Placed under the supervision of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Provisional Committee for Managing the Producing Region’s Oil Revenues (CPGRP) is led by a president, supported by a vice-president, elected by their peers. The Committee is composed of nine persons, all of them members of the producing region’s national representation, including three members of Parliament, two members of civil society, two government representatives, and two members from among the ranks of the traditional authorities.
In addition, CPGRP is assisted by a Permanent Secretariat, which has an operating budget. The Provisional Committee has the following mission: identify, select, and approve projects of regional interest, consistent with the national development strategy; program projects likely to be financed; make project execution decisions following approval by the Oil Revenues Control and Oversight Board (CCSRP); and tend to project implementation, execution, and supervision.
To build CPGRP management capacity for performing its day-to-day work, a Permanent Secretariat was established in October 2005. The Permanent Secretariat assists CPGRP in its analytical and decision-making role with technical staff. The Permanent Secretariat of CPGRP has had its own manual of procedures and its own internal regulations since June 2006, clear indications of a fully operational institution.
On the ground in the producing region, implementation of the Permanent Secretariat and its actual operations not only provides technical and operational support to CPGRP, but also reassures the population in general and civil society in particular as to the existence of the Committee. Its organizational structure reflects the specific nature of this unusual local development institution: coordination is handled by a Permanent Secretariat assisted by a project monitoring officer and an administrative and financial officer. In addition to these two assistants, there are two other specialists, one in procurement and one in infrastructure, who round out the staff.
Just a year after it was set up, the Permanent Secretariat has undertaken a number of activities targeting the inhabitants of villages located deep in the oil producing region, in order to make itself known, explain its mission, and, above all, inquire about the population’s needs in terms of development. At the conclusion of these various visits to different villages, the Permanent Secretariat has been able to identify and put together a total of 90 projects designed on the basis of contact with the population and reflecting the specific needs of the region. These projects focus on the following sectors: water, health, education, development of irrigation schemes, public lighting in major urban centers, etc.
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