Dominican Republic

The government is engaged in the EITI process. Relevant government agencies have played an active role in implementing the EITI including engaging in the MSG process as full members and collaborating in technical support groups. Government agencies participate actively in the EITI reporting process.

Company representatives are fully, actively and effectively engaged in the EITI process. There is an enabling environment for company participation and all material companies participate in EITI reporting.

Civil society is actively and effectively engaged in the EITI process. Stakeholders are able to engage actively in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the EITI process.

The MSG has representatives from each stakeholder group with no suggestion of interference or coercion in the nomination processes. The ToR for the MSG addresses the requirements of the EITI Standard and stakeholders have not highlighted any significant deviations from the ToR in practice. MSG appears to be functioning well as an oversight body, although it rarely serves as a platform for policy debate.

The 2019 EITI work plan is publicly accessible, produced in a timely manner and updated annually, with objectives aligned with national priorities. The work plan also includes specific activities to follow up on recommendations from EITI reporting. The three constituencies have consulted their broader stakeholder groups in preparing annual work plans.

The EITI Report and the online portal provide a clear, concise overview of the legal framework and fiscal regime. Hyperlinks enable the reader to easily access further information. On-going reforms are comprehensively described.

Information about licenses awarded and transferred in 2016 is publicly available. The process for awarding and transferring licenses is described. Stakeholders did not express concerns about non-trivial deviations.

Publicly available license information appears to be comprehensive, and it is commendable that the government has published licensing documents.

The policy for disclosing contracts is clearly documented and full contracts are easily accessible on the ministry’s website. The EITI Report and the online portal provide a helpful overview of the contracts.

The MSG has published a roadmap towards beneficial ownership transparency. A working group is conducting an analysis of the legal framework and international best practices. The government already holds information of beneficial owners and is working with companies to enable its publication.

There is no indication that state participation in the extractive sector gave rise to material revenues in the period under review (2016). However, the information provided in the EITI Report increases public understanding about state participation, including debts that extractive companies owe to the state and the mismanagement of CORDE.

The EITI Report and the online portal provide a comprehensive yet concise overview of extraction and exploration, including links to further information.

Production volumes and values are available per commodity for metallic minerals. The production values of non-metallic minerals were disclosed after the commencement of Validation. The Board did not consider this information its assessment.

The Dominican Republic has exceeded the requirements of the Standard by disaggregating export data by company and destination. The data is published in open format, which facilitates further analysis.

Reconciliation appears to include all material companies and revenue streams. The reporting omissions by CORDE are documented in the report and do not affect the comprehensiveness of reconciliation. Total government revenues are disclosed by revenue stream.

Data is disaggregated in practice by project, as each material company only has one project.

Data has been published within two years from the end of the period covered. Efforts to include the most recent data in the EITI Report improve the usability of the report. Improving the timeliness of revenue disclosures is encouraged.

The reconciliation report documents clearly which reporting entities underwent an independent audit, as well as compliance with assurances agreed by the MSG. Although not all government agencies had undergone an audit, all reporting entities provided requested assurances and there were no discrepancies.

Revenues are largely recorded in the national budget. The allocation of funds to subnational government entities is comprehensively described and links are provided to further information about the use of funds.

Subnational transfers in 2016 and the underlying revenue sharing formulas are disclosed. Discrepancies between the two and a note explaining disagreements about the interpretation of the formula were published after the commencement of Validation. The Board did not consider this information its assessment.

It is encouraging that the MSG has included information on the budget-making process in the EITI Report.

All required information is disclosed, apart from total government revenues generated by the extractive industries as a percentage of total government revenues. The percentage can be easily calculated from the absolute figures provided.

The two EITI Reports produced by Dominican Republic have been widely disseminated both through events and digital means. EITI data is available in open format. Reports have been presented in comprehensible, accessible and user-friendly ways. There is potential to contribute further to public debate both on national and local level.

Dominican Republic has made efforts to improve data accessibility, and there is potential for further mainstreaming disclosures.

The government and the MSG have taken some steps to act upon lessons learned and investigate and address some issues in EITI reporting. More policy-relevant recommendations would help orient the MSG’s focus towards outcomes and impact.

The MSG has assessed the outcomes and impact of EITI implementation in a note published in May 2019. The Board did not consider this information in its assessment as it was disclosed after the commencement of Validation and lacked support from all MSG members.