November 21-23, the Eurasia Extractive Industries Knowledge Hub held a training on “EITI New Standards” in Issyk Kul, Kyrgyzstan. Trainers Ingilab Ahmadov and Fariz Ahmadov delivered presentations on “The Place of EITI in the Value Chain”, “Concept and Practice of Application of New Standards”, “Reporting Within the New Standards”, “Typical Mistakes in Completing Reporting Forms”, as well as “Opportunities for the Establishment of a Sovereign Wealth Fund in Kyrgyzstan”.

The training was attended by middle- and high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Energy, the State Agency on Geology, members of Parliament, representatives of local authorities and the EITI Secretariat, as well as independent consultants and experts. More than 40 people participating in practical sessions analyzed the new Standards and also the problems existing in decision-making within different agencies, for example issuing licenses on field development and further control.

In this training, the Eurasia Hub applied the Training of Trainers (ToT) method, using both trainer and expert potential. Two alumni of the earlier Baku Hub participated, and four others contributed their expertise on the extractive sector and the main problems of transparency in Kyrgyzstan.

Participants rated the training very highly and expressed interest in similar workshops in future.

The training was funded by Soros Foundation Kyrgyzstan.