Financial Transparency Coalition

Teodoro Nguema Obiang has controlled Equatorial Guinea since he executed his uncle in a bloody coup d’état in 1979. Equatorial Guinea is a country in Middle Africa on the coast. It is one of the smallest and wealthiest countries in the continent, in large part because it holds Africa’s largest oil reserves. Yet the wealth is extremely concentrated in the hands of the government and the ruling elite. Over 75% of the population lives below $2 per day, 35% of its citizens do not live past the age of 40, and nearly 60% do not...

OSLO, Norway – Global Financial Integrity Director Raymond Baker delivered remarks today on the importance of transparency in the extractive industries at the “Global Investors for Financial Transparency” meeting in Oslo, Norway. Mr. Baker focused on the importance of country-by-country reporting requirements for oil, gas, and mining companies. Attendees included high-level Norwegian and EU elected officials, regulators, investors, and representatives of the Oslo Stock Exchange.

Delaying Release of Final Rules on Extractive Industries Disclosure Law Will Hurt Developing Countries, Could Weaken Enforcement The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced in April that the final rules for Section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection act could be delayed until sometime between August and December 2011, at the earliest.  Once enacted, Section 1504 would require companies operating in the oil, gas and mining industries (the extractive industries) that have to report to the SEC, which includes—at a minimum—all such companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges, to report payments made to the...

LUANDA (Reuters) - Anti-corruption campaign group Global Witness has accused Angola of cronyism, saying the owners of a private firm that is bidding for oil concessions appeared to be top officials.