History

The Natural Resource Charter is a global initiative designed to help governments and societies effectively harness the opportunities created by natural resources. Some of the poorest countries in the world have large amounts of natural resources. These can provide a pathway out of poverty. In the past, however, these opportunities have often been missed and resource abundant countries have consequently remained poor. Natural resources have the potential to be transformative if they are properly harnessed for development. However, the government decision chain - from the discovery of natural assets through to their conversion into a productive economy - is long and complex. This is why the process has so often been unsuccessful. The Natural Resource Charter provides twelve Precepts to inform and improve natural resource management. It will help to ensure that the opportunities provided by new discoveries and commodity booms will never again be missed.

The Charter has no political heritage or sponsorship.

The drafters of the Charter are an independent group of the world’s foremost experts in economically sustainable resource extraction. The Technical Advisory Group is chaired by Nobel Laureate in Economics, Michael Spence. The group comprises over 30 leading experts including Paul Collier, Director of the Centre for the Study of African Economies at Oxford University, Karin Lissakers, Director of Revenue Watch Institute, Tony Venables, Director of OxCarre at Oxford University.

The Charter is governed by an Oversight Board chaired by Ernesto Zedillo, former President of Mexico. Other members of the Oversight Board include Luisa Diogo, Mo Ibrahim, Shengman Zhang and Abdulatif Al-Hamad.

What makes the Natural Resource Charter unique? It is a common framework for addressing the challenges of natural resource management. It is also a tool for citizens. It has the potential to be an international convention in the making, but one that will be built by a participatory process guided by academic research.