By Nasratu Kargbo
The Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources Timothy Kabba has on the 7th June 2022, called on all permanent secretaries and heads of government agencies to aid reporting processes, by providing the needed data.
The minister was delivering a keynote statement during the launch of the Sierra Leone Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (SLEITI) 2019 report. He acknowledged that putting together the report was not easy, noting the difficulties in getting data, especially from government institutions. He, therefore, called on the state institutions to ensure that they make data available when needed.
He said he appreciated the different oil and mining companies for their cooperation and support over the validation process, by providing the data that the experts needed to compile and formulate the report together.
The minister stated that the combined effort in producing the report is a reflection that all parties want to ensure transparency and accountability prevail in the mines sector.
Kabba assured the public that the extractive industry will significantly continue to contribute to the country’s revenue, with the potential of oil production in the near future.
He added that the Mines and Minerals Development Bill of 2022 makes provisions for transparency and accountability and that government continues to engage mining companies to make local people benefit from the mining industry in the country.
The Speaker for ECOWAS Parliament Sidie Mohamed Tunis in his statement emphasized the need for companies and government agencies to allow access to information on extractive revenues, expenditures, and environmental impact. He said information to the public must be timely, reliable, and relevant for the understanding of all and called for transparency in the mining sector.
“It is important that we put transparency and accountability at the top of the agenda as we seek to promote sustainable development in the extractive industry,” Tunis pointed out.
He noted that the government has made strides in outlining goals, formulating enforcement mechanisms related to the environment, and creating accountability and transparency in the sector. He however acknowledged that more was needed to scale up decision-making in areas of information accessibility, accountability, respecting, and protecting the rights of the local people.
Copyright © 2022 Politico Online (13/06/22)
