In January 2009 the National Human Rights Coordinator released a report alleging that 28 community members, who were concerned that mining exploration was being carried out on community farm land without their permission, were kidnapped and detained for three days. They had been marching to the mine site, where the Majaz Mining company (now known as Rio Blanco Copper) was exploring for copper deposits. The community members came from Segunda y Cajas and Yanta in Piura, and Jaén, and San Ignacio in the neighboring department of Cajamarca. According to the report, the march was peaceful—no participants carried any weapons apart from the machetes and whips customarily used when traveling by foot in the rough Huancabamba mountains. According to local leaders, they intended to go and speak with the representatives of the mining company, since other attempts to discuss their concerns had failed.

According to the report published by the National Human Rights Coordinator and FEDAPAZ, the community delegation of approximately 400 people was camped out the night before their planned arrival at the mine site when they were attacked by helicopters shooting tear gas. Soon after, police entered their camp and burned their equipment, food, and medicine. The next day the group was attacked again when it arrived at the Majaz mining camp, one person was killed, 40 were injured, and 28 were kidnapped and detained inside the mining camp. The National Human Rights Coordinator report says the detained individuals were subjected to "diverse forms of physical and psychological torture. As well as being savagely beaten…they were kept hooded, sprayed with tear gas and blindfolded, with no warm clothes in spite of the low temperatures." They were released after three days.

The kidnapped community members made formal legal complaints, but the public prosecutor in the region did not conduct an investigation. Instead, the government accused these individuals of terrorism, and they have been under police investigation. In June of 2008 the Human Rights Coordinator and FEDAPAZ filed a legal case in Piura against the police officers and employees of the security firm Forza who were working for the mine company. The suit also included the public prosecutor and medical examiner, who are alleged to have been aware of the kidnapping and torture, and failed to take proper legal action against the perpetrators.

In January of 2009 the national Human Rights Coordinator received photos taken during the three days in 2005 when the community members were detained at the mine site. The organization says the photographs, submitted anonymously, clearly verify the accounts of the detained individuals and have shocked many in the country.

Proper investigation needed

The Prime Minister and Minister of Justice have issued statements urging a thorough investigation of the incidents in 2005. However the police still have not identified any of the officers involved.

"People living in a democracy should not be kidnapped, tortured, and persecuted just for expressing their opinion and raising their concerns," says Oxfam's Javier Aroca. "We need our institutions to create avenues for dialogue so we can avoid conflict and ensure our laws are respected."

The report, Metals Mining and Sustainable Development in Central America: An Assessment of Benefits and Costs, looks at the current debate surrounding mining in Central America and the need for informed public discussion over the potential costs and benefits of aggressive development. Launched yesterday at a regional forum on metals mining, the report focuses on mining projects in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.

"Metals mining is often associated with vast wealth," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, President of Oxfam America. "Unfortunately, this is not the reality in many developing countries where natural resources continuously fail to contribute to the long-term reduction of poverty and communities have little say in how the industry affects their lands and livelihoods."

Despite a long history in Central America, mining has never played a significant role in the economies of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. Even if all the resources of these nations were developed, revenue from minerals would amount to only a small fraction of their broadly diversified economies.

But high gold and minerals prices in recent years have renewed mining companies' interest in Central American metals. The Oxfam report pays special attention to Pacific Rim Mining Corporation's El Dorado Mine in El Salvador, Goldcorp Inc.'s Marlin Mine in Guatemala, and Goldcorp's San Martin Mine in Honduras.

While mining companies and the governments that support new mining proposals have emphasized the benefits of mining, organized sectors of civil society are more concerned with the long-term costs. And there is a growing awareness of the decision-making role of communities near these projects.

"Mining companies must respect local communities' right to free, prior, and informed consent," said Offenheiser. "If they do not, a mining' project's costs will likely outweigh its benefits for local people."

While mining may create great net value, most of that value flows out of the country to the foreign owners of the mining company. Minerals commodity markets are highly volatile, modern open-air pit mining creates relatively few jobs, and the life cycles of open-pit mines are short, offering a small window of opportunity for integration with local economies.

