Natural Resource Governance and Development: Policies and Practice (Advanced Course)

Delivered in English

Note: The Advanced Course is an annual blended course. The 2020 course took place from October 2020 to February 2021. Please email training@resourcegovernance.org if you have any questions.

The Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) and NADEL-Center for Development and Cooperation at world top-ten university ETH Zürich will host “Natural Resource Governance and Development: Policies and Practice” course online and then in Zurich, Switzerland.

This advanced-level multi-stakeholder course is designed to equip a pool of exceptional individuals from government, civil society, parliaments, media, international development agencies, and the private sector, as well as academics, researchers, and analysts, with the knowledge and tools necessary to contribute towards better governance and oversight of natural resources for a better future.

The main goal is to introduce analytical tools of political economy to enhance understanding of the crucial impact of politics and power on policy outcomes. Each part of the course will include interactive lectures, group discussions, and practical skill-building workshops or policy labs, as well as guest presentations by leading experts.
All participants will attend sessions on the political economy of policymaking that provide a basic overview of all policy issues. Thereafter, they will be asked to choose one of two paths:

• Path 1: Getting a Good Deal: Designing and Evaluating Fiscal Regimes
• Path 2: Distributing, Managing, and Spending Resource Revenues

Participants also have the opportunity to sign up for one-on-one clinics in the evening with course experts to discuss the challenges they face in their countries and request advice. A limited number of scholarships comprising travel, accommodation and full tuition costs will be available on a competitive basis for leaders from government, civil society, parliaments, and media from the following countries: Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Mexico, Myanmar, Tunisia and Uganda. A restricted number of exceptions may be made from this list for outstanding applicants from other countries.

The 2020 course will cover topics including:

• Discovery and allocation of resource rights
• The political economy of natural resource extraction
• Fiscal regimes and taxation
• Managing natural resource revenues and investment
• State-owned companies governance
• Environmental and social impacts of extraction
• Corruption and accountability

Applicants will be asked to upload the following documentation:

• One page résumé/CV
• A short essay on the governance challenges associated with extractive industries in the applicant’s country of origin/residence (or internationally for global practitioners) and the applicant’s expectations of how the course will benefit them and their organization in their efforts to help address those challenges.

A limited number of full scholarships covering travel, accommodation, and tuition are available on a competitive basis for members of government, civil society, parliaments, and the media from selected resource-rich countries: DRC, Ghana, Mexico, Myanmar, Tunisia and Uganda. Women are particularly encouraged to apply. A restricted number of exceptions from this list may be made for outstanding applicants from other countries.

The 2020 course page is here.

Hear what the “Natural Resource Governance and Development: Policies and Practice” participants have to say about the course: