Victory for transparency in the US

ONE posted in its blog about the US Senate passing an amendment to the Financial Regulation Bill that will dramatically enhance transparency efforts in developing countries. The Cardin-Lugar Transparency amendment makes it mandatory for all oil, gas and mining companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange to disclose what they pay to foreign governments for the right to extract natural resources. Placing these numbers in the hands of local civil society will help them hold their governments to account and cut down on corruption.

US Banker said:

Amid the punditry over whether the financial reform bill will be effective, the measure received a ringing endorsement last week from the only expert that may matter (to some people, at least): Bono.

The lead singer of U2, and founder of the antipoverty group ONE, lauded the bill for including an amendment by Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., and Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., that would require companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange to disclose what they pay foreign governments for extracting oil, gas and other resources.

The amendment "is a great lever to support more transparency and healthier governance in poor countries," Bono said in a press release issued Thursday by ONE.

ONE had been lobbying for the amendment since May, when according to the organization, it had generated more than 1,000 calls from members and supporters for the legislation. 

ONE blog continues...

Now attention has turned to the UK. We need similar legislation over here so that companies listed on the London Stock Exchange, but not in New York, will also have to open up their books. The good news is that we’ve already started. On Tuesday ONE held a reception with the Publish What You Pay coalition for MPs and members of the House of Lords to explain to them exactly what was happening in the US, and how they could bring in similar rules in the UK. Author Michaela Wrong, whose most recent book looked at corruption in Kenya, gave a fantastic speech on how corruption and development are so closely linked.

www.americanbanker.com//www.one.org