Environmental risks include acid mine drainage and dam leaks. Although some of the worst environmental outcomes are preventable, mining companies have often not been held accountable for obeying environmental rules set out by the government or their mining contracts.

To date, community protests have delayed mining activities in Guatemala, prompted public scrutiny of exploration activities in El Salvador, and generated legislative reform in Honduras. The level and intensity of the resistance to metal mining in these three Central American nations demonstrates that local communities have judged the costs of mining projects to exceed the local benefits.

"Communities closest to the mines almost invariably suffer. This can be prevented if they have a voice in the decisions for the project," said Keith Slack, Extractive Industries Program Manager at Oxfam America. "What the mining industry could contribute to these communities must be balanced with the full scope of its costs, and communities are bringing legitimate concerns about financial, environmental, and personal costs to the table."

With more than half of the world’s poorest people living in countries rich in natural resources, the problems associated with oil, gas and mining booms—increased corruption, conflict and environmental degradation—are pressing concerns for Oxfam and its partners around the world.

"These industries generate billions of dollars per year in poor countries," said Bennett Freeman, Oxfam board member and civil society EITI board member. "The revenues amount to far more than official aid flows and could fund health, education and other essential services, but are often squandered or siphoned off by corrupt elites."

A lack of transparency in the oil, gas and mining sectors—including secret payments and contracts and opaque government budgets—is a major contributor to the problems in these countries. Since 2002, the global Publish What You Pay civil society campaign, including many Oxfam affiliates and local partners, has pressed for greater disclosure of payments from companies to governments, contracts and information on how revenues are spent.

The EITI is a voluntary initiative designed to increase transparency of payments by companies to governments. Since October 2006, a strong governance structure has been put in place for EITI, including a multi-stakeholder board including company, government and civil society representatives; a clear process for implementation and for third party verification of performance ("validation"); and significant international assistance to countries willing to undertake the Initiative.

Unfortunately, the EITI has had limited reach and, while some progress has been made in many countries, the EITI has yet to be truly tested. "We wish more countries were closer to validation. For any voluntary initiative, the proof is in the pudding and the pudding is validation," said Freeman.

"The EITI board's main challenge now is to ensure that the validation process is followed through for signatory countries. This has to be a main goal going forward, and it can only be achieved by guaranteeing the highest level of transparency in the process," said Maria Dolores López Gómez from Oxfam’s campaigns and policy department.

Civil society activists promoting revenue transparency have faced harassment, criminal charges and jail time in countries such as Gabon and Congo-Brazzaville—merely for exercising their rights to freedom of expression as part of their anti-corruption campaigning. "Gabon has served on the EITI board while at the same time imprisoning good governance advocates and independent journalists. Such a failure to respect the active role of civil society and human rights violations at home threaten to greatly weaken the EITI," said Ian Gary, senior policy advisor for extractive industries with Oxfam. "Unfettered civil society participation at every step of the EITI process is non-negotiable."

Twenty-four countries have become EITI "candidate" countries, but more than fifty developing countries are resource-rich. EITI does not require companies to act unless host governments decide to join the Initiative and the countries that need transparency, and EITI, are those least likely to join or to credibly implement the Initiative. Therefore, other mandatory measures need to be taken—and quickly.

The Extractive Industry Transparency Disclosure (EITD) bill was introduced in the US House and Senate in 2008. This legislation, expected for reintroduction in 2009, would require all oil, gas and mining companies disclose their payments to host countries and extend transparency as a truly global standard for company operations. The EITD Act would apply not only to US companies, but to all companies registered with the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). This includes European companies, such as Shell and BP, as well as those in emerging markets like China, India and Brazil.

In addition to the US passage of the EITD, other financial jurisdictions in Europe and elsewhere should pass similar legislation. In tight credit markets, extractive industry companies are seeking financing from public sources, including regional development banks and export credit agencies. All international financial institutions—including regional development banks such as the African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank and Inter-American Development—should require the disclosure of payments as a pre-condition for finance.

The next year will be crucial for real progress in the global movement for extractive industries transparency. Faithful implementation of the EITI complemented by new mandatory disclosure requirements will create a new global standard for transparency and help citizens around direct money to poverty reduction efforts that need it the most.

