What does the West African nation of Liberia have in common with Australia, the land down under? Both are rich in mineral resources, for one. And in both countries, government decisions to approve exploration and mining projects are vulnerable to corruption.
These findings come from research done by Transparency International as part of our global programme to enhance transparency, accountability and civic participation in mining approval decisions – so that these decisions benefit the citizens of resource-rich countries.
Eighteen Transparency International chapters in a diverse range of countries including Liberia and Australia assessed how their governments award mining licences, contracts and permits.
We spoke with over 1000 individuals in government, the private sector, civil society and communities to understand how and why corruption can get a foothold in these critical decisions about whether, where and who to allow to extract a country’s mineral resource wealth.
We’ve learned some important lessons that are useful for resource-rich countries wanting to develop ambitious and effective open government commitments in 2018.
Here a few examples: