Transparency in resource revenue management is frequently cited as an important strategy to avoid misuse and misappropriation. The underlying theory proposes that transparency will allow citizens to gain (more) information on their country’s revenues and their management; better informed citizens in turn will be able to contribute to the debate on national resource governance issues, voice their concerns, and demand improved accountability if necessary. However, there is little micro-level evidence so far to show how transparency policies actually relate to better citizen knowledge, or to any difference in attitudes towards revenue management and in demand for accountability. To address these points, we analyze data from a unique survey of over 3500 Ghanaian citizens to understand how Ghana’s extractive sector transparency measures are linked to citizens’ knowledge, rights perception, satisfaction levels, and behavior regarding resource revenue management. Our results suggest that information levels among citizens are generally quite poor; however, there is a strong sense of citizens’ right to benefit from resource revenues. Satisfaction with the current use of natural resource revenues is very low; yet, few respondents have sought more information, or even discussed resource revenue management with friends or family. The results also hold for elected representatives, who should be best placed to influence resource governance. The findings imply that the transparency discourse may hinge on false assumptions of the effects of information in resource revenue management. If the policy is to work as a way of increasing accountability of government towards citizens, the focus may need to shift to informing civil society organizations in particular, rather than simply making information available as widely as possible.

中文翻译：

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信息重要吗？加纳自然资源收入管理的透明度和问责制要求

资源收入管理的透明度经常被认为是避免滥用和盗用的重要策略。基本理论提出，透明度将允许公民获得（更多）关于其国家收入和管理的信息；反过来，更知情的公民将能够为关于国家资源治理问题的辩论做出贡献，表达他们的关切，并在必要时要求加强问责制。然而，到目前为止，几乎没有微观层面的证据表明透明度政策实际上如何与更好的公民知识相关，或者与对收入管理和问责制需求的态度上的任何差异有关。为了解决这些问题，我们分析了一项针对 3500 多名加纳公民的独特调查的数据，以了解加纳的采掘业透明度措施如何与公民在资源收入管理方面的知识、权利认知、满意度和行为相关联。我们的结果表明，公民的信息水平普遍较差；然而，公民从资源收入中受益的权利意识很强。对当前使用自然资源收入的满意度很低；然而，很少有受访者寻求更多信息，甚至与朋友或家人讨论资源收入管理。The results also hold for elected representatives, who should be best placed to influence resource governance. 调查结果表明，透明度讨论可能取决于对信息在资源收入管理中的影响的错误假设。如果政策要作为一种加强政府对公民的问责制的方式，重点可能需要转移到特别是向民间社会组织提供信息，而不是简单地尽可能广泛地提供信息。