Ghana's recent discovery the major offshore "Jubilee" oil field has generated enormous interest in the country's oil production potential. While this would seem to be good news for Ghana, historically, the exploitation of natural resources in Africa has far too often led to increased poverty and conflict, a phenomenon often referred to as "resource curse."

"In too many countries, oil booms have bred corruption, underdevelopment, social conflict and environmental damage. Ghana's challenge as an 'oil hot spot' will be to ensure the right institutions and transparent policies are in place before production even begins," said Ian Gary, Senior Policy Advisor for Extractive Industries at Oxfam America and author of the report Ghana's Big Test: Oil's Challenge to Democratic Development, which will be introduced today at the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London.

The report identifies critical steps for the Ghanaian government, donors, oil companies, civil society and journalists to take in order to move quickly but deliberately in the face of the coming oil boom. These include transparent revenue and payment practices, open and competitive contract bidding, and active monitoring and participation by civil society. The report also recommends that the government enact a moratorium on signing new licenses, so they can organize an open bidding round and allow the country's legal and institutional framework to "catch up" to the pace of oil development.

"While these steps are not, by themselves, a simple recipe for overcoming the threats posed by the coming oil boom, it is difficult to see Ghana succeeding without them," said Gary.

Last year, Africa produced 12.5 percent of the world’s oil with great investment and exploration throughout the continent, but this has yet to translate into tangible benefits for Africa's poor. In fact, resource-rich countries in Africa have actually experienced lower growth rates than countries with scarce resources.

Ghana is one of the most peaceful and relatively prosperous countries in West Africa but remains poor with almost 80 percent of Ghanaians living on less than $2 a day. After democratic elections and a successful transition of power last month, Ghana’s new National Democratic Congress government hopes that oil revenues will help accelerate the country’s effort to meet UN Development Goals by 2015.

By 2011, estimates are that Ghana will be producing approximately 120,000 barrels of oil per day, along with significant quantities of gas. (The Jubilee field has 600 million barrels of proven reserves and 1.2 billion barrels of probable reserves.) The International Monetary Fund has predicted that government revenues from oil and gas could reach a cumulative $20 billion over a production period of 2012-2030 in Jubilee field alone. On Feb. 19, The World Bank board will consider $215 million in financing to Kosmos Energy and Tullow Oil in support of the development of the Jubilee field.

"Ghana's enviable record of good governance and stability makes this test even more urgent. Oil wealth threatens the growing democratic accountability that has been built in our country's recent history," said Steve Manteaw, media and campaigns coordinator for ISODEC. "The history of natural resource exploitation in West Africa has shown us just how vulnerable the people of Ghana will be without sufficient systems to properly manage oil wealth."

Ghana is no stranger to the natural resource industry. During the British colonial era, Ghana was known as the "Gold Coast" for its prolific gold deposits. With mining law reforms and changes to investment rules in the last 20 years, Ghana has recently experienced a boom in mining investment. But gold mining has led to small government revenues, increased conflict between companies and local communities, the removal of families from their lands, and increased environmental degradation. Coastal communities have seen how this industry has left mining communities, and they fear the same fate.

The problems of resource-rich countries combating the "resource curse" have recently risen to the top of the international development agenda with efforts to increase revenue transparency across the oil, gas, and mining industries. The report is being released on the eve of the fourth global conference of the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) taking place in Doha from February 16-18. EITI is a voluntary initiative designed to increase transparency of payments by companies to governments. While some progress has been made, the EITI has had limited reach. Ghana has published reports under this initiative, but has not been fully committed to extend this work to the petroleum sector. In the United States, the Extractive Industry Transparency Disclosure (EITD) bill was introduced in the House and Senate in 2008. This legislation, expected for reintroduction in 2009, would require all oil, gas, and mining companies registered with the SEC to disclose their payments to host countries and extend transparency as a truly global standard for company operations.

"While some progress has been made to increase transparency in resource-rich states, secrecy around revenues is just one part of the resource curse, and much more work remains to be done to prepare Ghana for the coming oil boom," said Gary.