24 Civil society engagement Progress in civil society engagement in the EITI was mixed. In some countries, the EITI provides scope for enhancing public debate and holding governments and companies to account. Elsewhere civil society has faced restrictions on its ability to play this role. In the Republic of the Congo, Validation showed that the EITI was an important tool for facilitating an enabling environment for civil society participation. Civil society was a key driver of the EITI process in Suriname and included representatives from indigenous and tribal people. In Honduras, however, many civil society groups had opted out of the EITI process, as it was not seen as addressing environmental and social concerns. Subnational/social expenditures Several countries have made progress in providing data on subnational transfers of extractive revenues and of social payments made by companies. In Madagascar, the disclosure of extractive revenue transfers to subnational governments has improved in response to local demand. Validation recommended that the exemplary disclosures of these transfers made in relation to the Ambatovy project should be replicated for other operations. In the Kyrgyz Republic, Validation highlighted progress in opening up companies’ mandatory social spending, providing detailed data to address demands for accountability from local stakeholders. Beneficial ownership In 2020, Validation started to assess countries’ progress in disclosing who owns and controls oil, gas and mining companies. The first phase of the assessment focuses on the systems established to collect beneficial ownership information. Afghanistan has started to disclose the beneficial owners of extractive companies through a publicly available portal. Cameroon among other countries, experienced challenges in requesting beneficial ownership information from all extractive companies and in reviewing gaps in disclosures. Over the past year, the EITI Board evaluated 15 countries on their progress in meeting the EITI Standard. On 1 April 2021, new Validations commenced under a revised model. Highlights from* Validation*