Govt. finally moving ahead with beneficial ownership registry

Jul 09, 2021 News

Kaieteur News – The Ministry of Natural Resources has indicated that it intends to start a beneficial ownership register, and is now seeking consultants to assist in this regard.
An individual consultant is needed to conduct a comprehensive Guyana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GYEITI) systematic disclosure feasibility study.
The EITI has produced a standardised model Terms of Reference (TOR) for implementing countries that wish to conduct such a study for systematic disclosure of EITI data.
The study would outline any barriers or gaps to timely, comprehensive and reliable disclosures as well as technical or financial support needs. The study would also propose a roadmap for embedding EITI processes and disclosures in governmental and corporate systems.
In addition, the Government is seeking individual consultancy to conduct a comprehensive GYEITI beneficial ownership register scoping study. Ethiopia had a study of this nature done as part of its EITI obligations. That study was done to provide a review of the legal and institutional framework for beneficial ownership. The EITI typically publishes studies of this nature done for its implementing countries.
As a member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), Guyana is late in its work on this register. EITI required all its member countries to establish this registry before the end of 2020. Requirement 2.5 of the EITI Standard (2016) specifies what countries are supposed to do to uncover beneficial owners. They have to ensure that all oil, gas and mining companies that apply for, or hold a participating interest in an exploration or production oil, gas or mining licence or contract, publish the names of their real owners. According to GYEITI, this should include the identity of the owner (name, nationality and country of residence), and whether they are politically exposed.
The EITI recommends that all beneficial ownership information is made available through public registers – at a minimum, published in the country’s EITI report.
EITI decided to crack down on the absence of public registers because its position is that hidden identities in the extractive sectors only help to feed corruption and tax evasion. It said that people who live in resource-rich countries are at particular risk of losing out, when faced with systems that are not transparent, as extractive assets are too often misallocated for corrupt reasons.
Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, had said last year that the government would seek out the beneficial owners of the oil blocks, but has made no further pronouncements in this regard.

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