15 Colombia In October 2020, the EITI conducted a pilot project in partnership with Directorio Legislativo to identify corruption risks related to politically exposed persons (PEPs) in Colombia. By cross-checking beneficial ownership data for extractive companies with financial disclosures, the tool generates red flags, such as potential conflicts of interest in licensing and contracting. Since beneficial ownership data is not publicly accessible in Colombia, the tool drew on proxy data from publicly available contracts. TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO Trinidad and Tobago EITI (TTEITI) launched the first publicly accessible ownership register in Latin America and the Caribbean in August 2020. The database contains ownership information for mining, oil and gas companies, including the names and registered addresses of natural persons, as well as the company tax identification and stock exchange listings. It also contains information on politically exposed persons associated with these companies. Although the register draws on voluntary disclosures, companies are required to declare their beneficial owners to the government under the Companies (Amendment) Act 2019, which aims to counteract tax evasion, terrorist financing and money laundering. The results revealed 19 red flags from a sample of 900 public officials and a more comprehensive analysis is expected later in 2021. The project was awarded second place in the IMF Anti-Corruption Challenge. peps.directoriolegislativo.org IDENTIFYING RED FLAGS IN COLOMBIA GOVERNMENT COMPANIES POLITICALLY EXPOSED PERSON RED FLAGS Politically exposed person Position: Member of the House of Representatives Corporation shares: Cooperativa Minera Boyacense, Carboneros de Boyacá, Ecopetrol Red flags found: Potential conflict of interest (an elected representative who owns shares in a state contracted company) TTEITI established the register as part of a wider public campaign to spread awareness among government, civil society, industry and media on beneficial ownership transparency. The country has since been removed from the Financial Action Task Force’s “grey list”, which monitors jurisdictions committed to addressing deficiencies in their regimes to counter money laundering. To this end, the register is a learning opportunity for the government, which plans to create a national beneficial ownership register for all companies. While it represents a significant step toward achieving greater accountability in the sector, further efforts are needed to ensure all beneficial owners are disclosed and that data is freely accessible. tteiti.com/beneficial-ownership-register