It was a long day of not the most scintillating stuff, board and committee discussions and the like, but it finished on a high note. At the World Bank's EITI reception Obama adviser Michael Froman stopped by to offer remarks. Froman is, of course, deputy assistant to the president and deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs, serving jointly at the National Security Council and the National Economic Council. He was seen at the President's side at the London G20 Summit, responsibility for which is among his important roles. So his coming by to welcome EITI was a big deal. Froman recalled that among President Obama's very first official acts he issued an executive order directing that "government should be transparent...government should be participatory...and government should be collaborative" and that every move the administration makes is thought through from this perspective. Among the key words of encouragement were "the Obama Administration strongly supports EITI" and notes its unique achievement of bringing together public sector, private sector and the nonprofit sector. Froman noted that transparency is good for companies good for countries, and good for investors. He called out Azerbaijan for being first through the validation process and also hailed Steve Gallogly of the US Department of State for his service to the EITI board. Froman was later seen mingling with guests from Liberia, Azerbaijan, and the Publish What You Pay US gang, Sarah Pray, Ian Gary, and Corinna Gilfillan. EITI, Revenue Watch and its friends were buoyed by the high-level show of support. Where do we go from here?
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