Reviewing of a research paper on Beneficial Ownership Disclosure in the Mining Sector in Zimbabwe and Development of a Position Paper: Zimbabwe Environmental Lawyers Association (ZELA) Deadline: 13 September 2020 Background The Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (ZELA) is a public interest environmental law organization working on the promotion of environmental justice in Southern Africa through sustainable and equitable utilization of natural resources and environmental protection. ZELA is implementing a project focused on Strengthening Mining Fiscal Transparency and Accountability in Zimbabwe. Despite Zimbabwe’s huge mineral wealth endowment, mining fiscal linkages are weak due to poor mineral revenue transparency and accountability. Policy gaps necessary to curb rent-seeking behavior pertain to failure to publicly disclose mining agreements; noncompetitive bidding in awarding mining rights; non-disclosure of revenue per project; non-disclosure of beneficial ownership; and lack of a computerized mining title management system. It is fundamental that the legal regulatory landscape for disclosure of beneficial ownership and control in Zimbabwe be enhanced to build confidence in markets towards vision 2030 of an upper middle-income economy per the Transitional Stabilization Programme. It is against this background that ZELA developed a draft research paper on Beneficial Ownership Transparency in Zimbabwe focusing on the mining sector. To that end, ZELA is seeking a Consultant to review this paper and further produce a Position Paper on Beneficial Ownership Disclosure to contribute towards fostering a culture of transparency and good corporate governance in the mining sector. Main Objective of the review and position paper To review the draft research paper on Beneficial Ownership Transparency in Zimbabwe focusing on the mining sector and develop a position paper to inform legal and policy framework discourse and reforms on beneficial ownership transparency in the mining sector in Zimbabwe. Specific Terms of Reference The Consultant will be expected to: Make the necessary expert judgement call to strengthen and update the legal and factual aspects in the draft paper on Beneficial Ownership Transparency in Zimbabwe including the rationale behind disclosure requirements; Demonstrate how the rules and regulations regarding beneficial ownership that are currently included in Zimbabwe’s corporate governance regime compare to global best practice standards and principles; Extract key elements from the final research paper to form a sound position paper to inform policy and public discourse on Beneficial Transparency in Zimbabwe; Come up with very specific recommendations to targeted audiences for key policy reforms on beneficial ownership transparency in the mining sector in Zimbabwe. Deliverables Working closely with ZELA the following deliverables will be expected from the Consultant within 10 days of engagement: A final publication-ready paper on Beneficial Ownership Transparency in Zimbabwe; A position paper presenting an arguable opinion to influence public discourse and policy reform on beneficial ownership transparency in the mining sector in Zimbabwe. Timeline The assignment will be conducted from the 20th of September 2020 to the 30th of September 2020. The final research paper must be submitted to ZELA by 30th of September 2020. Qualifications The ideal candidate should have:Demonstrable understanding of economic and political context in Zimbabwe; Demonstrable experience producing economic governance position papers in Zimbabwe; Minimum of an undergraduate degree in Economics or an equivalent. Possession of a Masters’ degree will be an added advantage.