Publish What You Pay

Who we are

Publish What You Pay is the world’s largest network of civil society organisations working to promote transparency, citizen participation and accountability in the oil, gas and mining sectors. We work with communities in more than 40 countries, to ensure that the revenues generated by natural resource exploitation benefit all citizens, rather than a small elite. 

PWYP was established more than fifteen years ago and we have come a long way. From a handful of organisations in 2002, the network has grown to include more than 700 member organisations across the world. We are a founding member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, the first global standard for good natural resource governance.  Our advocacy has led to milestones in accountability, such as legislation that requires major extractive companies like BP and Total to publish what they pay to governments for their natural resources. Combined, these successes have led to billions of dollars of extractive revenues to be publicly disclosed, a level of transparency that seemed unachievable just a few years ago.

Our global strategy - Vision 2025 – a people centred agenda for the extractive sector, builds on our success in securing unprecedented levels of transparency from the extractive industry, while placing more emphasis on making sure that transparency leads to broader changes that improve the lives of citizens in resource-rich countries.  It prioritises greater citizen participation in the governance of oil, gas and mineral extraction so that people can exercise their right to take part in decisions that affect them and can hold the powerful to account.  It also aims to connect to international efforts to curb poverty and promote sustainable development, redress inequality and prevent disastrous climate change.

PWYP’s annual budget of GBP £3 million is supported by a mix of private foundations and governmental donors, including the Open Society Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Sigrid Rausing Trust, Luminate, the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, DANIDA, and Cordaid. To preserve its independence, PWYP does not accept funding from oil, gas or mining companies. 

For more information, please visit our website. PWYP members and national coalitions are all autonomous and do their own fundraising. Where opportunities arise, PWYP engages in joint fundraising with members and coalitions, usually for multi-country, regional projects. Further information about PWYP’s joint-fundraising is also available on our website.